Effects of nutrition education via a mobile-based game on nutritional knowledge, dietary habits and anthropometric indices in preschool children: A study protocol

Maryamsadat Riasatian; Zahra Karimian; Mohammad Ali Mohsenpour; Shiva Faghih

doi:10.1016/j.mex.2023.102104

Effects of nutrition education via a mobile-based game on nutritional knowledge, dietary habits and anthropometric indices in preschool children: A study protocol

MethodsX. 2023 Mar 2:10:102104. doi: 10.1016/j.mex.2023.102104. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Maryamsadat Riasatian¹, Zahra Karimian², Mohammad Ali Mohsenpour³, Shiva Faghih¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of community nutrition, School of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
² Department of e-Learning in Medical Sciences, Virtual School and Center of Excellence in e-learning, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
³ Department of Clinical Nutrition, School of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.

Abstract

Preschool age is a great time to learn a healthy lifestyle, for behavior therapy. Mobile health procedures are inexpensive, reliable, and accessible. This project has two phases. The KidFood mobile game and two nutrition knowledge questionnaires were designed during the first phase. In the second phase, a six-month, parallel, blinded, randomized controlled trial will perform on 120 Iranian children aged 5 to 6 years. Before and after nutritional education via KidFood, the dietary habits, the nutritional knowledge of parents and children, and the anthropometric indices of children will be evaluated.

Keywords: A study protocol; Children's nutrition; Dietary diversity score; Gamification; m-Health.