Patent Application
20210134434
This invention relates to a system and method for improving a user's food selections by comparing one or more attributes of a food selection, such as nutritional profile or user preferences, to one or more subjective and/or objective criteria to provide a user with information regarding the relative healthfulness, production, and other criteria of a particular food item compared to another and to incentivize the user to select more healthful and relevant items.
A problem frequently encountered by consumers in shopping for food items is determining the healthiest option among many food product options. Packaged foods include a nutrition label including information regarding the number of calories and amounts of various components, such as protein, fats, sugars, per serving of the packaged food. However, consumers can have difficulty deciphering the information provided, particularly since there is a lack of uniformity in labeling regarding the number of servings in a package and portion size. Other problems frequently encountered by consumers is making healthy food selections within a pre-determined budget, avoiding impulse purchases of unhealthy food items, and healthy meal planning. Additionally, consumers are also interested in other information regarding food items, such as sustainability, how the food was raised, produced, processed, and/or packaged, whether production and packaging of the food item is environmentally friendly, whether the item is local and where the items originated. It is often difficult to find this information, particularly in a grocery setting and particularly in a way that allows the consumer to compare the information for different items.
There are several known methods for scoring food items based on health criteria and providing the scores to a consumer to aid in making healthy food selections. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 8,647,121 discloses using a combination of binary (yes/no) and non-binary (quantitative) scoring of food items based on a consumer's personal information (such as peanut allergies, which would result in a binary score of “no”) and nutritional information for the food (such as the amount of sodium in a particular food and whether the consumer has hypertension). The score can be presented to the consumer as a letter grade (A to F), a number of stars, a numerical score, or a relative rating (Very Good to Very Bad). As another example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,974,881 discloses using a scoring algorithm and a set of rating correlations, which are the same for different food types. Numerical values are assigned for various nutritional attributes of a food product and are summed to provide an overall score. For example, if the amount of saturated fat in a food item is less than or equal to 1 g, the food item is assigned a score of 0 for that attribute and if the amount of sodium for the food item is more than 120 mg but less than or equal to 240 mg, the food item is assigned a score of −1 for that attribute. Negative scores are used for generally unhealthy attributes (fat, sodium, added sugars) and positive scores are used for generally healthy attributes (fiber). Another example, implemented in Europe, is the NutriScore system. This system assigns a color-coded letter grade (a green A for healthies to a red E for unhealthiest) for food items based on the nutritional profile of the food. While these and other food scoring systems and methods are useful for consumers, there is still a need for a system and method that integrates food scoring with point-of-purchase suggestions for healthier alternative foods, meal planning, and helps meet a consumer's budget goals by coupling grocery store sales and coupons with healthy foods and meal planning. There is also a need for a system and method that provides a consumer with more useful information to track his/her progress in making healthier food selections and a scoring function to allow a consumer to better understand whether his/her overall food selections are healthy.
A method and system according to a preferred embodiment of the invention allows a user to input certain personal survey data or information regarding the user, user's food preferences (which may include factors regarding food sustainability, environmental friendliness, and how the food was produced, processed, and/or packaged that are of interest to the consumer), and the user's personal health risk factors, which are used as criteria to rank a user's food selections for a shopping event (for example, the food items searched or placed in the user's cart during an online grocery purchase), as part of planning a shopping event (for example, the food items that are searched and added to an online shopping list to be taken to the store for in-person purchase), and/or to enhance a user's in-store or point-of-purchase experience. One or more attributes of available food selections, such as nutritional information, whether the selected food is organic, and price, are compared to one or more user criteria from the personal survey data and/or objective criteria (such as science-based criteria) to determine if the food selections meet the user's criteria and the items are ranked according to how well the item meets the criteria so the user may assess whether to purchase items in-store, at the point of purchase, or include the food items in a shopping cart or list. Preferably, the personal survey data includes information regarding the user's age, race, sex, food preferences, wearable or mobile device data, food allergies, health goals, biometric data (such as height, weight, blood pressure measurement, blood test results), genetic and other -omic data, one or more medical risk factors (medical conditions such as high blood pressure or diabetes), and one or more lifestyle risk factors (such as whether the user uses tobacco products and how much physical activity the user typically gets).
According to another preferred embodiment, one or more suggestions for alternate food items that are equal to or more healthful for the user compared to the user's original selections are provided to the user. The suggested food items to aid the user in selecting food items that are better suited to the user and/or to aid the user in meeting a health goal, personal goals, and informed shopping experience.
