![\"Getty](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/3d7f\/live\/0a75b2f0-d4cb-11ef-9789-03dbac2525e2.jpg.webp\")
Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\nPutting calories on food labels and menus “is no silver bullet”, say researchers who analysed the best evidence to date on how effective the policy can be.<\/p>\n A review of 25 studies<\/a> on calorie labelling in a number of countries found a small reduction in the calories people chose to eat – equivalent to two almonds – but even this modest effect could help prevent adults putting on weight as they get older.<\/p>\n The new rules on calorie labelling came into force in England in 2022<\/a> as part of government plans to encourage people to make healthier choices.<\/p>\n The government said it would continue to evaluate the impact, including on people with eating disorders.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Restaurants, cafes and take-aways with more than 250 staff must now show how many calories are in meals on their menus.<\/p>\n For Imara, a 27-year-old HR assistant from Birmingham, the change has been a positive part of her weight-loss journey.<\/p>\n “It has meant that I have been able to stay on track, stay within my calorie deficit and still enjoy a nice meal out with friends, or with my husband, and still have a good time and not worry about falling off track.<\/p>\n “Sometimes I will just have a meal and not think about the calories,” she says. <\/p>\n “But if it is a day or a week where I do want to stay on track then I will look at the calories and see whether it is something that will fit within my goals.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The research looked at studies of the impact of calorie labels in supermarkets, restaurants and other food outlets in countries including the United States, UK, Canada and France.<\/p>\n In a 600-calorie meal, it found an average reduction of 11 calories (or 1.8%) in the food people chose and bought.<\/p>\n Senior author Dr Gareth Hollands from University College London, said there was “a small but potentially meaningful effect on people’s food choices” but “we should not expect miracles”.<\/p>\n He said calorie labelling “may have a useful role” alongside other measures, such as taxes on food and drinks, marketing restrictions and reformulation – making manufacturers adjust recipes for food products to make them healthier.<\/p>\n Dr Natasha Clarke of Bath Spa University, who began the project at the University of Cambridge, says the evidence is “robust”.<\/p>\n And as calorie labelling becomes more widespread, the effect could have a “meaningful contribution” to public health.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n However, charities say the policy can make people with eating disorders feel more anxious about food, which could trigger a relapse.<\/p>\n Milly Goldsmith, 27, a lifestyle influencer from London, struggled with anorexia nervosa and body dysmorphia from the age of 13 to 18.<\/p>\n She says calorie counting is what “fed” her eating disorder.<\/p>\n “I really feel it is just reinforcing those eating habits and making it a really toxic way to look at food.”<\/p>\n Though Milly is in recovery, she describes the constant battle between her “eating- disorder brain” and “logical brain” not to fixate on the calories in her meals.<\/p>\n The review acknowledged a “lack of data” of the possible harms including mental health impacts, and the authors have recommended future research to assess this.<\/p>\n To encourage healthier eating, the government has already announced plans to ban junk food adverts on TV and online in England, alongside calorie labelling.<\/p>\n This is part of a wider plan to tackle high rates of obesity<\/a>.<\/p>\n A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “We have also given local authorities stronger powers to block applications for unhealthy takeaways near schools, to stop fast-food giants targeting pupils.”<\/p>\n The Scottish government has been consulting on whether restaurants and cafes must display calorie levels.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/bbcx\/grey-placeholder.png\")
![\"Imara,](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/d07b\/live\/0fbe3690-d4c3-11ef-beca-ad1c2b1f2905.jpg.webp\")
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n‘Toxic way to look at food’<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
![\"Milly](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/8e9b\/live\/7b2b6ae0-d4ca-11ef-9789-03dbac2525e2.jpg.webp\")
Milly Goldsmith<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n