Skip to main content
OpenTrials
Not Yet Recruiting

NCT Number: NCT07108452

Using an AI Mobile Application to Promote Healthy Eating

The goal of this feasibility study is to determine the adherence, acceptability, and usability of the behavioral intervention of a mobile AI application and its effects on food choices and diet quality. A secondary goal is to assess whether the app's accuracy or feasibility differs by food security status. Study participants are UC Davis students aged 18-24 years. The main question it aims to answer is:

- Does the gamified app version that delivers behavioral nudges have a higher adherence and acceptability rate, and does this translate to better dietary behaviors?

Participants will use either the intervention app (dietary assessment + gamification) or the control app (non-gamified, dietary assessment only) for six weeks to record all their food intake. Diet quality will be assessed at baseline and endline, and a Likert scale acceptability questionnaire will be administered at endline.

Not Yet Recruiting

Trial opening soon.

Get Notified

Key information

Conditions

Healthy

Age range

18 year–24 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

University of California, Davis - Department of Nutrition

Davis, California, 95616, United States

Location contact

Christabel A Domfe, MS

CONTACT

[email protected]

530-752-4630

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Willing to use their smartphones with app to record all foods consumed
  • UC Davis student

Exclusion criteria

  • eating disorders
  • Participant in the validation study that tested the app's accuracy against weighed food records

Treatment and study plan

A mobile application that uses AI to deliver behavioral nudges that encourage healthy food choices.

Other

As a mobile application for assessing dietary intake, the app provides a daily report of food intake- a core function that both the gamified and limited app versions have. The gamified version has the added functionality of delivering behavioral nudges that encourage healthy food selections.

Limited app version for dietary assessment only

Other

This app version provides a daily report of energy and nutrient intake- available to those randomized to the control group

Primary outcomes

  1. App acceptability by version assigned to participants

    Time frame: Measured at endline: at the end of the 6 week period

    Acceptability will be assessed using a structured questionnaire based on a Likert scale from 1 (strongly agree) to 5 (strongly disagree) administered at the end of the study period.

  2. App's usability by version assigned to participants

    Time frame: Measured at endline: at the end of the 6 week period

    Focus group discussions will be conducted with a select group of participants to assess usability (i.e. facilitators and barriers to app usage) at the end of the study period.

  3. App adherence rates by version assigned to participants

    Time frame: Assessed at midline (3 weeks) and endline (6 weeks)

    App usage adherence will be evaluated based on analytics data, with a 70% usage threshold defined for both the midline and endline assessments.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Diet quality assessment by app version, measured using Healthy Eating Index scores at baseline and endline.

    Time frame: From enrollment till study completion at 6 weeks

    Determine changes in diet quality by app version. The Healthy Eating Index is scored from 0-100. The higher the score, the better the alignment of a diet with key recommendations in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

  2. App usability by food security status assessed using the USDA 10-item food security survey module

    Time frame: Food security assessed at baseline

    The validated USDA 10-item Food Security Survey Module will be used to capture food security over the prior 12 months and be administered at the recruitment visit. Moderation of app's usability by food security status will be assessed by including an interaction term between the app version and food security strata. Food security status is assigned as follows- Raw score zero: High food security; Raw score 1-2: Marginal food security; Raw score 3-5: Low food security; Raw score 6-10:Very low food security.

  3. App acceptability by food security status assessed using the USDA 10-item food security survey module

    Time frame: Food security assessed at baseline

    The validated USDA 10-item Food Security Survey Module will be used to capture food security over the prior 12 months and be administered at the recruitment visit. Moderation of app's acceptability by food security status will be assessed by including an interaction term between the app version and food security strata. Food security status is assigned as follows- Raw score zero: High food security; Raw score 1-2: Marginal food security; Raw score 3-5: Low food security; Raw score 6-10:Very low food security.

  4. App adherence rates by food security status assessed using the USDA 10-item food security survey module

    Time frame: Food security assessed at baseline

    The validated USDA 10-item Food Security Survey Module will be used to capture food security over the prior 12 months and be administered at the recruitment visit. Moderation of app's adherence rates by food security status will be assessed by including an interaction term between the app version and food security strata. Food security status is assigned as follows- Raw score zero: High food security; Raw score 1-2: Marginal food security; Raw score 3-5: Low food security; Raw score 6-10:Very low food security.

Study contacts

Contact information is provided by the study sponsor or research team.

Christabel A Domfe, MS

CONTACT

[email protected]

530-752-4630

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

University of California, Davis

Other

Collaborators

  • International Food Policy Research Institute
  • Penn State University

Registry information

Official study title

Leveraging AI to Transform Dietary Choices for Cardiovascular Health in Young Adults Experiencing Food Insecurity

Important dates

Study start
2026
Primary completion
2026
Study completion
2026
First posted
Aug 7, 2025
Registry last updated
Jul 17, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

Related clinical trials

Published trials that share one or more normalized conditions with this study.