According to another preferred embodiment, a system and method provides a health assessment and nutrient profile of a user's current and past food selections or searched foods during a shopping event or as part of planning a shopping event, in order to provide the user with suggestions for alternative food selections based on such information to drive the user toward healthier food options and/or to aid the user in meeting a health goal. Health assessments and other criteria of the food selections, also referred to herein as food scores, may be achieved using a food health and attribute scoring system or method, alone or in combination with information retrieved regarding prior purchases. Food scores are objective assessments of general healthfulness and other attributes of a food item and are not related to any specific user criteria. A user's current selections are preferably ranked according to the food score for each item so the user may assess whether the food items should be included in a shopping cart or list. Most preferably, based on the food scores of one or more of a user's current food selections, one or more alternative food items that have an equal or better food score than one or more of the current food selections are suggested to the user. This provides the user with greater variety in food choices and more healthful food choices.
According to yet another preferred embodiment, the food scores of the current food selections are coupled with the user criteria (from personal survey data) and/or one or more objective health criteria or rules, to provide customized and more accurate assessments of the current food selections and alternative food suggestions to the user. In this embodiment, the one or more alternative suggestions will preferably have a food score that is equal to or better than the food score of the current food item and will be compatible with one or more of the user's criteria and/or objective criteria. For example, if the personal survey data indicates the user has hypertension, then the alternative food item suggested may have lower sodium levels than the current food item. As another example, if the personal survey data indicates the user is vegan, then the alternative food item would be a vegan option. According to another preferred embodiment, the user may select one or more of the alternative food items, which will automatically replace the current selection in the user's online cart or shopping list.
A system and method according to another preferred embodiment also provides an overall healthfulness score for items purchased or added to a cart or list by a user, based on the specific foods items selected by the user. Preferably the overall score is based on the food scores for individual food items purchased, but other scoring criteria and other scoring categories may also be used to show the user his or her relative performance in making more healthful selections over time. The overall scoring may also include scoring elements based on the user's personal survey data, such as a health goal or improvements in biometric data. Most preferably, a system and method according to a preferred embodiment tracks the user's progress in improving the user's overall score by comparing a current food purchasing score to one or more previous food purchasing scores and/or averaging a user's food purchasing scores over a period of time. This allows a user's previous food purchases and health assessments of those purchases to be tracked over a period of time for comparison to the current selections and/or to other previous food purchases to show the user whether the user is making better food choices over time. Most preferably, a simple and easily understandable visual scale, such as a graphic meter, is used to provide the user with the tracking data and/or overall food purchasing score. Providing the user with easily understandable evidence of whether his/her food choices are improving over time provides incentive for the user to continue making healthy choices or begin making better choices to improve the overall food purchasing score.
According to another preferred embodiment, a system and method according to the invention also tracks a first user's food selection choices, overall scoring, or both and compares it to one or more other user's food selection choices, overall scoring, or both to provide the first user with an indicator of how his/her choices compare to other user's choices. Most preferably, the first user and the other users in the comparison are grouped by one or more common attributes, such as age range, location (such as city or zip code), or medical condition. This allows the first user to compare his/her choices to the choices of similarly situated users in a pseudo competitive manner to provide incentive for the first user to continue making healthy choices or begin making better choices to improve his/her score relative to other users.
According to another preferred embodiment, a system and method according to the invention allows a user to input personal biometric data (such as a blood pressure reading or weight, a wearable device (such as a FitBit®) or mobile application data (such as an app that tracks steps per day or distance walked)) related to one or more health goals (such as lowering blood pressure or losing weight) and tracks a user's progress in achieving one or more health goals. According to yet another preferred embodiment, the biometric data may be obtained from third party sources via linking of the system according to this embodiment of the invention with the source, such as a doctor's office or medical equipment, a wearable device (such as a FitBit®) or mobile application data (such as an app that tracks steps per day or distance walked). The biometric data may be tracked and the user's personal survey data is preferably automatically updated with new data, which may then be used in making alternative food suggestions to the user.
According to another preferred embodiment, a system and method of the invention provides the user with general health related information, such as educational support materials, corresponding to the user's specific medical risk factors, biometric data, medications, and/or user health goals. According to another preferred embodiment, a system and method of the invention provides the user with generalized health information and tips for improving health generally, which are not related to any user specific medical risk factors, biometric data, medications, and/or user health goals.
