Perceptions of Dietary mHealth Apps Among Adolescents: Scoping Review

Adolescents' high engagement with smartphones creates opportunities for mobile health (mHealth) apps targeting dietary behaviors. However, despite the availability of diverse dietary mHealth apps, user engagement remains low. Existing quantitative literature has identified barriers and facilitators to app effectiveness in youth (aged 10-19 years) but has not fully captured the nuanced perceptions of adolescents (aged 12-19 years), who represent a unique life stage. Synthesizing similarities and differences in adolescents' perceptions of what they value in dietary mHealth apps from qualitative studies may provide a more comprehensive understanding of app engagement and future app design.

We aimed to synthesize adolescents' perceptions of using diverse dietary mHealth apps.

A scoping review was conducted according to the 5-stage framework by Arksey and O'Malley. Eligible studies were published in English and reported on adolescents (aged 12-19 years) with perceptions of dietary mHealth apps using qualitative methods. Apps that were not specific to diet, relied only on SMS text messaging, were delivered as part of a school-based intervention or telemedicine service, or were housed on a website or social media platform were excluded. Five evidence sources (PsycINFO, Embase, Medline, Web of Science, and CINAHL) were searched. Extracted data were charted by 1 researcher following a pilot test. Similarities and differences in adolescents' perceptions were synthesized across studies using thematic analysis.

Of the 1195 search results, 1.2% (n=14) met the eligibility criteria. We identified six themes that represented adolescents' perceptions of using dietary mHealth apps: (1) functionality and design, (2) content and depth, (3) social connection and support, (4) entertainment and gamification, (5) goal setting and motivation, and (6) perceived effectiveness. Overall, adolescents favorably perceived apps that were easy to navigate, fostered social connections, were personalizable, and were gamified. Apps that were felt to increase awareness of personal eating habits, often through tracking calories and foods consumed, and foster awareness of personal well-being were especially discussed in relation to perceived app effectiveness.

The findings of this review provide an innovative synthesis of adolescents' perceptions of diverse dietary mHealth apps, using qualitative data. Notably, dietary mHealth apps that were perceived as easy to navigate, tailored (eg, in terms of content), and gamified and those that included social engagement were perceived favorably, regardless of their dietary target and features. Apps that were perceived to improve adolescents' current dietary awareness were particularly valued. Inclusion of these elements in dietary mHealth apps may promote greater engagement. App developers should work with adolescents to establish how specific apps can incorporate these elements into their design, including how best to track dietary habits and integrate AI into app features.