A survey sponsored by the Balance Bar nutritional products brand has revealed that 88 per cent of Americans say they know only a little about nutrition and 70 per cent worry about meeting their daily requirement.
The survey showed that seven out of 10 respondents wished they had more time to eat better, and that for 31 per cent of them, the on-the-go lifestyle they led was the main reason for the lack of adequate nutrition. While 32 per cent of the respondents said they ate on-the-go several times a week, just nine per cent of them made an effort to choose foods which were nutritious.
An overwhelming majority of adults (88 per cent) questioned in the survey said they wished they could find more convenient sources of nutrition to help them eat better - good news for Balance Bar and the raft of similar products designed to offer just that. Some 85 per cent of the survey participants said that finding such sources would help them to better meet their nutritional needs.
Most people surveyed - almost 80 per cent - said they generally got all their nutritional information from food labels - a clear indication that the information provided on food products must be accurate, easy-to-understand and useful. A further 41 per cent of respondents cited the Internet as the main source of this information. Just 10 per cent of those questioned had consulted a nutritionist.
The results of the survey make interesting, and no doubt encouraging, reading for Balance Bar and its counterparts who can rest assured that the market for their products will do nothing but grow as lifestyles become even more hectic.
It is perhaps ironic that while these products are essentially an offshoot of the performance-boosting foods created for athletes - in much the same way that the energy drink market has become popular among general consumers although its roots are arguably in the sports drink sector - by far the biggest market for them is in fact the everyday consumer who has little time for sport or indeed meals.
Not that the manufacturers are complaining, of course...