According to another preferred embodiment, levels of evidence and nutrient content can be accessed by users as a decision aid. According to another preferred embodiment, users may learn new recipes, healthful tips, suggestions, and techniques in preparation for/during food selection and shopping. Other preferred embodiments include one or more of the following steps or components: (1) User data stored/pulled from survey database (profile information including user demographics, personal medical history, medications, user food survey responses, prior cart purchases (if available), genomics and other -omic data, biometric, microbiome, and activity tracker data) to deliver optimized food recommendations before or during the purchasing experience; (2) Applying personalized food selection nudges based on user goals and needs at defined and variable intervals during the user's food shopping and food consumption intervals to enhance behavior change in food selection, purchasing behavior and consumption of healthier food items; (3) User selects food category (fruits and vegetables) or manual item search (apples) to display options or display past purchases in lists or periodic batches (last month); (4) Last user food item purchased pulled up from database to display and scored; (5) Last user food item attributes compared to food attributes database to match most relevant list of options that meet user needs or preferences; (6) Last food item search rank curates display of food items based on relevancy to user needs and food attributes; (7) Match food purchased to food attribute database to identify nutrition gaps and provide user: (i) food recommendations to close the nutrient gap, (ii) alert to medication interactions, (iii) alert to allergies, (iii) provide personalized nudges to promote purchase of heathier options, and/or (iv) provide educational information to increase awareness; (8) Match prior food item cart purchase (last cart purchase by item) and sort up one level (adjusted rank moves from B to A food, C to B etc.) and foods sorted by user attribute/criteria relevancy; (9) live or pre-recorded coaching based on a user's food searches, previous purchases, habits and/or patterns determined from use of the system and method, searches, previous purchases, and/or biometric data; (10) Food items displayed offer option for “Switch” function to allow user to see options (Display apple and show apple sauce, died apples, apple juice); (11) Food items displayed and offer option for “remix” function to allow user to get the same nutrient mix or range from different foods (remix from Apples to Avocados); (12) Food items displayed and offer option of recipes and add ingredients to cart; (13) utilization of primary food attributes comprising one or more of: (i) sodium, added sugar, calories, vitamins, protein, carbohydrates, total fat, (regulated food label requirements); and (ii) additional food attributes like nitrates, type of fatty acids, and micronutrients essential for optimal health (types of fatty acids, Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA), zinc, selenium, types of B vitamins, vitamins K & E, sulfur, chloride, magnesium, among others); (14) Utilizing primary food attributes to displayed food scores (such as a letter grade A, B, C, D, E or similar display) for items; (15) utilization of secondary food attributes or preferences for each food item/serving comprising one or more of: taste, texture, engineered food (e.g. Impossible meat), Non-Genetically Modified Organism (GMO), Certified Organic, food additives, artificial ingredients, no preservatives, no pesticides, sustainably harvested, carbon dioxide footprint, ethically produced; (16) utilization of tertiary food attributes or preferences and/or shopping preferences comprising one or more of: non-nutrient attributes like price, sale items, highlighting in-season fresh food items, food freshness verification (meats, fruits and vegetables), food satiety ranking and other non-nutrient attributes relevant to user's food choices and foods shown to support medical conditions in certain combinations of nutrients to deliver optimal combinations associated with health; (17) applying the food selection primary attributes to the secondary and/or tertiary food attributes to curate and display foods that meet user needs and preferences; (18) utilizing icons or graphics that denote one or more of the primary, secondary, or tertiary food attributes/preferences to provide a graphical representation to a user that such attribute/preference is met by a particular food item; (19) connected to grocer food inventory systems to pull available food stock and display food and non-food items; (20) functionality of the in-store enhanced digital experience using a mobile device or internet connected device (for example, allowing a user to take picture of a Universal Product Code (UPC) using a smart phone camera to display a curated selection of foods and food attributes of individual food items, allowing a user to search for food options, obtain information and offers, and/or providing in-store food games to enhance in-store shopping experience for users and their family members); (21) works for dining out and convenience stores to curate options to meet user food consumption needs for optimal health; (22) uses machine learning to curate increasingly personalized and relevant options for users based on past shopping and purchasing behavior to present more relevant food options and personalized nudges to promote better selections; (23) can display “new” store options first in curated food display to users; (24) Interface with other Application Programming Interfaces (API) to allow for importation of other databases and datasets such as: blockchain food tracking “farm to fork”; (25) Food story video display for food producers to promote products direct to users; (26) ‘Food kudos’ to display food attributes directly to users (Non-GMO, Organic); (27) Calculate and issue reward badges and coupons to incentivize healthier food shopping; (28) Curate food meal kits based on user criteria and food attributes; (28) track and produce individual and aggregate food consumption reports based on scores and food purchasing patterns for research purposes; and (29) Deliver food coaching and nutrition support (chat with nutritionist) function.
