Young Adults’ Use of Mobile Food Delivery Apps and the Potential Impacts on Diet During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Mixed Methods Study (Preprint)

Abstract

BACKGROUND Young adults tend to order unhealthy diets via mobile food delivery applications (MFDAs). However, it is not known why these young adults order food via MFDAs, and why young adults tend to order unhealthy food via MFDAs especially during this period of COVID-19. OBJECTIVE To investigate MFDA usage patterns of young adults and their associations with the healthfulness of users’ diets. METHODS Cross-sectional, sequential mixed-methods (QUAN) – (QUAL) was adopted. Students in a Singapore university aged 18 to 35 years were invited to complete online questionnaire via convenience sampling. Interviewees were then selected via purposeful stratified sampling. Chi-square and Poisson regression analyses were used to investigate any associations between the variables. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis, guided by Braun and Clarke’s Six-Phase approach. RESULTS Among the survey participants (n=360), 41.7% used MFDAs at least once-a-week and 22.2% used at least twice-per-week. 81.4% used MFDAs more often compared to pre-COVID period. No statistical significance was observed for associations of MFDA usage frequency with and socio-demographic variables. A trend towards association was observed in vegetables and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) intake. Nineteen interviewees were recruited. Four themes emerged from qualitative analysis: deliberations about other sources of meals versus meals purchased via MFDAs, convenience is vital, preference for unhealthy meals ordered from MFDAs most of the time, and cost is king. A narrative-weaving approach was utilised to integrate QUAN-QUAL findings. CONCLUSIONS Less regular use of MFDAs points towards higher consumption of vegetables and lower consumption of SSBs. Four meta-inferences explained the MFDA usage patterns among young adults: (i) Staying at home is a double-edged sword since it is convenient but can lead to unhealthy behaviours; (ii) Cooking is valued by females; (iii) Cost of food delivery is trivial if time is scarce; (iv) Young adults’ general indifference towards healthfulness of diets. Since MFDA use is frequent amongst young adults, interventions can consider these issues when promoting healthy eating amongst young adult populations.