Professor's new diet app takes the stress out of meal trac
Source: Austin College
What started out as a personal goal turned into a project that is now available worldwide. Dr. Aaron Block, of the Austin College mathematics and computer science faculty, has developed “Seven Second Diet,” a mobile phone app that allows users to input their meal information with the tap of a few buttons.
Concerns about being overweight or obese abound in today’s world, and innovators have developed ways to address these problems. While many believe that simply exercising regularly will encourage weight loss, evidence suggests that a combination of proper nutrition in addition to exercise helps maintain a healthy weight. Nutrition, however, might be declining: according to a recent study, a positive correlation showed an increase in both advertised sweet snacks and obesity over the past fifty years. Despite this, many people possess general knowledge of the food they eat: they just may not be thinking about it.
Upon reaching his 30th birthday, Dr. Block realized he was overweight. In response, he started counting calories and logging his meals onto an Excel spreadsheet, a process that required a significant amount of time. Discouraged by the sheer amount of data needed for these records, he tried something else: simply evaluating his meals based on generally how healthy they were for him. This approach worked: soon he had returned to a healthy weight.
As the market for mobile phone apps started to rise, so did apps for dieting. Dr. Block noticed that these apps used the same method of calorie counting that he had tried previously, and quickly discovered that they required the same amount of laborious maintenance. While these apps are helpful for very detail-oriented people and are easier to use when scanning the barcodes of processed food, they become much more complicated when trying to track home-cooked meals, a generally healthier option. Dr. Block then decided to turn his own idea of simplified dieting into an app.
“For many people, calorie counting apps are very complicated,” said Dr. Block. “With the Seven Second Diet, users can be conscious of food intake without obsessing over the details.”
According to Dr. Block, the advantage of the Seven Second Diet is its accessibility. “It takes longer to take the phone out of your pocket than to record your meal,” he said. The app allows the user to grade his or her meal as “good,” “meh,” or “bad,” a general assessment that captures an overall picture of how healthy the user’s meals are over time. In addition to tracking meals, the user can also input exercise, water intake, and alcohol intake. Detailed graphics make the app visually appealing, and the color scheme used accommodates those with varying degrees of color blindness.
Dr. Block’s work on this app will also be beneficial to Austin College students. During JanTerm, Dr. Block and fellow faculty member Dr. Jennifer Johnson-Cooper will teach a class about app development, which will result in a finished product. During the fall semester, Dr. Block will also be teaching a class involving the programming language used by Apple.
Austin College, a private national liberal arts college located north of Dallas in Sherman, Texas, has earned a reputation for excellence in academic preparation, international study, pre-professional foundations, leadership development, committed faculty, and hands-on, adventurous learning opportunities. One of 40 schools profiled in Loren Pope’s influential book Colleges That Change Lives, Austin College boasts a welcoming community that embraces diversity and individuality, with more than 36 percent of students representing ethnic minorities. A residential student body of 1,250 students and a faculty of more than 100 allow a 12:1 student-faculty ratio and personalized attention. The College is related by covenant to the Presbyterian Church (USA) and cultivates an inclusive atmosphere that supports students’ faith journeys regardless of religious tradition. Founded in 1849, the College is the oldest institution of higher education in Texas operating under original name and charter.
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