The method of the invention is further described and explained in relation to the following drawings wherein:
A preferred embodiment of a method or system 10 for improving food selections is shown in
As shown in
Medical risk factors or medical conditions entered at step 82 preferably comprise one or more medical conditions the user has (high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, for example). A user may also optionally be prompted to enter any prescription or over-the-counter medications that are regularly used, as there may be interferences or incompatibilities with certain food ingredients or foods and these medications. A user is also optionally prompted to enter biometric data at step 84. Biometric data may include the user's historic, recent or average blood pressure measurement, cholesterol levels, height, weight, body mass index (BMI), blood test results, or other biometric data. A user may optionally be prompted to link to biometric data sources and/or other third-party databases at step 86, so that biometric and other data may be communicated directly to into system 10. Biometric data sources may include personal blood pressure or blood glucose monitoring devices that are capable of communicating blood pressure or glucose reading data via a wired or wireless connection, a database for a physician of the user, or a personal health tracker (such as a FitBit®). Other databases that may be linked to system 10 include a pharmacy database to provide information on prescription medications or telemedicine databases. Shopping related databases may also be linked to system 10 through a prompt at step 86 or another prompt in survey data 78 (not shown), so that the user may utilize coupon databases, or shopping rewards databases (such as platforms that provide third party rewards for shopping at particular merchants, with a particular credit card, and/or through a particular website). A user may optionally, but preferably, be prompted to enter any food allergies or sensitivities or both at step 88. The data entered at steps 82, 84, and 88, and any data retrieved through step 86 may be combined together as a user's health factors and general health factors are the types of data that may be entered or retrieved at these steps.
A user is also preferably prompted to enter one or more food preferences at step 90, and optionally 92 and 94. Primary food preferences 90 include one or more nutritional related food preferences to include or exclude, such as: low fat, reduced sugar, gluten-free, no trans-fats, particular vitamin or mineral content, etc. One or more primary food preferences 90 may overlap with one or more food sensitivities at step 88, for example gluten sensitivity and gluten-free food preference. Secondary food preferences 92 include one or more preferences related to the type of food to include or exclude, such as vegetarian, vegan, no red meat, no seafood, no dairy, etc. Tertiary preferences 94 include one or more preferences related to food production to include or exclude, such as in-season fruits and vegetables, certified organic, non-GMO, locally sourced, free-range meat, pesticide use, no high fructose corn syrup, preservative free, etc. Preferences 90, 92, and 94 may be combined into a single category or separated into one or more preference categories, as desired. If a user typically shops for friends or family members in addition to the user, the user may include medical risk factors, biometric data, medications, and food preferences of such friends or family member in the user's own profile or can create separate profiles for pets, friends, family members, or those within their household that they normally shop for. The user can select which of the user, friend(s), and/or family member(s) system 10 should take into account when building/updating user criteria rules 14 for a particular shopping trip or list.
A user is also optionally prompted at step 96 to enter shopping preferences, which may include: a preferred grocery store or rank order of local grocery stores, preference for shopping for on sale items, coupon use (or displaying items with online coupons available first), displaying new items first, etc. Shopping preferences 96 may be integrated with food preferences 90, 92, 94, or may be separate. A user may enter one or more health goals or health plans at step 98, such as: weight loss, increasing fruit and vegetable consumption, gluten free diets, low blood pressure diets, published scientifically backed diets, reducing red meat consumption, reducing sodium consumption, reducing sugar consumption, etc. A health goal 98 may also include a desire to reduce consumption of one or more particular ingredients (e.g. sodium, saturated fats, etc.) or types of foods (e.g. red meat or dairy), to increase consumption of one or more particular ingredients (e.g. protein) or types of foods (e.g. fruits or vegetables), to lose weight or reduce calorie consumption, change biometric data (e.g. lower blood pressure), etc. and any reduction or increase may be based on a given number of servings of such ingredients or types of food over a given time period. A user may also be prompted to enter basic information (such as name, address, race, sex, age) at step 80. This step may be carried out before step 82, but may be carried out at any time. A user may also optionally provide weighting or ranking information at step 100 to indicate the relative subjective importance to the user of one or more of the user criteria 81 compared to other criteria 81. For example, a primary food preference 90 may be more important to the user than a secondary food preference 92 and a shopping preference 96 may also be more important to the user than a secondary food preference 92. A weighting or ranking of importance at step 100 will later be used to create subjective weighting or ranking rules at step 116 to be used in comparing food items in stage 22. In some scenarios, a preferred primary food preference 90 may include a dietary plan of which the user plans to adhere to which will affect ranking of importance 100 and rules 116 when displayed to the user 24. A user's survey data is saved at step 102. Each time a user logs into system 10, or at periodic login intervals (such as every month or every three months, for example), the user may optionally be prompted to update survey data 78, and particularly user criteria 81, which allows the user to change any survey data 78 that has changed since the last time data was entered. Alternatively, a user may manually select to update survey data 78 by selecting such on a user display interface on the user's computing device. If system 10 is linked to biometric databases or devices at step 86, system 10 preferably periodically retrieves new data from such databases or devices at pre-set or user selected intervals and automatically updates the user's survey data. Alternatively, a user may manually select when to have system 10 and a biometric device communicate with each other.
