Describes how a large ammonia release exposed about 150 nearby residents to this irritating gas and sent seven to hospital emergency rooms. Six weeks later the 41 most symptomatic…
Abstract
Describes how a large ammonia release exposed about 150 nearby residents to this irritating gas and sent seven to hospital emergency rooms. Six weeks later the 41 most symptomatic people completed questionnaires and had physical examinations. The 12 most impaired had subsequent neurobehavioral testing to see if exogenous ammonia was toxic to the brain as is endogenous ammonia in hepatic coma. Spirometry was used to test pulmonary function. Frequencies of 35 symptoms were obtained by questionnaire, as were medical, respiratory and neuropsychiatric histories and data on previous chemical exposures. Comparisons were made with unexposed subjects after adjusting for age, sex, educational level and other determining factors. The exposed group’s mean values were significantly abnormal for simple and choice reaction, balance with eyes open, color discrimination, visual field performance in both eyes and hearing. Also abnormal were cognitive performance on Culture Fair, digit symbol, vocabulary and delayed but not immediate verbal recall. Making trails A and B was slow and fingertip number writing had excessive errors. Spirometric measurements were normal. Confounding features and biases were minimal. Exposure to ammonia, for a few minutes to several hours, was associated with neurobehavioral impairment measured after 22 months. Thus inhaled ammonia shares the toxicity of endogenous ammonia. Effects were persistent and are probably permanent.
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By the time this issue of the British Food Journal reaches its readers, the Food and Drugs (Amendment) Bill is likely to have received Royal Assent. Since Parliament reassembled…
Abstract
By the time this issue of the British Food Journal reaches its readers, the Food and Drugs (Amendment) Bill is likely to have received Royal Assent. Since Parliament reassembled in mid‐October the House of Commons has been able to allot three days to the Committee stage of the Bill. The amendments made have not been of great importance. One amendment, moved on behalf of the Government, empowers the Minister to make regulations providing that food not of the proper composition may be treated as unfit for consumption and seized by Inspectors.
The brief announcement that the Government had accepted that there should be regulations on open date marking of food, to come into effect in 1975, will come as no surprise. It is…
Abstract
The brief announcement that the Government had accepted that there should be regulations on open date marking of food, to come into effect in 1975, will come as no surprise. It is a timely reminder of what public pressure can achieve these days; how sustained advocacy and publicity by interested sectors of society—magistrates, local authorities, public health workers, consumer groups—can secure legislative changes which, in this case, run counter to trade opinions and the recommendation originally made by the Food Standards Committee that such a proposal was not practical and the existing law was an adequate protection. This was stated in the FSC Report on Food Labelling of 1964, although there was no indication of the evidence reviewed or that the subject had been considered very deeply; it was, after all, only a small fraction of the problem of food labelling control. It was also stated in this Report that in certain cases, date‐stamping of food could give to purchasers a false sense of security, “not justified by the conditions under which the food has been kept since manufacture”.
Alhassan G. Mumuni, Karen M. Lancendorfer, Kelley A. O’Reilly and Amy MacMillan
This paper examines the role that attitudes toward online product reviews (OPRs), perceived credibility of OPRs and perceived benefit of OPRs play as antecedents of consumers’…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper examines the role that attitudes toward online product reviews (OPRs), perceived credibility of OPRs and perceived benefit of OPRs play as antecedents of consumers’ reliance on OPRs in purchase decisions. A conceptual model of relationships investigated posits that attitudes drive reliance and are in turn driven by perceived benefit and credibility of OPRs. The study also examines gender differences in the constructs and their inter-relationships.
Design/methodology/approach
Data from a structured self-administered survey of US consumers are used to estimate parameters of a structural equation model (SEM) of the relationships. Gender differences in the structural relationships are tested using multi-group SEM, while gender differences in reliance, attitudes, benefit and credibility are tested using independent-samples t-tests.
Findings
Results show a strong positive effect of attitudes toward OPRs on reliance on OPRs. In turn, perceived benefit and credibility of OPRs are strong positive drivers of attitudes toward OPRs, with benefit having a greater impact. Structural relationships among the constructs are invariant across the two gender groups. However, there is a statistically significant difference between males and females in reliance on OPRs, with males exhibiting a tendency to rely more on OPRs than females.
Originality/value
The study introduces two new constructs to the literature – reliance on OPRs and global attitudes toward OPRs – and provides initial conceptualizations and operationalizations. The specific results underscore the relevance and importance of further research on these constructs and their relationships with other OPR-relevant constructs. They also provide initial indications of gender differences in consumers’ perceptions of OPRs and relationships among these and reliance on OPRs that are worthy of additional research attention.
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Yuting Sun and Yixuan Li
Advertisements for dietary supplements (DS) often include misleading claims regarding their health benefits. In this study, the authors designed an online advertisement for…
Abstract
Purpose
Advertisements for dietary supplements (DS) often include misleading claims regarding their health benefits. In this study, the authors designed an online advertisement for plant-based DS featuring misleading claims and investigated its effects on mature Chinese consumers before and after revealing the false claims. A consumer involvement framework was developed to evaluate the mediating effect of advertising involvement (AI) on the correlation between product involvement (PI), situational involvement (SI) and purchase intention (PI).
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 467 mature adults aged over 40 years who resided in China's Yangtze River Delta region and had experience in purchasing DS online were recruited. Relevant data were collected through an online survey and analysed through structural equation modelling.
Findings
Cognitive PI was positively correlated with both SI and PI and SI was positively correlated with PI. AI negatively moderated the correlation between affective PI and SI. Both cognitive PI and AI were positively correlated with PI and the correlation was mediated through SI.
Originality/value
DS consumption is a rational decision-making process driven by utilitarian motives. Consumers who are aware of the misleading claims adopt a cautious evaluation approach and place themselves in specific purchase situations before making a purchase decision. This study advances the literature by incorporating the consideration of misleading advertisements into the consumer involvement model within the context of online DS consumption. The study's findings provide insights to intensify monitoring of false advertisements in the DS industry and design effective consumer education programmes.