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Bridging the Gap in Carbohydrate Counting With a Mobile App: Needs Assessment Survey
Asmaa Housni1, Alexandra Katz1,2, Lucien Junior Bergeron3
1School of Human Nutrition, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
Journal of Medical Internet Research
|March 28, 2025
Summary
Carbohydrate counting (CC) is challenging for people with type 1 diabetes (T1D). Current mobile apps don't meet user needs, highlighting a need for improved features like photo recognition and personalized insulin dosing.
Area of Science:
- Diabetes management technology
- Mobile health applications
- Nutritional science
Background:
- Carbohydrate counting (CC) presents adherence challenges for individuals with type 1 diabetes (T1D).
- Mobile applications offer potential solutions to simplify CC and reduce patient burden.
Purpose of the Study:
- Identify barriers to CC in Canadians with T1D.
- Determine desired mobile app features to mitigate these barriers.
- Compare existing apps against user-identified needs.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional web-based survey of 196 Canadians with T1D (aged 14+).
- Assessed CC barriers and preferred app features using Likert scales and thematic analysis.
- Compared app features against participant preferences and analyzed differences by insulin modality.
Main Results:
- Key barriers included carbohydrate identification, nutrient interaction, and insulin calculation, alongside psychosocial factors.
- Highly desired app features: nutrient analysis, personalization, insulin bolus calculation, and healthcare support.
- Existing apps largely lacked personalization and bolus calculation features; injection users reported more barriers.
Conclusions:
- Current CC mobile apps inadequately address the needs of people with T1D.
- A novel app with features like photo recognition, accurate nutrient data, and personalized bolus calculations is needed to ease CC burden.
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