| Literature DB >> 35406072 |
Jared T McGuirt1, Alison Gustafson2, Alice S Ammerman3, Mary Tucker-McLaughlin4, Basheerah Enahora1, Courtney Moore5, Danielle Dunnagan5, Hannah Prentice-Dunn6, Sheryl Bedno5.
Abstract
Approximately 17% of military service members are obese. Research involving army soldiers suggests a lack of awareness of healthy foods on post. Innovative approaches are needed to change interactions with the military food environment. Two complementary technological methods to raise awareness are geofencing (deliver banner ads with website links) and Bluetooth beacons (real-time geotargeted messages to mobile phones that enter a designated space). There is little published literature regarding the feasibility of this approach to promote healthy behaviors in retail food environments. Thus, we conducted a formative feasibility study of a military post to understand the development, interest in, and implementation of EatWellNow, a multi-layered interactive food environment approach using contextual messaging to improve food purchasing decisions within the military food environment. We measured success based on outcomes of a formative evaluation, including process, resources, management, and scientific assessment. We also report data on interest in the approach from a Fort Bragg community health assessment survey (n = 3281). Most respondents agreed that they were interested in receiving push notifications on their phone about healthy options on post (64.5%) and that receiving these messages would help them eat healthier (68.3%). EatWellNow was successfully developed through cross-sector collaboration and was well received in this military environment, suggesting feasibility in this setting. Future work should examine the impact of EatWellNow on military service food purchases and dietary behaviors.Entities:
Keywords: beacons; digital technologies; food environment; geofencing; military
Mesh:
Year: 2022 PMID: 35406072 PMCID: PMC9003320 DOI: 10.3390/nu14071458
Source DB: PubMed Journal: Nutrients ISSN: 2072-6643 Impact factor: 5.717
Figure 1Map of the Bluetooth beacon setup within the food shopping environment and the corresponding messages and infographics one would see at each beacon location.
Figure 2Healthy eating infographics the user would see if they clicked into the Bluetooth beacon push notifications they received while in the interactive food purchasing environment.
Summary of community needs assessment survey participant characteristics and findings regarding interest in receiving push notifications and potential impact on dietary habits.
| Attribute | % ( |
|---|---|
| Sex | |
| Male | 45.3% (1187) |
| Female | 54.7% (1434) |
| Age (year) | |
| 18–25 | 24% (645) |
| 26–39 | 53.7% (1444) |
| 40–54 | 16.4% (442) |
| 55+ | 5.8% (157) |
| Race | |
| White | 64.6% (1747) |
| Non-White | 35.4% (956) |
| Ethnicity | |
| Latino | 47.7% (1198) |
| Non-Latino | 52.3% (1314) |
| Relationship to Fort Bragg | |
| Active Service Member | 19.9% (653) |
| Family of Active Service Member | 37.7% (1237) |
| Military Retiree and Family | 21.9% (720) |
| Civilian Employee | 16.1% (527) |
| Contractor | 2.9% (95) |
| Other | 1.5% (49) |
| Military Rank | |
| Officer | 50.3% (1247) |
| Non-Officer (Enlistee) | 49.7% (1230) |
| Interested in receiving push notifications to their phones about healthy options on post a | 64.5% (1697/2589) |
| Receiving these notifications would help them to eat healthier b | 68.3% (1789/2584) |
| Agreed that if they received advertisements within websites and apps they already use on their phones about healthy options on post, they would be more likely to buy healthy food c | 74.6% (1942/2671) |
a Original Question (4-point Likert response of strongly disagree to strongly agree): “I would be interested in receiving push notifications/messages to my phone about healthy options on post”. b Original Question (4-point Likert response of strongly disagree to strongly agree): “If I received push notifications/messages to my phone about healthy options on post, I would be more likely to buy healthy food”. c Original Question (4-point Likert response of strongly disagree to strongly agree): “If I received advertisements on websites and apps I already use about healthy options on post, I would be more likely to buy healthy food”.