The application and impact of computer-generated personalized nutrition education: A review of the literature

Computer-tailored nutrition education may be more effective than general nu trition education because messages are tailored to individual behavior, nee ds and beliefs of subjects. Therefore, the messages are likely to be of mor e personal relevance and may have stronger motivational effects. Computer-g enerated nutrition education has been studied for different dietary behavio rs, in different target populations, and in different settings. In recent y ears, eight studies have been published that assessed the impact of compreh ensive computer-generated nutrition interventions that were based on behavi or change theory. In this article, the process of providing people with com puter-tailored nutrition education is described and the studies on the impa ct of computer-tailored nutrition education are reviewed. The results point to the conclusion that computer-tailored nutrition education is more likel y to be read, remembered, and experienced as personally relevant compared t o standard materials. Furthermore, computer-tailored nutrition education al so appears to have a greater impact in motivating people to change their di et, their fat intake in particular, although at present no definite conclus ions can be drawn. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserv ed.