EIT Food COACHILD

Problem

There is a high need for the young population to follow a healthy diet adapted to their needs, preferences, and lifestyle. Additionally, there is a lack of personalized strategies focused on young population with the aim of motivating them and to provide precise information about which type of food and physical activity is more appropriate to their profile and motivations. Despite action at the European level to reverse the rising trend in overweight and obesity, the proportion of children who are overweight or obese remains worryingly high.

Solution

During this project a mobile application (e-coach) will be developed to help and enable children and their families to improve their food literacy and make better food choices to reduce the obesity risk. The e-coach will be focused on lifestyle monitoring and user guidance in the context of personalized nutrition (healthy food and lifestyle strategies adapted to consumer needs and preferences). Moreover, the app solution will connect young people with their environment (market, food providers, school, health care professionals) to provide multiple resources because of the importance of blended care. This e-coach will serve as a communication channel to engage children in action with the intention they achieve specific outcomes (self-determination and goal setting) that responds to their needs and motivations. The developed tool could be extrapolated in future years in other countries at the same time a connected community of users is implemented.

Expected impact

We expect that the present project will help participants to learn and adhere to novel healthy habits and to follow a healthier lifestyle. We will test the usability and efficacy of the “COACHILD” app to increase the adherence of young people to a digital tool as a personal coaching on a healthy and personalized lifestyle. It is estimated to reach 50 children (user testing), although this tool aims to be a scalable model to any region or country, it can be accessible to the entire child population of a country. For this reason, it will be identified the actors that will promote its use and contribute to the improvement of its functionalities. This digital solution could reach to 2.2 million of Spanish children at risk of poverty of which around 750.000 present obesity.