Resumo

PALACIOS, Cristina. Use of mobile applications for nutritional interventions. An Venez Nutr [online]. 2020, vol.33, n.2, pp.177-182.  Epub 14-Out-2021. ISSN 0798-0752.

There are several mobile applications available related to nutrition, such as applications that count calories, that offer a food score, that generate a diet plan, and/or generate a healthy grocery list. Some applications may have several of these functions in the same application. These could be effective tools to use in nutritional interventions, but it is important that they are developed based on behavioral change theories. Some of the main components that effective mobile applications should include are to provide instructions, motive the user to continue using the application, provide rewards for using them, provide feedback based on the outcomes, increase nutrition knowledge, and offer social support. It is also important to motivate the user to continue using these applications to lead to positive behavioral change. However, most of the nutrition mobile applications available are not theory-based. Also, despite of the large number of available nutrition mobile applications, only a few have been evaluated for their efficacy. This lack of evaluation may hinder their use as effective tools for improving dietary patterns. Therefore, more studies are needed to evaluate the available mobile applications related to nutrition.

Palavras-chave : Mobile applications; nutrition; interventions; prevention; health promotion.

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