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  • Original Article
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Feasibility testing of an automated image-capture method to aid dietary recall

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 65, pages 1156–1162 (2011)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objectives:

The accuracy of dietary recalls might be enhanced by providing participants with photo images of foods they consumed during the test period.

Subjects/Methods:

We examined the feasibility of a system (Image-Diet Day) that is a user-initiated camera-equipped mobile phone that is programmed to automatically capture and transmit images to a secure website in conjunction with computer-assisted, multipass, 24-h dietary recalls in 14 participants during 2007. Participants used the device during eating periods on each of the three independent days. Image processing filters successfully eliminated underexposed, overexposed and blurry images. The captured images were accessed by the participants using the ImageViewer software while completing the 24-h dietary recall on the following day.

Results:

None of the participants reported difficulty using the ImageViewer. Images were deemed ‘helpful’ or ‘sort of helpful’ by 93% of participants. A majority (79%) of users reported having no technical problems, but 71% rated the burden of wearing the device as somewhat to very difficult, owing to issues such as limited battery life, self-consciousness about wearing the device in public and concerns about the field of view of the camera.

Conclusion:

Overall, these findings suggest that automated imaging is a promising technology to facilitate dietary recall. The challenge of managing the thousands of images generated can be met. Smaller devices with a broader field of view may aid in overcoming self-consciousness of the user with using or wearing the device.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health Grant 5R01CA105048-04 and UCLA, the General Clinical Research Centers Program Grant M01-RR000865. We acknowledge the contributions by the staff of the University of California, Los Angeles, General Clinical Research Centers, in particular Joe Kim, Kellie Kutcher and Ashley Winter, during the study conduct phase. We thank Mary Catherine Cambou, Martha Sensel, PhD, and Jasmine Yaxun Chen for manuscript preparation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    L Arab

  2. UCLA Center for Embedded Networked Sensing, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    D Estrin, D H Kim, J Burke & J Goldman

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  1. L Arab
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  2. D Estrin
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  3. D H Kim
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  4. J Burke
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Correspondence to L Arab.

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Arab, L., Estrin, D., Kim, D. et al. Feasibility testing of an automated image-capture method to aid dietary recall. Eur J Clin Nutr 65, 1156–1162 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2011.75

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2011.75

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