The Assessment of a Personalized Nutrition Tool (eNutri) in Germany: Pilot Study on Usability Metrics and Users’ Experiences

Abstract

Background To address the epidemic burden of diet-related diseases, adequate dietary intake assessments are needed to determine the actual nutrition intake of a population. In this context, the eNutri web app has been developed, providing online automated personalized dietary advice, based on nutritional information recorded via an integrated and validated food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Originally developed for a British population and their dietary habits, the eNutri tool has specifically been adapted to the German population, taking into account national eating habits and dietary recommendations. Objective The primary aim of this study is to evaluate the system usability and users’ experience and feedback on the eNutri app in a small-scale preliminary study. The secondary aim is to investigate the efficacy of personalized nutrition (PN) recommendations versus general dietary advice in altering eating habits. Methods The app was piloted for 4 weeks by 106 participants from across Germany divided into a PN group and a control group. The groups differed according to the degree of personalization of dietary recommendations obtained. Results An overall System Usability Scale (SUS) score of 78.4 (SD 12.2) was yielded, indicating an above average user experience. Mean completion time of the FFQ was 26.7 minutes (SD 10.6 minutes). Across subgroups (age, sex, device screen sizes) no differences in SUS or completion time were found, indicating an equal performance for all users independent of the assigned experimental group. Participants’ feedback highlighted the need for more personalized dietary advice for controls, while personalized nutritional recommendations improved the awareness of healthy eating behavior. Further improvements to the eNutri app were suggested by the app users. Conclusions In total, the eNutri app has proven to be a suitable instrument to capture the dietary habits of a German population sample. Regarding functionality, system usability, and handling, direct user feedback was quite positive. Nutritional advice given was rated ambivalent, pointing to several weaknesses in the eNutri app, minimizing the system’s full potential. A higher level of personalization within nutritional advice subjectively improved the app’s usability. The insights gained will be used as a basis to further develop and improve this digital diet assessment tool.

Informatics for your Gut: at the Interface of Nutrition, the Microbiome, and Technology

“…Four studies focusing on exclusively diet or physical activity applications were reviewed. A web-based application for management of dietary patterns, eNutri, was evaluated for usability using the System Usability Scale using n=106 participants in Germany [24]. Participant feedback demonstrated above average usability but stated concerns about the amount of time required by the application to complete its purpose (26.7 minutes, mean) [24].…”

“…A web-based application for management of dietary patterns, eNutri, was evaluated for usability using the System Usability Scale using n=106 participants in Germany [24]. Participant feedback demonstrated above average usability but stated concerns about the amount of time required by the application to complete its purpose (26.7 minutes, mean) [24]. Another approach aimed to design a "user-centered" dietary management tool for type 2 diabetics, surveying 21 individuals over 4 project phases to understand user needs [50].…”

“…The effectiveness of a digital application is tied not only to its accuracy and quality, but also the application's ability to engage a consumer in a consistent manner [21,22]. Therefore, the impacts of digital health interventions aimed at behavioral modifications in diet, physical activity, sleep, or wellness are directly tied to consumer adoption and consistent use [23,24]. The research described in this brief year-in-review survey focuses on the design and development of tools for self-management in an outpatient or community setting.…”

Optimization of a Food List for Food Frequency Questionnaires Using Mixed Integer Linear Programming: A Proof of Concept Based on Data from the Second German National Nutrition Survey

“…The food list created with MILP was compared with the existing eNutri FFQ version 2.0. eNutri is an online FFQ that comprises 156 food items and has been used and validated in various studies assessing habitual food intake [16,20].…”

Association between Body Mass Index and the Use of Digital Platforms to Record Food Intake: Cross-Sectional Analysis

“…Health information via social media, with nutrition [7] and fitness counseling [8], wearable devices to track physical activity [9], and applications to record food intake-or even more specific platforms for different types of users, such as patients with food allergies [10], older adults [11] or young children [12]-are frequently used by the population. Thus, nowadays, digital applications or platforms are replacing traditional ways of recording our food intake, such as written food diaries or food frequency questionnaires [13,14].…”