ArticleJMIR formative research2024
Effectiveness of a Smartphone App (Heia Meg) in Improving Decisions About Nutrition and Physical Activity: Prospective Longitudinal Study.
Article in JMIR formative research, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- [Application of Digital Nutrition Technologies in Adult Weight Management].Sichuan da xue xue bao. Yi xue ban = Journal of Sichuan University. Medical science edition · 2025Article
- The effect of electronic health (eHealth) interventions for promoting physical activity self-efficacy in children: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of exercise science and fitness · 2024Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundObesity is a prevalent and serious chronic condition associated with abnormal or excessive fat buildup that poses significant health risks. The rates of overweight and obesity in adults and children continue to rise, with global rates of children with overweight or obesity aged 5-19 years growing from 4% to 18% between 1975 and 2016. Furthermore, in 2017, nearly 4 million people died due to complications arising from being overweight or obese.
objectiveThis study aims to investigate the potential impact of the mobile app Heia Meg on promoting healthier lifestyle choices regarding nutrition and physical activity.
methodsA prospective longitudinal study was conducted in collaboration with the Norwegian Directorate of Health. Participants were recruited through the Heia Meg app and were asked to complete a questionnaire before and after using the app. A total of 199 responses were included in the first (preintervention) questionnaire, while 99 valid responses were obtained in the second (postintervention) questionnaire.
resultsThe majority (159/199, 79.9%) of participants were female, and their age ranged from 18 years to 70 years and older. The results show a reduction in BMI after the digital intervention. However, some variables influence the BMI reduction effect: sex, age, education, and smoking. The group that obtained the most benefit from the intervention consisted of those who were male, aged 30-39 years, highly educated, and nonsmokers. Although positive, some of the findings are slightly above the statistical significance threshold and therefore should be interpreted carefully.
conclusionsOur study found weak evidence to support the effectiveness of the Heia Meg app in promoting healthier lifestyle choices. However, limitations and confounding factors suggest that further research in different populations with larger sample sizes is needed to confirm or disprove our findings.
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