Feasibility of Digital Tool for Dietary Goal Setting in Primary Care Diabetes Management Demonstrated in Pilot Study

A recent pilot study published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior has explored the use of Nutri, a digital platform designed to assist primary care providers (PCPs) in setting personalized dietary goals during routine visits with patients managing type 2 diabetes. Conducted across federally qualified health centers in Texas, the trial involved 16 PCPs and 30 adult patients with diabetes or prediabetes. Nutri utilizes patient dietary recall data, processed through a rules-based expert system, to identify key nutritional issues and facilitate collaborative goal-setting within standard consultations.

The study found that PCPs used Nutri in all eligible appointments, indicating high feasibility. Providers reported a satisfaction score of 3.8 out of 5 and rated the system as user-friendly. Patients, predominantly from underserved communities, actively engaged with the intervention; notably, 81% of participants reported setting a dietary goal with their provider, and more than half initiated their goal within a week.

Marissa Burgermaster, Ph.D., lead author and assistant professor at Dell Medical School and the University of Texas at Austin, highlighted that primary care providers often lack the time and training for effective nutritional counseling. Nutri supports shared decision-making and integrates smoothly into existing workflows, making dietary counseling more accessible and actionable.

This pilot provides a promising foundation for larger-scale research to evaluate Nutri’s impact on dietary quality and clinical outcomes. Digital tools like Nutri have the potential to bridge nutrition care gaps, especially in low-resource settings, by offering personalized, efficient, and accessible dietary guidance.

Source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-07-feasibility-digital-tool-dietary-goal.html