Children and Parents’ Awareness Regarding Potential Hazards Derived from the Use of Chemical Products in Greece

Over the last decades, human activities prompted the high production and widespread use of household chemical products, leading to daily exposure of humans to several chemicals. The objective of this study was to investigate the frequency of chemicals’ use by children and parents in Greece and estimate the level of risk awareness and understanding among them. A total of 575 parents and children were asked to answer an anonymous, closed-ended, validated, and self-administered questionnaire. One-third of the children and almost half of the parents participating in the study believed that commonly used chemical products do not pose any risk to human health or to the environment, despite the product labelling. The majority of both children (61.8%) and parents (70.6%) were informed about product safety via the product labelling. Around 20% in both groups could not differentiate between systemic toxicity and acute lethal effects depicted by pictograms on the label and milder hazards, such as skin irritation. Moreover, the information on hazard and precautionary statements appearing on the label was very poorly perceived. Therefore, as both children and parents seem not to clearly identify the hazards and risks arising from the use of everyday chemical products, targeted awareness policies should be implemented to support the safe use of household products.

Factors Associated with Adolescents’ Support for Product Information and Health Messaging on Alcohol Packaging: A Cross-Sectional Study in the United Kingdom

Aims Adolescents in the UK are among the heaviest drinkers in Europe. The World Health Organization recommends alcohol product labelling to inform consumers about product information and health risks associated with alcohol use. This study investigates support for product information and health messaging on alcohol packaging among UK adolescents. Methods The 2019 UK Youth Alcohol Policy Survey was an online cross-sectional survey among 3388 adolescents aged 11–19. Participants indicated their support for seven forms of messaging on packaging (e.g. number of alcohol units, links to health conditions). Logistic regression models investigated associations between support for each of the seven forms and alcohol use, perceived risks of alcohol use, and previous exposure to messaging. Results Between 60 and 79% of adolescents were supportive of different aspects of product labelling. Compared to lower-risk drinkers, higher-risk drinkers (AUDIT-C 5+) had higher odds of supporting including the number of alcohol units (OR: 1.82, 95% CI: 1.31–2.54), calories (OR: 1.52, 95% CI: 1.04–1.68), and strength of the product (OR: 1.73, 95% CI: 1.19–2.52) but lower odds of supporting including information on alcohol-related health conditions (OR: 0.68, 95% CI: 0.53–0.87). Adolescents who perceived risks of alcohol use more strongly were more likely to support all forms of product information and messaging. Conclusions The majority of adolescents supported improved alcohol labelling. Higher-risk drinkers were supportive of improved product information but less supportive of health-related messaging. Adolescents who believe alcohol carries health risks were more likely to support messaging.

Development and testing of relative risk-based health messages for electronic cigarette products

Background Health messages on e-cigarette packs emphasise nicotine addiction or harms using similar wording to warnings on cigarette packs. These may not be appropriate for e-cigarettes which constitute a reduced risk alternative for smokers. This research aimed to (1) develop and test a selection of relative risk messages for e-cigarette products; (2) compare these to the two current EU Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) nicotine addiction messages; and (3) explore differences between smokers, non-smokers and dual users. Method Twenty-six messages focusing on either harm-reduction or cessation were developed and rated by multidisciplinary experts for accuracy, persuasiveness and clarity. The eight highest ranking messages were compared alongside the TPD messages in a sample of 983 European residents (316 smokers, 327 non-smokers, 340 dual users) on understandability, believability and convincingness. Results On all three constructs combined, the two TPD messages rated the highest, closely followed by four relative risk messages “Completely switching to e-cigarettes lowers your risk of smoking related diseases”, “Use of this product is much less harmful than smoking”, “Completely switching to e-cigarettes is a healthier alternative to smoking”, and “This product presents substantially lower risks to health than cigarettes” which did not differ statistically from the TPD messages. Non-smokers rated TPD1 significantly higher overall than dual users. Dual users rated “This product is a safer alternative to smoking” significantly higher than non-smokers. Messages did not differ on understandability. Conclusions These alternative messages provide a useful resource for future research and for policy makers considering updating e-cigarette product labelling.

Communicating Returnable Packaging Through Product Labelling

This research seeks to find effective ways to communicate returnable packaging campaigns to consumers through product labelling. This is an important line of inquiry as more and more countries are rolling out regulations that penalize companies for their wasteful practices. Knowing how to encourage people to engage with returnable packaging campaigns will be of great interest to future marketers and sustainability practitioners. This research uses experimental approach with the use of online questionnaires showcasing different label messages. Results show that the conventional method of tapping into the altruistic side of human nature with guilt-inducing messages is ineffective for the population at large. Embracing the self-enhancing, gain-seeking, pain-eliminating side of human nature results in a bigger pro-environmental behaviour change. Making the process of “doing the right thing” easier resulted in the higher willingness to return an empty milk bottle among participants when compared to financial rewards, social modelling, and justification.

