A chatbot-based nutritional coaching intervention for pregnant women

Objective. Maternal nutrition can influence the health of mothers and unborn children and their long-term well-being. To support and maintain a healthy pregnancy, a chatbot-based nutritional coaching intervention was designed for the TreC_Mamma project. The intervention considers different dietary patterns, Mediterranean, vegetarian and vegan diets, according to each individual nutritional needs.
Materials and Methods. TreC_Mamma is an app designed to offer digital health interventions to support pregnant women from conception to the first 1,000 days. On demand, it is possible to activate a personalized nutritional coaching path via chatbot. This digital intervention requires an initial profiling to detect health problems, drugs or supplements intake, protein sources consumed and activity level. A microlearning course on food education and hygiene is proposed. The acquired knowledge is verified through tests. It is possible to keep a food intake diary that provides a customized report after at least 7 days of use.
Results. TreC_Mamma counts about 3,000 activations with more than 500 daily accesses. The nutritional coaching intervention is currently being implemented. All contents have been defined and validated by a group involving obstetricians and nutritionists. An evaluation phase through pre-post validated questionnaires (adherence and knowledge of the Mediterranean Diet) and usage data collected from the food intake diary will be performed. Usability and satisfaction will be assessed.
Conclusions. The innovative aspects of our nutritional digital intervention are the interaction via chatbot, the extension to vegetarian and vegan diets, and the personalized evaluation of each individual nutritional needs.