User Requirements in Developing a Novel Dietary Assessment Tool for Children: Mixed Methods Study

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Nutrition
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Behavioral Science

Background:

• Childhood obesity and its comorbidities are increasing, necessitating effective dietary interventions.
• Current dietary interventions show unsatisfactory long-term effects, driving demand for personalized approaches.
• Accurate dietary intake data is crucial for personalized nutrition, with children potentially aiding data collection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify user requirements for a dietary assessment tool tailored for children aged 5 to 6 years.
• To explore a child-centered, exploratory sequential mixed-methods approach for tool development.

Main Methods:

• Literature research informed initial user requirements and prototype ideation.
• Three prototypes (FoodBear, myBear, FoodCam) were developed and tested with 14 children (aged 5-6).
• Usability and user experience were assessed via video analysis and the 'This or That' method.

Main Results:

• Most children completed usability tasks, but all required assistance, highlighting usability challenges.
• Identified issues included food categorization, prototype functionality, product recall, and distinguishing eating occasions.
• Product preference was similar across prototypes, but liking was influenced by autonomy, challenge, gaming, tablet-based design, appearance, social elements, and time.

Conclusions:

• Children can complement parental data collection for more accurate dietary assessments.
• Future tools require training, prompts, feedback, intuitive design, child-friendly visuals, and autonomy.
• Findings guide innovations in children's dietary assessment and personalized nutrition support.