However, when labels converted the calories into an exercise quotient, participant response was markedly different.
Statements such as "you will need to jog for 40 minutes to burn off the calories in this chocolate bar" changed how people perceived a food item.
Not only were people more likely to exercise when they saw such labels, they also felt more guilty, Ms Bouton said.
"My findings showed that the exercise labelling was significantly more effective in both chocolate and healthier muesli bars in encouraging consumers to exercise after consumption.
"It increased the likelihood of having higher feelings of guilt after consumption and was more likely to stop [the participant] consuming the chocolate bar with the exercise labelling."
Findings also found people struggled to understand labels on food items.
"Eighty per cent of participants wished that nutritional food labelling was easier to understand and 55 per cent said they had no idea what 1700kj was in calories," Ms Bouton said.
She said to her knowledge there were no products which explained nutritional information in this way and she would like to see more of it.
"I would like to see it on high energy foods such as chocolate bars and chips and softdrinks," she said. "They are the ones associated with high risk of obesity rates."
Recent Australian research into fast-food menu boards also found people were more likely eat 10 per cent fewer calories if outlets listed the energy content of an item on their menus.
Healthy Food Guide nutritionist Claire Turnbull said there was no clear-cut solution to food labelling.
"There's huge amounts of research and money ... going into trying to find a good solution to food labelling in this country," Mrs Turnbull said.
" [Exercise labelling] can potentially be quite helpful because at least people can understand what a 20-minute walk is and what a 50-minute walk is."
But, exercise labelling could oversimplify nutritional information, she warned.
"The problem again is it depends on how heavy you are, whether you're a man or a woman [and] how fast ... you walk.
"It still doesn't tell you how much fat is in the product."
Burning it off:
- Sanitarium Up and Go, 350ml, choco ice flavour, 277 calories or 1150 kilojoules = 25 minutes of jogging
- Coca-Cola, 600ml bottle, 258 calories or 1080 kilojoules = 24 minutes of jogging
- Maketu Pies Potato Top Mince Pie, 200g, 457 calories or 1912 kilojoules = 42 minutes of jogging
- Cookie Time Original, 85g, 403 calories or 1680 kilojoules = 37 minutes of jogging
- Fresh 'n' fruity yoghurt, 150g, 147 calories or 615 kilojoules = 14 minutes jogging
NOTE: Exercise duration is based on how many calories an 80 kg person jogging at 8km/h would burn according to the site weightloss.com.au - this would be 10.88 calories per minute or 45.5 kilojoules per minute.
