Dietary Management Project
Have you ever unconsciously eaten more when you're stressed? This isn't a matter of willpower, but rather a natural bodily response.
This project, facilitated by Zoe's participation in research design and digital health initiatives, collaborates with a team of statisticians, engineers, and healthcare management professionals. By analyzing food photo data, it explores the scientific relationship between stress, diet, and blood sugar, and translates the research findings into practical digital health solutions.
Research Design and Methodology
Research period
The two-week intensive follow-up study comprehensively captured the participants' daily stress, diet, and blood sugar dynamics.
Data collection
1. Food intake record: Participants record their daily diet by taking photos. Each photo is analyzed to quantify the total calories and carbohydrate intake, capturing the participants' true dietary variability.
2. Stress was measured using a self-report scale, with participants recording their perceived stress levels daily.
3. Blood glucose monitoring was performed using a Dexcom G7 continuous glucose monitor for two weeks of uninterrupted real-time blood glucose tracking. Measurements included:
Mean glucose level
Glucose variability (standard deviation SD)
The Dexcom G7 is a next-generation continuous glucose monitoring system that provides accurate blood glucose readings every 5 minutes, allowing research teams to track the complete trajectory of blood glucose fluctuations.
Analytical methods
The study employed correlation analysis and a multilevel statistical model to test, after controlling for individual baseline differences:
The relationship between daily stress and dietary intake (total calories, carbohydrates)
The relationship between daily stress and blood glucose indicators (mean, variability)
The relationship between dietary intake and blood sugar levels
Discovery 1:
Stress significantly increases calorie intake.
Research has found that when daily stress levels are higher than usual, total calorie intake increases significantly. This correlation is stronger than the effect of stress on carbohydrates, indicating that stress-induced dietary changes are comprehensive.
Finding 2: Stress increases average blood sugar levels
Stress primarily affects the average blood sugar level, rather than short-term blood sugar fluctuations. You can think of it this way: instead of creating more ripples (variability) on the surface of water, stress raises the overall water level (average blood sugar) in the tank.
This finding has important implications for long-term health management, as persistently elevated average blood sugar levels may increase the risk of metabolic syndrome and chronic diseases.
Finding 3: Dual Influence Mechanism
Physiological pathway
Stress causes the body to secrete more cortisol (stress hormone), which directly stimulates the liver to release glucose into the bloodstream.
Behavioral pathways
Stress drives us to consume more calories and carbohydrates, which raise blood sugar levels once in the body.
Both pathways work together to keep average blood sugar levels higher during periods of stress.
Practical Applications
After understanding the relationship between stress and diet and blood sugar, we can:
Be aware of how your stress levels affect your food choices.
Establish healthy stress-relief pathways (music therapy, mindfulness, exercise)
Monitor stress and eating patterns using digital tools
Preventively manage long-term health risks
Solution
This project integrates interdisciplinary expertise to develop evidence-based digital health solutions:
✓ Real-time monitoring system - tracks the relationship between stress and eating patterns ✓ Personalized management - provides blood sugar and dietary adjustment suggestions based on data ✓ Preventive intervention - provides health reminders before risks accumulate ✓ Continuous optimization - refines management strategies through data feedback
Open up multiple applications and potential income
Want to build your own digital product?
Zoe provides digital transformation consulting services to psychologists, therapists and other helping professionals.
From concept generation, architecture design to content optimization, we help you create products with depth and scalability potential. When we have financial thinking, healing can go further and continue to help more people.
Book a 30-minute free talk to find the best solution togerther
