A Smartphone Healthcare Application, CALO mama Plus, to Promote Weight Loss: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Obesity Research
• Behavioral Medicine

Background:

• Mobile health applications are increasingly integrated into healthcare delivery.
• The CALO mama Plus app utilizes artificial intelligence to track diet, exercise, mood, and sleep, offering personalized advice.
• Obesity and overweight are significant public health concerns, particularly among working adults.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of the CALO mama Plus smartphone application in promoting weight reduction among Japanese adults.
• To test the hypothesis that using the CALO mama Plus app leads to significant body weight changes compared to a control group.

Main Methods:

• A 3-month randomized controlled trial was conducted with 141 Japanese office workers (BMI 23-40 kg/m²).
• Participants were randomly assigned to either the intervention group using CALO mama Plus or a control group without intervention.
• The primary outcome measured was the change in body weight over the 3-month study duration.

Main Results:

• The intervention group using CALO mama Plus experienced a mean body weight change of -2.4 ± 4.0 kg.
• The control group showed a mean body weight change of -0.7 ± 3.3 kg.
• Analysis revealed a statistically significant difference in weight change between the groups (-1.60 kg; p=0.011), favoring the intervention group.

Conclusions:

• The CALO mama Plus smartphone application is an effective tool for promoting weight loss in Japanese adults.
• Mobile health interventions show promise in managing overweight and obesity within a working population.
• Further research could explore long-term effects and broader applicability of such digital health solutions.