Intervention to test the feasibility and effectiveness of sweetness preference reduction in relation to hot beverages

INTERVENTION: All participants will be invited to complete a detailed baseline questionnaire on their current tea drinking behaviour, general drink and sweetness preferences. A subset will be asked to undergo an objective chemosensory test to ascertain an objective measure of baseline sweetness preferences (one pre‐intervention and one post‐intervention). Participants will be randomly assigned to one of three conditions. 1. ‘Gradual reduction’ intervention condition (n 30): follow a gradual sugar reduction schedule 2. ‘Immediate cessation’ intervention condition (n 30): completely cease the addition of any sugar to tea from day 1 of the intervention 3. Waiting control group (n 30): maintain their usual behaviour throughout the intervention Both intervention groups will receive a tailored intervention e‐mail containing an information letter and a mailed RESIST pack. The RESIST pack will include the RESIST instruction booklet, and three measuring spoons (to accurately measure 1 teaspoon, ½ teaspoon and ¼ teaspoon of sugar). All participants will be instructed to download a free smartphone application (‘PACO’) which will enable them to log the amount of tea consumed and their liking of their tea on a daily basis. The three arms will follow a similar timeline: 1. A 2‐day adjustment phase to standardize the baseline: Participants will be instructed to maintain their usual behaviours but to start using the measuring spoons to sweeten their tea with sugar and to complete the daily sweetness preferences questionnaires in the PACO application on their phone 2. The 4‐week intervention period 3. The completion of a follow‐up questionnaire (4 weeks’ post‐intervention) After completion of the 31��day intervention period, all participants will be instructed to complete a further online questionnaire. Individual assigned to the control group will be randomised to either of the active intervention arms and will receive the respective complete intervention materials. A subgroup of individ CONDITION: Adolescent nutrition ; Nutritional, Metabolic, Endocrine PRIMARY OUTCOME: 1. Tea intake (number of cups of tea on a scale of 1‐10), measured using an online questionnaire at baseline, at completion of the study and at the 1‐month follow‐up data collection wave ; 2. Liking of daily tea, measured on 9‐point Likert scale using a smartphone app daily during the 1‐month active intervention phase; 3. % reduction of grams of sugar per cup of tea/per day (questionnaire‐based data), measured using a smartphone app daily during the 4‐week active intervention phase SECONDARY OUTCOME: 1. Drink preferences (9‐point Likert scale) and drink Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ), measured using an online questionnaire at baseline, at completion of the study and at the 4‐week follow‐up data collection wave; 2. What is consumed alongside with tea, measured using a smartphone app daily during the 4‐week active intervention phase; 3. Acceptability of the intervention, measured using a semi‐structured qualitative interview post‐intervention INCLUSION CRITERIA: 1. Adolescent (>18 years) 2. Student at UCL or other UK‐based university 3. Consume sugar‐sweetened tea daily