Communicating Returnable Packaging Through Product Labelling

This research seeks to find effective ways to communicate returnable packaging campaigns to consumers through product labelling. This is an important line of inquiry as more and more countries are rolling out regulations that penalize companies for their wasteful practices. Knowing how to encourage people to engage with returnable packaging campaigns will be of great interest to future marketers and sustainability practitioners. This research uses experimental approach with the use of online questionnaires showcasing different label messages. Results show that the conventional method of tapping into the altruistic side of human nature with guilt-inducing messages is ineffective for the population at large. Embracing the self-enhancing, gain-seeking, pain-eliminating side of human nature results in a bigger pro-environmental behaviour change. Making the process of “doing the right thing” easier resulted in the higher willingness to return an empty milk bottle among participants when compared to financial rewards, social modelling, and justification.

MO555ASSESSMENT OF HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE (HRQOL) MEASURES FOR PAEDIATRIC PATIENTS WITH ANAEMIA OF CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (CKD)

Background and Aims Anaemia is a common complication of CKD in children that is associated with adverse clinical outcomes, including poor physical functioning for patients and lower HRQoL for patients and caregivers.1 Given the subjective nature of the disease, instruments that measure patient- and/or observer-reported outcomes (PROs/ObsROs), by collecting information about symptom severity and HRQoL, could be of value to assess treatment benefit. We determined which aspects of anaemia of CKD and its treatments are important for paediatric patients and their caregivers, and examined which PRO/ObsRO instruments comprehensively capture patients’ and caregivers’ experiences. Method A targeted literature review and database search were performed to find a) qualitative and quantitative studies of symptoms and related health outcomes in paediatric patients with anaemia of CKD; b) related clinical practice guidelines; and c) HRQoL information in product labelling. Study outcomes were used to develop a structured representation of health outcomes concepts and issues (‘conceptual model’) capturing the symptoms, perceptions of treatment and impact on HRQoL of anaemia of CKD, from the perspective of both paediatric patients and their caregivers. PRO and ObsRO instruments were identified from published quantitative studies and ongoing clinical trials, and a selection was then critically assessed to determine their content validity and whether their psychometric properties adequately covered the conceptual model domains. Results The conceptual model captured shortness of breath, fatigue and headaches as the most important symptoms experienced by paediatric patients with anaemia of CKD. Concerns regarding disease management included medical interventions, fear associated with interventions and the need for information about the disease. Disease symptoms and their management impacted seven HRQoL domains, namely physical, emotional and social functioning; activities of daily living; and effects on family, work and caregivers (Figure). The quantitative search of published studies identified 20 unique instruments; of these, the most frequently used was Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory™ (PedsQL) Version 4.0. Ongoing clinical trials used 14 unique instruments, of which only EQ-5D-Y was used in more than one study. Two clinical practice guidelines (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes) supported measurements of HRQoL, symptoms, patient preferences and school attendance/performance, but they did not advocate use of any specific instruments. No HRQoL product labelling information was identified. Based on the conceptual model, the literature review results and age group coverage, five instruments were selected for critical appraisal: PedsQL, PedsQL Infant Scales, PedsQL Multidimensional Fatigue Scale, PedsQL v3.0 End Stage Renal Disease module, and EQ-5D-Y. Between them, these instruments provided complete coverage of the impact of fatigue and headaches, and partial coverage of the effects on physical functioning, activities of daily living, emotional functioning and social functioning. None of these instruments measured the impact of shortness of breath, and there was no coverage of the consequences for work or the family’s/caregivers’ HRQoL. Conclusion Anaemia of CKD affects many HRQoL domains for paediatric patients and their caregivers. While current PRO/ObsRO instruments partially address these impacts, no single instrument in our assessment measured all symptoms and domains of interest to patients and caregivers. Multiple instruments should be included in clinical studies to capture symptoms and HRQoL important to patients, and adequate measurement of the effects of anaemia on work or the family’s/caregivers’ HRQoL might require development of a new instrument.

Tracking and Traceability

The ability to trace a cellular product from donor to patient and vice versa is essential for the patient’s safety. Uniform product description as well as standardization of product labelling is necessary to ensure adequate tracking and tracing of cellular products.Also, with the increasing use of automated systems, accurate and unambiguous electronic transfer of product information is critical.Standardization comprises several elements which together will form an ‘information environment’. Together with electronic standards such as ISBT128 and Eurocode, this will further enhance safety, accuracy and efficiency in tracking and tracing cellular products.