Mobile Application Increased Nutrition Knowledge Among Brazilian Physicians

Abstract

Objective: To assess whether using a Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet recommendation application increases primary care physicians' knowledge and dietary counseling skills.

Design: A randomized controlled trial.

Setting: Brazilian public primary care service.

Participants: Two hundred and twenty-two physicians (intervention group: n = 111; control group: n = 111).

Intervention: Thirty days of using the Dieta Dash application. The application provides information about nutritional recommendations for hypertension management.

Main outcome measures: Nutrition knowledge score.

Secondary outcomes: self-assessment of knowledge, self-confidence, assessment of eating habits, and barriers to dietary counseling.

Analysis: Linear mixed-effects models for repeated measures and generalized estimating equations for comparing changes between groups.

Results: A total of 66.2% of participants completed the follow-up. There was no significant difference between the groups regarding the mean knowledge score (P = 0.15). The prevalence of high knowledge increased by 12% (prevalence ratio [PR] = 1.12; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.00-1.25) in the intervention group and showed an improvement in the self-confidence assessment (PR = 1.21; 95% CI, 1.02-1.44), and increased assessment of eating habits (PR = 1.26; 95% CI, 1.10-1.55).

Conclusions and implications: The Dieta Dash application helped address dietary counseling, improving knowledge and self-confidence. However, innovative strategies are needed to minimize the primary care barriers.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02249494.

Keywords: hypertension; medical education; mobile application; nutrition; primary care.