In addition, market analysts Mintel say nearly half of British adults are 'fed up' with the health push.
"Almost three in five (58 per cent) say that it is difficult to work out if foods are healthy from the labels or information on the pack," say the report authors.
And over two thirds say it is hard to know which foods are healthy "as advice from experts keeps changing".
Mintel suggests a large chunk of the population is suffering from "chronic information overload" when it comes to healthy eating issues.
"Clearly, health education campaigners need to find new ways to encourage change for the better in diet among this section of the population," explains James McCoy, senior market analyst at Mintel.
But counterbalancing the overload, the report claims that British eating habits are still sharply polarised. They propose a "forward-thinking" sector of the population will take all on board in terms of diet and health issues, and be more discerning about the foods they consume.
Despite widespread irritation with healthy eating campaigns, the research also shows that around half of adults consider themselves to be overweight to some degree.
In fact, some one in five (22 per cent) feel that they are "quite a bit overweight". And fresh evidence to back the fact that women are the target market for food makers, with the report showing women are 25 per cent more likely than men (18 per cent) to feel overweight.
Overall in 2004, nearly half of all women (44 per cent) claimed to be trying to slim, compared to just 25 per cent of men.
"It is interesting to speculate whether there is any correlation between a relatively buoyant mood in the economy and spiralling levels of overweight and obese adults in Britain," comments McCoy.
Economic prosperity is likely to be only one aspect of a more complex set of factors behind the current so-called obesity epidemic, he adds.
Those aged 55-64 years old are the most likely to see themselves as being "slightly overweight", which is consistent with more sedentary lifestyles and a tendency to be fighting the classic middle age spread.
And 15-24 year olds are the most likely to feel that they are "about the right weight".
On the flip side to health, indulgence foods such as chocolate confectionery (31 per cent) and crisps/bagged snacks (30 per cent), both of which are heavily advertised, are the usual suspects in terms of people's food weaknesses when it comes to weight.
But Britain is clearly a nation of "sweet teeth". Indeed, some three out of the top four products people see as their weaknesses are sweet - chocolate bars, cakes and biscuits.
The popular no-carbohydrate Atkins diet may also have had an effect on what people see as their food weaknesses, says Mintel.
At odds with official health information advice, some one in six adults see bread as their weakness.
When it comes to cutting down on unhealthy food, the top three relate to cutting down the consumption of fat. Some two in five are at present or have in the past cut back on theamount of saturated fat they eat, making this the most popular change in eating habits.
This is closely followed by switching to lower fat alternatives such as skimmed milk (34 per cent), and eating fewer cooked breakfasts or grilling instead of frying (33 per cent), both of which may simply be seen as fairly achievable healthy changes to make.
But it would seem that the British public are less stringent in efforts to curb their sweet tooth, as only a third of adults are cutting down on sugar and chocolate at present, or have done so in the past.
"The fact is that foods such as chocolate are also important "mood foods", which for many satisfy an emotional need when bored or fed up,"says McCoy.
What is more, just one in five adults mention cutting down on crisps, nuts or snacks, once again falling short of the proportion who consider these products as the bane of their weight.