SynthesisObesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity2019
The effectiveness of app-based mobile interventions on nutrition behaviours and nutrition-related health outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 150 papers, 19 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Use of Gamification in Health Apps for Lifestyle Intervention: A Systematic Review
The Effect of Goal Setting With Mobile-based Self-management Tool on Improving Diet Quality of People With High Blood Pressure: a Randomized Controlled Trial
Who cites it
150 citing papers in PubMed, 19 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 308 citations in OpenAlex.
- Inequalities in Exclusively Mobile Interventions Targeting Weight-Related Behaviors: Systematic Review of Observational Studies.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2026Pooled it
- The Landscape of Mobile Apps for Healthy Eating: Case Study for a Systematic Review and Quality Assessment.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2026Pooled it
- Empowering Health Through Digital Lifelong Prevention: An Umbrella Review of Apps and Wearables for Nutritional Management.Nutrients · 2025Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Enhancing Postsecondary Students' Dietary Behaviours: A Systematic Review of Mobile Health Interventions.Journal of human nutrition and dietetics : the official journal of the British Dietetic Association · 2025Pooled it
- The effectiveness of mobile app-based interventions in facilitating behaviour change towards healthier and more sustainable diets: a systematic review and meta-analysis.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2025Pooled it
- The Effect of Nutritional Mobile Apps on Populations With Cancer: Systematic Review.JMIR cancer · 2025Pooled it
- The impact of smartphone app-based interventions on adolescents' dietary intake: a systematic review and evaluation of equity factor reporting in intervention studies.Nutrition reviews · 2024Pooled it
- Digitally Delivered Interventions to Improve Nutrition Behaviors Among Resource-Poor and Ethnic Minority Groups With Type 2 Diabetes: Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Pooled it
- Effective Behavior Change Techniques in Digital Health Interventions for the Prevention or Management of Noncommunicable Diseases: An Umbrella Review.Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine · 2023Pooled it
- The Use of Mobile Health Interventions for Outcomes among Middle-Aged and Elderly Patients with Prediabetes: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Pooled it
- Usage of Mobile Applications or Mobile Health Technology to Improve Diet Quality in Adults.Nutrients · 2022Pooled it
- The Effectiveness of Web-Based Interventions to Promote Health Behaviour Change in Adolescents: A Systematic Review.Nutrients · 2022Pooled it
- Middle-aged and older adults' acceptance of mobile nutrition and fitness apps: A systematic mixed studies review.PloS one · 2022Pooled it
- Efficacy of Interventions That Incorporate Mobile Apps in Facilitating Weight Loss and Health Behavior Change in the Asian Population: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Journal of medical Internet research · 2021Pooled it
- Changing parental feeding practices through web-based interventions: A systematic review and meta-analysis.PloS one · 2021Pooled it
- Key facets to build up eHealth and mHealth interventions to enhance physical activity, sedentary behavior and nutrition in healthy subjects - an umbrella review.BMC public health · 2020Pooled it
- Exclusively Digital Health Interventions Targeting Diet, Physical Activity, and Weight Gain in Pregnant Women: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2020Pooled it
- The effectiveness of app-based mobile interventions on nutrition behaviours and nutrition-related health outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2019Pooled it
- A Digital Toolkit for Weight Loss Maintenance in European Adults (NoHoW): 2×2 Factorial Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Trial
90 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to assess the effectiveness of app-based mobile interventions for improving nutrition behaviours and nutrition-related health outcomes, including obesity indices (eg, body mass index [BMI]) and clinical parameters (eg, blood lipids). Seven databases were searched for studies published between 2006 and 2017. Forty-one of 10 132 identified records were included, comprising 6348 participants and 373 outcomes with sample sizes ranging from 10 to 833, including 27 randomized controlled trials (RCTs). A beneficial effect of app-based mobile interventions was identified for improving nutrition behaviours (g = 0.19; CI, 0.06-0.32, P = .004) and nutrition-related health outcomes (g = 0.23; CI, 0.11-0.36, P < .001), including positive effects on obesity indices (g = 0.30; CI, 0.15-0.45, P < .001), blood pressure (g = 0.21; CI, 0.01-0.42, P = .043), and blood lipids (g = 0.15; CI, 0.03-0.28, P = .018). Most interventions were composed of four behaviour change technique (BCT) clusters, namely, "goals/planning," "feedback/monitoring," "shaping knowledge," and "social support." Moderating effects including study design, type of app (commercial/research app), sample characteristics (clinical/non-clinical sample), and intervention characteristics were not statistically significant. The inclusion of additional treatment components besides the app or the number or type of BCTs implemented did not moderate the observed effectiveness, which underscores the potential of app-based mobile interventions for implementing effective and feasible interventions operating at scale for fighting the obesity epidemic in a broad spectrum of the population.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.