As shown in
System 10 preferably comprises one or more general health rules that apply to various medical risk factors, medical conditions, or medications that may be taken. These rules are generalized and not user specific. For example, a general hypertension rule may include food items with sodium levels per serving that are less than or equal to a predetermined first threshold and/or exclude food items with sodium levels above that first threshold. One or more general sub-rules may also be used. For example, for a blood pressure reading above a predetermined threshold (such as one that may be borderline high), a sub-rule may include food items with sodium levels per serving that are less than or equal to a predetermined second threshold and/or exclude food items with sodium levels above that second threshold, where the second threshold is the same as the first threshold or different than the first threshold (in this particular example, the second threshold may be higher than the first threshold). Similar general health rules may be created for various food ingredients that may impact various other medical risk factors or conditions, such as sugar thresholds for users with diabetes, cholesterol thresholds for users with high cholesterol, fat thresholds for users with hyperlipidemia, etc. or that may interfere with or be incompatible with certain medications, such as medications that should not be taken with grapefruit or grapefruit juice, for example. These general health rules are retrieved at step 103 and are used, along with the retrieved user survey data from step 104, to create/update user specific health rules 106, each of which factor into ranking 100, rules 116, and items displayed for purchase to the user 24.
Most preferably, user specific health rules 106 are based on user's medical risk factors/medical conditions 82, biometric data 84, 86, and/or medications being taken and various food ingredients that may impact those conditions or medications from the retrieved general health rules 103. The rules and sub-rules retrieved at step 103 are generalized in that they apply to all users having the same or similar medical conditions or biometric data or medications; however, the user specific health rules 106 are a user specific collection of one or more generalized rules or sub-rules 103 based on the user's particular health or medical conditions and biometric data. For example, if a user has hypertension, then user specific health rules 106 will include the general health rule related to hypertension (e.g. to include food items with sodium levels per serving that are less than or equal to a predetermined first threshold and/or to exclude food items with sodium levels above that first threshold). If user's survey data 78 does not list high blood pressure/hypertension as a medical risk factor but the user's biometric data indicates the user's blood pressure is borderline or near a high range, then a sub-rule for the range of blood pressure readings within which the user's reading falls would be included in the user specific health rules 106 (e.g. to include food items with sodium levels per serving that are less than or equal to a predetermined second threshold and/or to exclude food items with sodium levels above that second threshold, where the second threshold is the same as the first threshold or different than the first threshold). As another example, if a user blood test results indicate the user is deficient in a particular vitamin, mineral or other nutrient, then a rule 106 may be designed to include food items with higher levels of such vitamins, minerals, or other nutrients or to rank them higher in a weighted list of food items for the user or suggested for the user. Similar user specific health rules 106 rules may be created based on the user's medical risk factors 82 and/or biometric data 84 and/or 86. Food preferences 90, 92, 94 may also be applied with specific health rules 106, and generalized health rules 103 to allow for personalized rank ordering of food products displayed to the user 24. In the event of preferences entered at 90, 92, 94 being out of range of both specific health rules 106 and generalized health rules 103, certain out of range products may or may not be displayed back to the user 24 with a notification that a product is outside of their health goals or dietary adherence plan.
If the user indicated any food allergies or sensitivities at step 88, then one or more rules are preferably created (or updated) at step 108 based on those allergies or sensitivities. Most preferably, the rule will exclude any foods that contain an allergen for the user from being displayed to the user at step 24, to avoid any negative health impacts on the user. Alternatively, a rule may allow a food item containing an allergen to be displayed at step 24 along with a warning label and/or displayed at or near a bottom of a list of foods (assigned a lower rank at step 148 based on the allergen and limit 108). Similarly, a rule 108 may exclude any foods that contain an ingredient to which the user has a sensitivity from being displayed to the user at step 24 or may allow such item to be displayed with a warning label and/or displayed near a bottom of a list of goods (assigned a lower rank at step 148 based on the food sensitivity rule at 108).
Food preference rules are preferably created (or updated) at steps 110 and optionally 112. Food preference rules 110 are based on user's primary food preferences 90 and optional food preference limits 112 are based on user's secondary and/or tertiary food preferences 92, 94, to exclude or include food items based on the preferences returned back to the user on search M. Rules in steps 110 and 112 may be combined into one step or one set of rules based on all the food preferences but, are most preferably broken down into two or more categories based on the type of food preference (primary, secondary, tertiary). As an example of a primary food preference limit 110, if a user indicated a primary food preference 90 for lower fat foods, then a rule may be applied to include food items with saturated or total fat levels per serving that are less than or equal to a predetermined first threshold and/or to exclude food items with saturated or total fat levels above that first threshold. As an example of a secondary food preference limit 112, if a user indicated a secondary food preference 92 of vegan, then food items that are not vegan may be excluded from the list.
