The age of the smartphone-controlled diet
Smartphones could soon be telling us what to eat and what to avoid whilst shopping in supermarkets. This comes after a study, published in the Journal of Medical Systems, looked at the possible use of Near Field Communication (NFC) in Spain. This is a recently developed technology that allows electronic devices to establish radio communication and share data by simply touching, or even being in close proximity (typically 10cm).
The researchers aimed to make choosing food for overweight children at the supermarket an easier experience for parents by tagging food with nutritional data, such as energy and fat content; when an interaction is made with the mobile phone, a notification will inform them whether it is appropriate for the users diet or not. Once a suitable diet has been devised according to the user profile, an appropriate shopping list could be developed, making shopping much more efficient! The system also takes into account the physical activity of the user using accelerometers. The study found that time spent in the supermarket was reduced by parents using the system and the quality of the food and drinks being bought was increased.
