Living a healthy lifestyle is vital, but the hustle and bustle of daily life, particularly as a mother of three, makes it a challenging task. Keeping track of food intake and water consumption often becomes an onerous task. However, the advent of food tracking apps powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and computer vision has made this task significantly easier and efficient. Apps like BitePal, Hoot, Lose It!, and MyFitnessPal have become handy tools for keeping a tab on daily meals.
According to Meridan Zerner, a registered dietitian based in Dallas, Texas, these food tracker apps are beneficial in raising awareness and responsibility towards our diet. She says, “We’re busy people, right? Let me stop for a moment and think about and be conscious of what I’m eating.” Zerner further adds that people often underestimate their food intake by 20 to 50 percent, making these apps a valuable tool for accurate tracking.
Understanding Food Tracking Apps
When initiating use of these apps, users are required to enter basic personal details such as current weight, height, and food intake goals. Depending on personal needs, these apps promise to provide assistance in weight loss, maintenance, or even weight gain. Some apps offer basic features like food logging for free, while others require a subscription, ranging from $35 to $80 per year for additional services like nutrient tracking or detailed coaching advice.
Once the basic information is entered, these apps calculate an approximate daily calorie requirement based on the body measurements, habits, activity level, diet type, and sleep quality. However, there can be a discrepancy in the range of calorie recommendations across different apps, due to the complex factors influencing individual metabolic rates, such as hormones, bone size, and genetics.
Limitations and Challenges
While these apps have brought a significant change in the realm of health and fitness, they are not without limitations. Zerner points out that the calorie and energy recommendations these apps provide are based on equations that may not account for individual differences. “That’s one of the benefits of going to a registered, licensed dietitian,” she says. “We can actually do a resting metabolic rate test to find out, ‘Hey, this is exactly your burn rate.’ Sometimes it follows the predicted equation, sometimes it doesn’t.”
Additionally, the AI analysis integrated into these apps, which enables users to take photos of their meals for calorie estimation, also presents discrepancies. For instance, different apps may calculate the same Mediterranean bowl to be of varying caloric values, leaving users to manually adjust the estimates.
In conclusion, while food tracking apps are a step forward towards a healthier lifestyle, they should be utilized as a tool to enhance awareness rather than a definitive guide. Consulting with registered dietitians and health professionals is recommended for a more personalized and accurate assessment.
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