Health goal rules are preferably created/updated at step 114 based on user's health goals 98. For example, if the user has a health goal of weight loss, then a health goal limit may include foods with total sugars per serving that are less than or equal to a predetermined threshold, or food items with without added sugars, or food items labeled as “reduced sugar. Similar rules may be set based on total calories per serving and/or fat per serving, for example. Additionally, other rules may be set to increase or decrease consumption of particular ingredients or types of foods based on a user's health goals and may be combined with other rules and food preferences.
To ultimately provide a greater number of food items for the user to be displayed for the user at step 24, the sub-rules from steps 110, 112, and 114 are preferably subjectively ranked or weighted at step 116 based on subjective weighting/ranking criteria selected by the user at step 100 to arrive at a user's food criteria at step 118. Subjective weighting/ranking at step 116 is optional, but preferred. As an example, if a user indicated at step 100 that having certified organic foods is more important than locally sourced foods, then at step 116 that preference is built into the user food criteria 118 so that at step 144 preference is given to organic items over locally sourced foods. For example, if item A is organic and local, item B is non-organic and non-local, item C is non-organic and local, and item D is organic and non-local, then the rules applied in step 144 according to the user's preference for organic over local items as set in step 100 would rank these items in the order of the user's preference as item A, D, C, and then B. Alternatively, items C and B may be excluded from the list or flagged as not meeting a criteria(s), as further discussed below. When multiple food criteria are weighted or ranked at step 100, then numerical values are preferably assigned to the criteria to build the user food criteria at step 118, as will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art.
Although the rules in steps 106 and 108 may also be weighted or ranked, they are most preferably not weighted or ranked by a user at step 100 (but may be ranked or weighted according to pre-determined rules at step 150), and are treated as hard requirements. If they are weighted or ranked, they are most preferably weighted or ranked based on an algorithm that factors in medical criteria at step 150 and not based on user selections at step 100.
System 10 may be configured to only apply a limited number of the rules from steps 110, 112, and 114 (and optionally from steps 106 and 108), with those rules that are ranked the highest in steps 116 (based on user selected criteria at step 100) and/or 148 (based on objective criteria) taking preference in the order of operation at steps 118 and/or in applying/comparing the rules to particular food items at step 144 and/or 148. Various combinations of rules may be applied to medical conditions, food preferences, and health goals, and different weighting criteria may be used, to arrive at user food criteria at step 118 as will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art.
Rules based on shopping preferences are created/updated at step 120. For example, if a user indicates a preference for viewing new items first, then a rule based on when an item was first introduced or added to a food database (such as the database of foods available for purchase from a particular grocer) will be created so that newer items show up higher in a display list at step 24 of food items meeting other rules. Other shopping preference rules may include display food items that are on sale and meet other rules higher than items that are not on sale. To ultimately provide a greater number of food items for the user to be displayed for the user at step 24, the sub-rules from step 120 are preferably ranked or weighted at step 122 based on user's selected weighting/ranking criteria from step 100 to arrive at a user's shopping criteria at step 124. Weighting/ranking at step 122 is optional, but preferred. As an example, if a user indicated at step 110 that having on sale food items is more important than new items, then at step 124 the rule related to displaying on sale items will be carried out before the rule for new items. System 10 may be configured to only apply a limited number of the rules from step 120, with those rules that are ranked the highest at step 100 taking preference in the order of operation at step 122.
When a user is logged into system 10, the user has the option of browsing or searching for recipes at step 18 or shopping/creating a list at step 16, as shown in
If a user is shopping or creating a list online, the user is preferably prompted to indicate if the user would like to retrieve items from a previous list or shopping cart (if there is a previous list or shopping cart) at step 46. If yes, then the user's previous shopping cart items and/or shopping list are retrieved at step 48 and can either be re-purchased or provide nutritional and other information regarding the items from the previous cart/list which are retrieved through food information integration stage 20, discussed further below. If the user does not have a previous list or shopping cart (such as for the first time the user is using system 10 or using system 10 in conjunction with a particular store's online shopping platform), or the user indicates he/she does not want to retrieve items from a previous list or shopping cart, then the user is prompted to search for food items at step 50. A user is preferably prompted to enter a food category (e.g. dairy, pasta, meat, vegetables, etc.) or to enter a particular food item or brand name (e.g. spaghetti, apples, Dannon® yogurt, etc.) at step 52. The searched items are retrieved at step 54 and nutritional and other information regarding those items is retrieved through food information integration stage 20, discussed further below. A user may also request that food items be suggested for the user at step 56. Items that are available for purchase through a particular grocer's online shopping platform are retrieved at step 58, and preferably one or more predetermined rules according to health criteria (most preferably general health criteria that are not user specific) are applied to reduce the number of items retrieved at step 58. Nutritional and other information regarding the retrieved items is retrieved through food information integration stage 20, discussed further below. If a user wants to browse or search for recipes at step 40, the user is prompted to enter search criteria (e.g. main courses, sides, recipes using beef, vegetarian recipes, etc.) or to request suggested recipes at step 42. For suggested recipes, preferably one or more predetermined rules according to health criteria (most preferably general health criteria that is not user specific) are applied to reduce the number of recipes retrieved at step 42. Nutritional and other information regarding the retrieved items is retrieved through food information integration stage 20, discussed further below.
