Nielsen: Half of Americans Will Try to Eat Healthy this Holiday Season

As 2017 approaches, many Americans are preparing their New Year resolutions lists and planning to get a jump-start on a healthy lifestyle when the clock strikes midnight on Jan. 1. However, the holidays are upon us, which are often celebrated with family, friends and less-than-healthy foods. Even though 63 percent of Americans say they’re already trying to eat healthier in general, 68 percent agree that the holidays are a time for indulgence, according to Nielsen insights. 

While many Americans are planning to indulge over the holidays, 43 percent of consumers say they’re planning to eat healthier during this holiday season than in previous years. Meat tops the list of categories where men aim to eat better over the holidays, while women plan to look at the dessert category to make healthier decisions.

Though men and women are planning to cut back on specific categories over the holidays, they still enjoy their indulgences at the holiday parties and nights out this season. Some Americans plan to spend more this year on alcoholic beverages (30 percent), at restaurants (29 percent), in bars/pubs/taverns (27 percent) and on ready to eat meals (25 percent). But even more Americans say they’ll hold back from temptation and are not planning to spend extra money eating and drinking out over the holiday season.

While approximately half of consumers do not plan to spend more eating out during the holidays, it does not necessarily mean they’ll be making healthier choices at home. When compared to the average week throughout the year, consumers index lower across food labels that are perceived as healthier options—i.e., fat free, low fat, saturated fat and sugar free—meaning that they spend less on these items during the holiday period compared to the average week.

So while many consumers want to eat healthier, they are not necessarily making choices to support that during the festive holiday season. However, that doesn’t mean they will continue on their indulgence streak in 2017, with 59 percent planning to get their habits back on track and eat healthier in the New Year. There is a huge opportunity for manufacturers and retailers to provide consumers with delicious healthy meal solutions and help them crack the code to healthy eating and drinking during the holiday season,  say Nielsen officials.

The insights in this article were derived from: Nielsen Happy Healthy Home Survey, a two-week online survey conducted in English in April 2016 among 1,176 respondents and Nielsen Omnibus English language survey of 25,403 adults aged 18-plus from Sept. 7–Oct. 2.