Background: Childhood and adolescent obesity is a growing global health issue linked to noncommunicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. Digital health technologies, including mobile apps and web-based programs, offer scalable tools to improve health behaviors, but their effectiveness in young populations remains unclear. Objective: This systematic review aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of mobile and web-based digital interventions in promoting healthy diets, reducing obesity risk, increasing physical activity, and improving nutrition-related knowledge and attitudes among children and adolescents. Methods: A systematic search was conducted across PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases, along with hand-searching reference lists of key systematic reviews. The search encompassed records published up to September 30, 2024. Eligible studies were randomized controlled trials targeting dietary intake, anthropometric measurements, physical activity, or nutrition-related attitudes and knowledge among participants aged ≤18 years. Screening, full-text eligibility assessment, and data extraction were done partly in duplicate (20%; κ=0.86 for title or abstract screening, κ=0.71 for full-text eligibility assessment, and κ=0.78 data extraction). Risk of bias was evaluated using the Cochrane Risk-of-Bias tool (κ=0.71 for interrater reliability of 20% duplicate evaluation). Data were synthesized narratively. Results: From 300 records screened, a total of 37 articles (34 studies) were included. Interventions included games, (in 21/34 studies, 62%), mobile apps, web-based programs, and other digital tools. Among the 34 included studies, 23 (68%) studies reported positive outcomes for at least 1 measured variable. Fruit intake improved in 17 of 34 studies (50%) assessing fruit intake, while 7 of 34 studies (21%) targeting sugar-sweetened beverage consumption showed reductions. Improvements in nutrition knowledge were reported in 23 of 34 (68%) studies, but changes in anthropometric measures and physical activity outcomes showed no effect. Risk of bias was low for random sequence generation but high or unclear in other domains for many studies. Conclusions: Mobile- and web-based interventions, particularly game-based tools, show promise for promoting healthy dietary behaviors and increasing nutrition knowledge in children and adolescents. However, the evidence for long-term sustainability and impact on anthropometric and physical activity outcomes remains limited. Future research should focus on understanding which digital features drive effectiveness, extending follow-up periods, and exploring the role of family involvement in interventions. Trial Registration: PROSPERO CRD42023423512; https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=423512

Co-creation is a process that directly involves different stakeholders in the idea generation phase of a new product development process. A pool of 112 new aquaculture fish product ideas was obtained by applying a combination of creative and projective techniques to the co-creation process with consumers in six focus groups conducted in three European countries (Germany, France, and Spain). The subjectivity of qualitative data analysis (e.g., focus groups) is one of its recognised disadvantages. To overcome this drawback, a combination of specialised software (i.e., Alceste), along with word frequency, co-occurrence, and context checking, was applied to provide a different approach to data analyses in qualitative studies. The method identified the most salient dimensions behind the participants’ discourse (naturalness, quality, ethics, price, and health) and inferred the importance those dimensions had for them, thus proving the existence of a correlation of 0.7 between what the participants said (frequency of mention) and what they liked the most (importance). Overall, the exploratory approach proposed is deemed useful for drawing key conclusions from qualitative research, thus offering an alternative to traditional content analysis. In future, the results obtained may be useful for selecting the co-created ideas with the greatest potential to be well received in the market.

Background Providing educational content for children and parents can promote healthy nutritional habits. During the TITAN project, a pilot digital contest where participants have to developed ready-to-eat meatballs in sauce, using only plant-based ingredients, will be tested. The objective of this study was to develop the lexicon needed to objectively assess the sensory profile of this product. Methods Eight judges were recruited and trained. Thirteen 1-hour sessions took place over three months. The steps followed were the selection of commercial reference, generation of descriptors, training of the panel, validation of the trained panel and product characterisation. The judges chose one commercial reference (using simple hedonic evaluation) to serve as a reference. The accepted intensity scale for the generated descriptors was from 0 (low intensity) to 9 (very intense). To test the first versions of the game, food product developers involved in the project, acted as participants, and used a mix of lentils, quinoa, and oats to enhance the commercial version. R-project software was used to analyse the performance of the panel and the sensory profiles. Results A glossary with 14 descriptors was generated. The discriminatory capacity of the panel was confirmed by examining the significance of the product effect (p < 0.05). The product–judge interaction was not significant (p > 0.05) for most of the evaluated attributes, indicating a good degree of panel agreement. Overall, the panel was considered reproducible after 9 sessions. Although the appearance, firmness, fragility and chewiness were considered similar to the reference, juiciness and taste (understood as meaty flavour) of the new product were deemed improved. Conclusions According to the panel, two of the most appreciated attributes associated with meat analogues, juiciness and taste, were improved compared to the commercial reference. Therefore, the first approach for further development of the contest/game was validated.

Background: Rapid population growth, increasing urbanization, and an expanding global middle class has profound impacts on food and nutrition. In the long run the smart appliance industry will reflect the social, technological, and demographic forces around food without losing the authenticity of food traditionally prepared in the kitchen. The purpose of this study is to provide valuable consumer insights about smart home cooking devices for a healthy and personalised breakfast. Methods: Three smart cooking technology providers (3D food printing, digital sous-vide cooking and instant dough baking), one ingredient supplier, and a top-tier food research and innovation centre shared resources to carry out common tasks such as market research, product development, and consumer taste tests. Consumers were segmented into four types of households (single, young families, consolidated families, and senior). An online community (40 participants), nine focus groups, two interviews with eight experts, and one quantitative study with 2055 participants were carried out in Spain, UK, and Germany. Results: Consumer perception of three smart cooking devices in the EU has been explored in-depth. Insights have shown the potential of innovative technologies for designing a healthy and personalized breakfast. Results of the three-month online community test and the focus groups are explained in terms of meanings of breakfast, places where to have breakfast, origin of products consumed at breakfast, feelings linked to breakfast, the ideal breakfast, appliances used, special foods and healthy breakfast perception. Results from the quantitative study were used to quantify the relevance of breakfast, the most valued nutrients, the places to have breakfast, and the appliances frequently used to prepare it. For the question “How important are, in your opinion, the different meals you eat every day?”, breakfast was chosen among 89.7% of Spanish participants, 85.1 % of German consumers, and 80.0 % of English participants. Spain was the country with the highest average rates for the use of all the devices (7.6) compared to Germany (7.0) and UK (7.1), therefore, the sensory analysis and acceptability test was carried out in Spain. A customized, fresh, tasty, nutritious, and healthy 3D printed breakfast bar was developed for senior consumers in Spain by using the three smart cooking devices. Sensory analysis and acceptability were tested with 80 senior consumers aged between 45 and 75 years and divided in two groups: 46-60 years (mature), and 61-75 (senior). Around 56% of consumers increased their acceptance of the new breakfast bar after being informed about the technological, nutritional, and convenient benefits of the new breakfast concept. Conclusions: The findings provided both theoretical and practical insights into the perception of the three smart cooking devices per type of household and per country. A combination of technologies was used to develop the new breakfast concept for the target group and country with the most positive perception. The set of method used in this study show how to share resources for gathering information on product attributes and consumer experience, and for validating the new concept with the target group identified via consumer market research.