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Food/recipe database information integration stage 20 also optionally, but preferably, comprises linking to or integration with one or more other databases containing information regarding one or more other attributes of the food items at step 136 and retrieving information regarding a secondary, tertiary, and/or higher level attributes for the food items at step 138. For example, a secondary food attribute (similar to step 402 in system 310) may include information regarding micronutrients (e.g. choline, biotin, lutein), food-drug interactions, and nutrients associated with managing health conditions, levels of scientific evidence may also be provided in this stage. A tertiary food attribute (similar to step 404 in system 310) may include information regarding food production and manufacturing that may have health implications, such as whether the retrieved/selected food item is non-GMO, certified organic, produced with or without the use of pesticides, etc. One or more other higher level food attributes and/or other information regarding the food item or recipe (similar to steps 406, 408 in system 310) may also be retrieved at step 138, such as information regarding the geographic location where the food was produced, when it was harvested or produced, how it was shipped to the store, whether it is an in-season produce item, whether it has ever been frozen, whether it is the subject of a current or past recall, etc. Other non-food related attributes of a food item, such as whether the item is a new item or is on sale may also be retrieved at step 138. With respect to recipes, as an alternative to retrieving food attribute information for the ingredients in a retrieved recipe, steps 134 and/or 138 may be used to retrieve pre-determined/pre-calculated information regarding the recipe, such as totals of primary food attributes per serving of the recipe. The information retrieved at steps 134 and 138 is then used in comparing and scoring items/recipes stage 22 or 22A. The information retrieved at step 138 may also optionally be displayed to a user at step 62 (
Food/recipe database information integration stage 20 also optionally comprises linking to or integration with a third-party food scoring database at step 140. Such a database may include a score for the particular food item retrieved/selected. The score may be in any format, but is preferably easy for the user to understand, such as a letter grade, color grade, a scale of stars or other icons, or a numerical grade or any combination of the previous listed. Once linked to a scoring database at step 140, the food scores are retrieved and step 142 and used in stage 22. Food scores from database 140 retrieved at step 142 are most preferably general food scores based on the overall health associated attributes of a food generally, and not related to any user specific health criteria or preferences, which are preferably separately taken into account in comparing and scoring stage 22.
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The objective weighting rules at steps 148 and 156 preferably include one or more predetermined rules that assess the importance of one or more particular food related rules or shopping rules in relation to other food related rules and shopping rules, similar to user preference weighting in steps 116 and 122, except that the rules applied in steps 148 and 156 are objective rules, whereas those in steps 116 and 122 are subjective based on the user's ranking criteria in step 100. The objective weighting of food rules at step 148 and shopping rules at step 156 may be combined into a single objective weighting step or may be carried out in separate steps. These objective rules may overlap with one or more of the subjective weighting rules from steps 116 or 122, particularly for shopping preferences, or they may be different. These rules, particularly objective food related weighting rules at step 148 may supersede or negate one or more user subjective weighting rules from step 116. Objective weighting at steps 148 and/or 156 may be as simple as an overall match score, such as a match percentage for the number of rules an item matches or for which the item meets the criteria. For example, if there are 8 food related rules and 2 shopping related rules and the item meets 7 of the rules, then its match rate would be 70% and it would rank above an item that only matched 6 rules. A user's subjective weighting at steps 116 and 122 may be carried out in the same way. Alternatively, and preferably, objective weighting at steps 148 and 156 gives preference to food rules over shopping rules. For example, if there are 8 food related rules and 2 shopping related rules and an item meets 4 food rules and 2 shopping rules, it would rank lower than another item that meets 5 food rules and 1 or no shopping rules.
