In the rush of everyday life, few people tend to dedicate more than a few seconds to reading the beverage and food packaging. But it is precisely in this small interval that one detail can make all the difference in health care: an objective and visible warning on the label that highlights the high concentration of possibly harmful substancessuch as sugar, fat and sodium.
According to research published in November 2025 in the journal The Lancet Regional Health – Europe, the strategy can bring benefits to the population. Through simulations, scientists from the University of Liverpool, in England, were able to estimate the impacts of mandatory frontal warnings on energy consumption, body mass index (BMI), the prevalence of obesity and mortality associated with excess weight between 2024 and 2043 in the British country.
The projections were conducted using two different labeling models. The first is known as the traffic light system and classifies critical nutrients with the colors green, yellow and red. The second, called a warning label, uses visual symbols, such as magnifying glasses, to highlight exaggerated amounts of nutrients.
For comparative purposes, a scenario of only voluntary use of the nutritional traffic light label was also considered, which is the strategy used today in England. If current rules are maintained, the prevalence of obesity among English adults aged 30 to 89 could reach 28% in 2043. The model also estimates the death of 16 million people from causes related to being overweight or related chronic conditions.
In the simulation that considers the mandatory adoption of the nutritional traffic light system on all packaging, there was a 2.3% reduction in the prevalence of the condition compared to the reference scenario. In terms of mortality, the model projects that approximately 57,000 obesity-related deaths would be prevented or postponed between 2024 and 2043.
With the mandatory implementation of the model that adds warning symbols to packaging, the positive effects appear to be greater: the prevalence of obesity would present an estimated reduction of 4.4%. As for mortality, the model calculates that around 110,000 deaths related to the disease would be avoided or postponed.
These benefits would occur both through changes in consumer behavior and as a response from the industry itself. Simple and straightforward labels tend to be better understood and discourage the purchase of products with an unfavorable nutritional profile. Likewise, the display of negative warnings on packaging could encourage reformulations of food recipes.
“The alerts represent an important advance, as they draw the immediate attention of people, including those who are not in the habit of reading nutritional tables, to the excess of critical nutrients in a product”, analyzes nutritionist Rodrigo Costa Gonçalves, from Einstein Hospital Israelita in Goiânia. “This allows you to make more informed decisions when purchasing food.”
Nutritional alerts in Brazil
In 2022, the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) made the adoption of warning labels mandatory in the country. Since then, foods and drinks from industry and family farming have started to display, on the top and front of the packaging, magnifying glass symbols that indicate the presence of added sugars, saturated fats and excess sodium.
“Before, labels required a high level of nutritional literacy. Today, with the simpler and more visual arrangement of information, it works as a quick warning sign”, points out Gonçalves. “In clinical practice, I notice that some patients started to look more at the labels after the change.”
This measure was designed as a solution to the epidemiological scenario of obesity and overweight in Brazil. In 2024, 62.6% of the adult population was overweight, an incidence almost 20% higher than in 2006. Obesity, in turn, more than doubled in the same period, jumping from 11.8% to 25.7%. The data are from 2025 report of the Risk and Protective Factor Surveillance System for Chronic Diseases by Telephone Survey (Vigitel) and point to a persistent trend, observed across all age groups, education levels and genders.
The impact goes far beyond aesthetics. “Excess weight is directly associated with greater risks of developing type 2 diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, some types of cancer, sleep apnea and joint or liver diseases”, warns the doctor at Einstein Goiânia. “The condition can also lead to significant impairments in mental health and quality of life.”
Multifactorial approach
O Strategic Action Plan for Tackling Chronic Diseases and Non-communicable Diseases in Brazilfrom the Ministry of Health, sets the goal for 2030 to keep the prevalence of obesity below 20.3% of the population. But, to achieve this index, changes in labeling alone are not enough. “Alone, labeling does not educate, it only informs. The strategy needs to be accompanied by professional guidance and continuous food education to generate consistent changes in behavior”, observes Gonçalves.
This includes, for example, promoting nutritional education from childhood, ensuring greater access to fresh and minimally processed foods, developing public policies that discourage the consumption of ultra-processed foods and encouraging the practice of physical activity. In this process, the role of health professionals is central. “Doctors, nutritionists, physical educators and psychologists need to act in an integrated way, not just prescribing diets, but helping the patient to understand the context, their choices, difficulties and motivations”, assesses the nutritionist.
