The Youth Say–Do Gap: Why Healthy Intentions Don’t Match Eating Habits
Youth say they want to eat healthier but their actual food choices tell a very different story.
If you're marketing food or beverages to Gen Z, here's a statistic that we found fascinating: 72% of youth say they intend to eat healthier, yet 78% regularly eat candy.
This is the Say-Do Gap we are always talking about…and it also enters into the complexity of food in a meaningful way. If your brand strategy relies on stated intentions only, you could be missing out on opportunities or focusing in the wrong places when it comes to innovation, messaging, and product development.
The Challenge with Intention-Based Focus Only
As we all know, effective marketing is made up of both art and science. Both need to live in tandem – leaning into each where relevant to ensure that you’re maximizing the opportunity in front of you.
We’ve noticed that some (not all!) marketers look at youth specifically, asking what they want to do and build entire product roadmaps around those answers. While the data looks promising: 79% intend to drink more water, 76% want to eat more fruit, 75% want more vegetables, the reality is that those same youth reward themselves with snacks (80%), eat fast food regularly (79%), and consume candy (78%), often followed by guilt (58%).
Through IMI's GenPulse™ research across 5,787 youth aged 13-24 in four countries, we've measured this gap for decades. Understanding why it exists and how to bridge it ensures that you are focusing on what’s essential to drive growth and maximizing your resources.
Three Forces That Override Good Intentions
Our research reveals three powerful forces that consistently override youth's healthy intentions:
Emotional regulation is stronger than long-term goals.
Snacks aren't just food, they're rewards, stress relief, and coping mechanisms. When youth reach for candy after a difficult day, they're prioritizing immediate emotional needs. The guilt that follows (58%) signals opportunity: youth want reward without regret.
Convenience is non-negotiable.
Youth live constrained lives: tight budgets, packed schedules, high stress. Bread appears in 73% of diets even though 42% say they avoid gluten and 40% avoid carbs. Why? Because bread is cheap, fast, filling, and everywhere. Healthy options that require extra time, money, or effort lose to accessible defaults every single time.
Occasions demand specific solutions.
The same person who meal-preps on Sunday orders fast food during late-night study sessions and grabs convenient snacks between classes. One youth consumer represents multiple behavioral occasions that traditional demographic targeting misses completely.
The Framework That Predicts Actual Behavior
Through 50+ years of consumer research across 400+ categories, we've developed a framework that moves beyond stated intentions to predict real-world choices:
Measure both intention AND behavior simultaneously. Track what people say they'll do alongside what they actually do. The gap size reveals category-specific friction points.
Map emotional triggers to purchase occasions. Identify when emotional needs (reward, comfort, celebration) override rational goals, and design solutions that deliver both.
Quantify the convenience threshold. Determine exactly how much extra cost, time, or effort causes youth to default to familiar choices rather than healthier alternatives.
What This Means for Your Brand Strategy
Youth aren't rejecting healthier options; they're rejecting friction. Brands win by making better choices feel like easier choices: functional benefits that solve immediate needs (focus, energy, calm), portion sizes and pricing that compete with conventional snacks, formats that fit real occasions (commuting, studying, gaming), and transparent ingredients that eliminate guilt. The winning formula isn't "healthy"; it's "delivers the emotional payoff of a treat with the convenience of fast food and none of the guilt."
Diving below the surface
The Say-Do complexity reveals a fundamental truth: asking youth what they intend to do tells you what they wish were true. Measuring what they actually do tells you what your brand must solve for. This will help uncover opportunity to drive you forward!
IMI has tracked youth behavior across four continents for over 50 years, measuring the gap between intention and action across every major food and beverage category. Our GenPulse™ research delivers the cross-category benchmarks your brand can't develop internally - revealing not just what youth say, but what they do and why.
If you have a question or want to dive in further to your category or brand, feel free to give me a shout. Driving dividends for our clients by connecting brands and businesses with where they should focus to deliver future growth is our sweet-spot.
For a deeper look at Gen Z motivations, we unpacked their behaviours in our webinar, Stop Scrolling, Start Connecting: The Gen Z Playbook for Growth. You can watch it on-demand and access all the slides for additional insight.
About IMI International: With 50+ years of consumer research experience and 50,000+ case studies, IMI helps food and beverage brands understand the gap between consumer intentions and actual behavior. Our GenPulse™ youth research tracks real-world choices across 400+ categories in 18 countries. Backed by our full refund guarantee and supported by 150+ partners in 45+ countries.