NHS gamifies healthy eating for UK children with app-centric campaign

10 Jan 2022 --- The UK government is targeting children’s health with a multimedia campaign, Better Health, which includes new features for the NHS Food Scanner App. The move highlights how technology and policy can be synergized to address the rising obesity crisis – worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“With advertising promoting unhealthy foods to kids, it’s not surprising that parents say they’ve often found it hard to resist pestering from their children for more unhealthy snacks,” says Dr. Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist at the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).

“That is why the NHS Food Scanner App is a great tool to help families make quick and easy healthier swaps.” 

Families can scan the barcodes of purchased products and the app will suggest healthier alternatives to help them make an easy swap next time they shop. 

The campaign is part of the government’s Obesity Strategy, which has dedicated £100 million (US$139 million) to support children, adults and families achieve and maintain a healthier weight.The campaign includes a film with Patel, a family active on Netmums and pop singer Nadine Coyle. 

Comfort eating backfires
The campaign follows a “record rise” in obesity among children since the start of the pandemic. Campaigners from organizations like Sustain have been leading calls for concrete action on child obesity.

According to the DHSC, one in four (27.7%) children of reception school age (ages 4 to 5) are overweight or obese; this rises to four in ten (40.9%) in Year 6 (ages 10 to 11). 

Evidence shows that families purchased food more during lockdowns, and this remained above normal levels even once lockdowns ended. 

Additionally, a survey conducted with Netmums – a parenting website featuring in a film supporting the campaign – found that nearly six in ten (58%) parents give their children more sugary or fatty snacks than before the pandemic.

“We all comfort ate our way through the pandemic, and I know my kids ate far more treats than usual,” notes Annie O’Leary, Netmums editorial director. 

Last week, the DHSC also announced a Better Health marketing campaign for adults, aiming to help people prevent risks of developing serious illness and help reduce the risk of being hospitalized with COVID-19. Families can scan the product barcodes from their shop, and the app will suggest healthier alternatives.

Gold standard for trust
The survey also revealed that nearly two-thirds (64%) of parents said they often worry about how healthy their children’s snacks really are. Meanwhile, almost 90% of parents said they would benefit from an app that would help them make healthier choices for their children.

“The NHS is the gold standard in terms of trustworthiness. Hopefully, this means millions of families will be downloading it and using it ASAP,” notes O’Leary.

The app uses a “Good Choice” badge to help signpost people to healthier food and drinks in line with the government’s dietary recommendations for added sugar, saturated fat and salt.

This gamification of making healthy choices is likely to appeal to children, with dietician Dr. Linia Patel noting the “fun” side of it.  

Industry movers have also turned toward apps to help encourage healthy choices. Last summer, Sainsbury’s launched The Great Big Fruit and Veg Challenge, which uses fun, interactive targets. 

Meanwhile, a year-long collaboration between supermarkets and food manufacturers previously revealed that “gamified” campaigns for collection tokens can help attract children to healthy foods.  

Other apps for weight loss include Feast, which encourages mindful eating, and Nutrisystem, which offers personalized plans. 

Edited by Katherine Durrell

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