Table 4 Changes in knowledge and attitudes regarding sugar-sweetened drinks

Soft drinks

Question/Statement

% with correct answer Pre-test

N = 421

% with correct answer Post-test

N = 326

P value

AOR^a for change

P value

Knowledge

How many teaspoons of sugar are there in a 600 mL coke

40.9% (36.0–45.4)

84.0%(79.3–87.5)

<0.001

8.34 (5.73–12.15)

<0.001

Too much sugar in the diet can contribute to obesity

64.0% (59.9–69.0)

90.5%(86.9–93.4)

<0.001

5.36 (3.47–8.28)

<0.001

Refined carbohydrates are a good source of vitamins and minerals (neg)

15.5% (13.1–20.2)

53.5%(48.7–59.5)

<0.001

5.79 (4.08–8.20)

<0.001

Energy drinks have high caffeine and sugar content

69.8% (66.1–74.8)

87.3%(83.4–90.8)

<0.001

2.78 (1.86–4.16)

<0.001

Being overweight or obese increases your risk of developing diabetes

63.7%(60.0–69.2)

86.5%(82.8–90.3)

<0.001

3.58 (2.42–5.30)

<0.001

Soft drink marketing encourages people to drink more soft drinks

55.7%(52.2–61.6)

79.8%(75.5–84.3)

<0.001

3.00 (2.13–4.21)

<0.001

Caffeine in energy drinks is good for children’s developing brain and heart (neg)

70.6% (64.6–73.4)

86.5%(79.7–87.8)

<0.001

3.35 (2.18–5.12)

<0.001

Upsizing is one of the techniques used to get people to buy larger sizes

43.1%(40.0–49.4)

76.7%(72.6–81.8)

<0.001

4.17 (3.00–5.78)

<0.001

% with strongly disagree/disagree Pre-test

% with strongly disagree/disagree Post-test

Attitudes

I enjoy drinking soft drinks (neg)

29.1%(25.7–34.4)

42.2%(37.3–48.1)

<0.001

1.49 (1.14–2.00)

0.009

I drink soft drinks because my friends drink soft drinks (neg)

15.0% (11.9–18.7)

9.8%(7.0–13.5)

0.060

0.53 (0.33–0.86)

0.010

I think water is boring (neg)

17.1 (13.5–20.7)

14.1 (10.3 = 17.9)

0.270

0.79 (0.52–1.19)

0.261

I like to drink energy drinks (neg)

51.9%(47.1–56.7)

63.0% (57.6–68.2)

0.002

1.60 (1.81–2.17)

0.002

Energy drinks give me energy to study in school or play sport (neg)

51.6%(46.8–56.4)

64.5%(59.1–69.6)

<0.001

1.65 (1.22–2.24)

0.001

I like to drink sports drinks because all the sports stars drink them (neg)

62.7%(58.0–67.3)

76.0%(71.1–80.5)

<0.001

1.95 (1.40–2.74)

<0.001