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The evaluation of a personalised nutrition and physical activity tool to facilitate lifestyle changes for adults with poor-quality diets

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 March 2023

S.L. Wilson-Barnes
Affiliation:
School of Biosciences & Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford, UK
S.A. Lanham-New
Affiliation:
School of Biosciences & Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford, UK
L. Gymopoulos
Affiliation:
Centre for Research & Technology Hellas, Thessaloniki, Greece
V. Solachidis
Affiliation:
Centre for Research & Technology Hellas, Thessaloniki, Greece
K. Dimitopoulos
Affiliation:
Centre for Research & Technology Hellas, Thessaloniki, Greece
K. Rouskas
Affiliation:
Centre for Research & Technology Hellas, Thessaloniki, Greece
N. Argiriou
Affiliation:
Centre for Research & Technology Hellas, Thessaloniki, Greece
D. Tsatsou
Affiliation:
Centre for Research & Technology Hellas, Thessaloniki, Greece
J.M. Botana
Affiliation:
GrupoCMC, Madrid, Spain
R. Leoni
Affiliation:
Datawizard, Rome, Italy
N. Merry
Affiliation:
OCADO Technology, Hatfield, London, UK
E. Lalama
Affiliation:
Department of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Nutrition and the German Institute of Human Nutrition, Charité- Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany
A. Pfeiffer
Affiliation:
Department of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Nutrition and the German Institute of Human Nutrition, Charité- Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany
M. Hassapidou
Affiliation:
Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Alexander Technological Educational Institute of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
I. Pagkalos
Affiliation:
Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Alexander Technological Educational Institute of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
E. Patra
Affiliation:
Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Alexander Technological Educational Institute of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
V. Cornelissen
Affiliation:
Department of Rehabilitation Sciences and Department of Cardiovascular Sciences; Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium
E. Decorte
Affiliation:
Department of Rehabilitation Sciences and Department of Cardiovascular Sciences; Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium
S. Balula Dias
Affiliation:
Faculdade de Motricidade Human, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
Y. Oikonomidis
Affiliation:
Intrasoft International SA, Thessaloniki, Greece
E. Mantovani
Affiliation:
Research Group on Law, Science, Technology and Society, Faculty of Law & Criminology, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
M. Jaksic
Affiliation:
BioSense Institute, Research and Development Institute for Information Technology in Biosystems, Vojvodina, Serbia
B. Brkic
Affiliation:
BioSense Institute, Research and Development Institute for Information Technology in Biosystems, Vojvodina, Serbia
K. Hart
Affiliation:
School of Biosciences & Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford, UK
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Abstract

Type
Abstract
Copyright
Copyright © The Authors 2023

Supporting the adoption of a healthy lifestyle is essential to reduce the impact of non-communicable diseases and improve public health. The PROTEIN project(Reference Wilson-Barnes, Gymnopoulos and Dimitropoulos1), through advances in computer technology, aimed to create a novel personalised mobile application (app) and support system for healthy living and eating. This study assesses the effectiveness and perceived usefulness of advice provided by the PROTEIN app to facilitate lifestyle changes within two population groups. Eighty participants were recruited from the UK general public into two sub-groups: i) adults with excess weight (OW, n 40; BMI: 25–30 kg/m2) and ii) adults with poor-quality diets (PQD, n 40; Hb < 120g/L or adults with low fruit/ vegetable intake, defined as < 3 portions / d). Participants attended the University to provide baseline anthropometric, physical activity and general health data (or self- reported during a virtual appointment). App registration was completed using anthropometric data alongside dietary preferences and dietary ‘goals’. Participants were asked to log in to the app and follow the individualised 7-day nutrition and activity plans (NAP) recommended, and to interact with the system, via the meal logging and meal rating systems to ‘train’ the reasoning-based decision support system (RDSS) within the PROTEIN framework (1,2). After 4 weeks of use, participants were asked to report their current weight and complete two online evaluation questionnaires for system usability and behaviour change. A favourable ethical opinion was received from the Health Research Authority (ID: 294871). Data were checked for normality and are presented as mean (± SD); significance was set at p < 0.05.

Mean age for the whole sample was 44.7 ± 16.1 years. There was no significant difference found in BMI between the OW or PQD groups: 27.8 ± 0.3 vs 27.6 ± 7.5 kg/m2 (p = 0.431), respectively. OW participants that completed the 4-week intervention questionnaire reported an average weight loss of -1.4 ± 1.4 kg (n 27). Although comments from individuals suggest that the app improved their self-awareness of dietary intake and quality, quantitative data from the usability survey suggests that 57% of users agreed that they found the app “cumbersome”.

Previous tests of the app have suggested that it can provide appropriate NAP recommendations to users (2). This preliminary analysis suggests that it can also support individuals to achieve their specific nutritional goals, such as weight loss. However, on the basis of the user feedback received, future personalised nutrition and physical activity apps should focus on adaptability to the users' daily life rather than providing fixed plans on a weekly basis. Future work will analyse the appropriateness, effectiveness and overall user experience of the app within different user groups across the EU.

References

Wilson-Barnes, S, Gymnopoulos, LP, Dimitropoulos, K et al. (2021) Nutrition Bulletin 46(1), 7787.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dias, SB, Oikonomidis, Y, Diniz, JA et al. (2022) Frontiers in Nutrition 9(1), 2296–861.CrossRefGoogle Scholar