TY - JOUR
T1 - Measuring adherence, acceptability and likability of an artificial-intelligence-based, gamified phone application to improve the quality of dietary choices of adolescents in Ghana and Vietnam
T2 - Protocol of a randomized controlled pilot test
AU - Braga, Bianca C.
AU - Arrieta, Alejandra
AU - Bannerman, Boateng
AU - Doyle, Frank
AU - Folson, Gloria
AU - Gangupantulu, Rohit
AU - Hoang, Nga Thu
AU - Huynh, Phuong Nam
AU - Koch, Bastien
AU - McCloskey, Peter
AU - Tran, Lan Mai
AU - Tran, Trang Huyen T.
AU - Truong, Duong Thuy T.
AU - Nguyen, Phuong H.
AU - Hughes, David
AU - Gelli, Aulo
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
2022 Braga, Arrieta, Bannerman, Doyle, Folson, Gangupantulu, Hoang, Huynh, Koch, McCloskey, Tran, Tran, Truong, Nguyen, Hughes and Gelli.
PY - 2022/12/6
Y1 - 2022/12/6
N2 - Unhealthy diets are a critical global concern while dietary measure methods are time consuming and expensive. There is limited evidence that phone-based interventions can improve nutrition data collection and dietary quality, especially for adolescents in developing countries. We developed an artificial-intelligence-based phone application called Food Recognition Assistance and Nudging Insights (FRANI) to address these problems. FRANI can recognize foods in images, track food consumption, display statistics and use gamified nudges to give positive feedback on healthy food choice. This study protocol describes the design of new pilot studies aimed at measuring the feasibility (acceptability, adherence, and usability) of FRANI and its effects on the quality of food choice of adolescents in Ghana and Vietnam. In each country, 36 adolescents (12–18 years) will be randomly allocated into two groups: The intervention group with the full version of FRANI and the control group with the functionality limited to image recognition and dietary assessment. Participants in both groups will have their food choices tracked for four weeks. The control groups will then switch to the full version of FRANI and both groups will be tracked for a further 2 weeks to assess acceptability, adherence, and usability. Analysis of outcomes will be by intent to treat and differences in outcomes between intervention and control group will use Poisson and odds ratio regression models, accounting for repeated measures at individual levels. If deemed feasible, acceptable and usable, FRANI will address gaps in the literature and advance the nutrition field by potentially improving the quality of food choices of adolescent girls in developing countries. This pilot study will also provide insights on the design of a large randomized controlled trial. The functioning and dissemination of FRANI can be an important step towards highly scalable nutrition data collection and healthier food choices for a population at risk of malnutrition. The study protocol and the methods and materials were approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of the IFPRI on April 29th, 2020 (registration number #00007490), the Thai Nguyen National Hospital on April 14th, 2020 (protocol code 274/ĐĐĐ-BVTWTN) and the University of Ghana on August 10th, 2020 (Federalwide Assurance FWA 00001824; NMIMR-IRB CPN 078–19/20). The study protocol was registered in the International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN 10681553; https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN10681553) on November 12, 2021.
AB - Unhealthy diets are a critical global concern while dietary measure methods are time consuming and expensive. There is limited evidence that phone-based interventions can improve nutrition data collection and dietary quality, especially for adolescents in developing countries. We developed an artificial-intelligence-based phone application called Food Recognition Assistance and Nudging Insights (FRANI) to address these problems. FRANI can recognize foods in images, track food consumption, display statistics and use gamified nudges to give positive feedback on healthy food choice. This study protocol describes the design of new pilot studies aimed at measuring the feasibility (acceptability, adherence, and usability) of FRANI and its effects on the quality of food choice of adolescents in Ghana and Vietnam. In each country, 36 adolescents (12–18 years) will be randomly allocated into two groups: The intervention group with the full version of FRANI and the control group with the functionality limited to image recognition and dietary assessment. Participants in both groups will have their food choices tracked for four weeks. The control groups will then switch to the full version of FRANI and both groups will be tracked for a further 2 weeks to assess acceptability, adherence, and usability. Analysis of outcomes will be by intent to treat and differences in outcomes between intervention and control group will use Poisson and odds ratio regression models, accounting for repeated measures at individual levels. If deemed feasible, acceptable and usable, FRANI will address gaps in the literature and advance the nutrition field by potentially improving the quality of food choices of adolescent girls in developing countries. This pilot study will also provide insights on the design of a large randomized controlled trial. The functioning and dissemination of FRANI can be an important step towards highly scalable nutrition data collection and healthier food choices for a population at risk of malnutrition. The study protocol and the methods and materials were approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of the IFPRI on April 29th, 2020 (registration number #00007490), the Thai Nguyen National Hospital on April 14th, 2020 (protocol code 274/ĐĐĐ-BVTWTN) and the University of Ghana on August 10th, 2020 (Federalwide Assurance FWA 00001824; NMIMR-IRB CPN 078–19/20). The study protocol was registered in the International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN 10681553; https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN10681553) on November 12, 2021.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85144175137&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85144175137&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3389/fdgth.2022.961604
DO - 10.3389/fdgth.2022.961604
M3 - Article
C2 - 36561922
AN - SCOPUS:85144175137
SN - 2673-253X
VL - 4
JO - Frontiers in Digital Health
JF - Frontiers in Digital Health
M1 - 961604
ER -