SynthesisObesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity2026
Combo Deals, Junk Meals: A Systematic Review Examining the Healthiness of Foods Promoted on Meal Delivery Apps.
Synthesis in Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Is there a healthy-food premium? A cross-sectional analysis of the UK online food delivery sector.Health promotion international · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
introductionMeal delivery apps increase access to unhealthy foods, contributing to an obesogenic environment. Promotions are widely used on these apps to influence consumer choice. This systematic review aimed to synthesize evidence on the healthiness of foods promoted on meal delivery apps.
methodsA systematic search for studies published from 2010 to November 2024 was conducted using three electronic academic databases and two search engines. Studies were included if they assessed promotion on third-party aggregator meal delivery apps and used an objective measure of healthiness.
resultsThe search returned 1449 articles, of which nine articles from four countries met the inclusion criteria. Three studies assessed food outlet menus, two assessed individual menu items on app home pages, and five assessed menu items on outlet pages. Most studies found that unhealthy foods featured more prominently than healthy foods through combination deals, volume incentives, and prioritized placement.
conclusionsFindings from this review indicate that unhealthy menu items offered on meal delivery apps are more likely than healthy menu items to be the subject of promotional strategies. Considerable variation in study methods limited the quantitative integration of findings, highlighting the need for greater methodological consistency in this evolving research field. Building a strong evidence base will facilitate appropriate policy development to support healthier choices on meal delivery apps.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.