Most preferably, objective weighting at step 148 is based on one or more predetermined rules or criterion that assesses the importance of various nutritional attributes of a food items compared to other nutritional attributes and/or other food related attributes based on medical research and scientific data. For example, a rule related to the amount of fat or sodium in a food item may be weighted compared to a rule related to the food item being organic or non-GMO such that fat or sodium level takes precedence over whether the item is organic or non-GMO. As a specific example, if two items having the same total fat level are compared, but one is organic and the other is not and a user weighting rule 116 includes a preference for organic items, the non-organic item may be excluded from a list of items 159 or 162 displayed to the user at step 24 (or may appear at a lower ranking on the list compared to the organic item, depending on the specific rules applied and without applying weighting rule 148). However, if the organic item has more saturated fat per serving than the non-organic item, a rule implemented in step 148 may result in the non-organic item being included on compiled list 159 or 162 (and ultimately displayed to the user at 24) and the organic item not being on compiled list 159 or 162 (and not displayed to the user), or being ranked lower on the list than the non-organic item, based on their respective saturated fat contents (even though the user indicated a preference for organic items at steps 94 and 100 to be used for subjective weighting at step 116). This is also an example of how an objective weighting rule at step 148 may take precedence over a subjective weighting rule at step 116. As another example, dietary and food allergens would also preferably take precedence over food attributes and user preferences (such as non-GMO or vegan) and health goals. Items that do not meet the rules may be omitted from a list displayed to the user or optionally displayed along with a notation that they do not meet the user's criteria and/or objective rules, optionally with explanation as to why the item does not meet the criteria or rules and optionally displayed lower on a list of items that do meet the criteria or rules.
Similar rules may be implemented for objective weighting of shopping rules 156. Objective weighting of shopping rules 156 may also be used to implement sales promotions and/or reduce inventory for particular items as desired by a particular grocer or store with which system 10 is integrated. Any number of objective weighting or ranking factors may be used at steps 148 and/or 156, and various valuations or calculations may be applied to various attributes of a food item to weight or rank that attribute higher or lower than another attribute or preference to compile a list of food items 159 or 162, that are preferably in rank order, as will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art.
Items failing the comparison/rule application steps in stages 22 and 22A are preferably excluded from the lists at steps 146 and 154, but may be sent to step 153 for further consideration. At optional step 153, a secondary set of objective weighting rules is preferably compared/applied to the failing items, so that at least some of the failing items (most preferably only that that meet, match, or pass at least some of the applied rules) may ultimately be included in list 159 or 162 that is displayed to a user at step 24. This allows for a broader range of food items to be displayed and allows for a user to learn which product and why that product is out of range. For example, an item that has been previously purchased by the user prior to adding in a health goal, allergy or other rule may be displayed and indicated it is now out of range of food preferences and rules. Most preferably, items that fail all applied rules are not sent to optional step 153, but are completely excluded from list 159 or 162. Optional step 153 may be applied, for example, when list 159 or 162 has fewer than a predetermined number of items. Most preferably, when failing items are included in list 159 or 162 under operation of step 153, they are ranked lower than the passing items (appearing lower on the display list), are listed separately or without ranking (such as by alphabetical order or by UPC order), and/or include and indicator or flag (such as a star symbol appearing next to such items) to inform the user that the item does not meet one or more of the applied rules or user's criteria.
Food scores for the items on list 159 are calculated at step 160 (or are retrieved from step 142). Any known algorithms or scoring methods may be used to calculate a food score at step 160, based on nutrition information or other food information retrieved at steps 134 and/or 138. Food scores are objective based on information for the particular food items and are not related to any user specific survey data 78. Food scores may be a numeric value or a non-numeric value on a given scale (such as a star rating out of five stars, color rating, and/or a letter grade selected from A, B, C, D, and E). Optionally, the list compiled at step 159 may be re-ranked or re-ordered at step 162 based on the food scores for the items, with higher food scores being listed before lower food scores and preferably with food items with the same food score maintaining their relative rank as listed in step 159. One or more objective weighting rules 148 may also optionally be applied in step 162 to resolve any conflicts between rankings in list 159 and the food scores to re-rank the items at step 162. Step 22/22A has been primarily described with respect to individual food items, but also applies to recipes (which are preferably assessed according to nutrition information available for the overall recipe per serving, but may also be assessed according to nutrition information and amounts of individual ingredients in a recipe serving).
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As another preferred embodiment, if food items are displayed, system 10 will also display one or more recipes that use one or more of the foods items displayed. Most preferably, the optionally displayed recipes have been processed through comparison/scoring stage 22/22A and meet one or more of the user's food criteria, shopping criteria, subjective weighting/ranking, objective weighting/ranking, and/or food score, as previously described. A user may select such a displayed recipe and add items to the cart/list in the same manner as described with steps 28 and 30.
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A remix item refers to an item that has the same ingredients or similar nutrient mix or range as the original item and is preferably in the same food category e.g. fruits, vegetables, meat, cereal/breakfast, dairy, etc.). For example, if the originally displayed item is an apple, it may remix to apple sauce; or an alternative format of the product, if available. If not available, a remix may display another item of similar taste, satiety, nutrient value, or usage in recipes. A remix item refers to a related, but healthier scored type or category of food based on the originally displayed or selected food. For example, if the originally displayed or selected food is apple juice with added sugar, switch alternatives might include organic apple juice. A switch or swap item refers to the same type of item, but a different variety or a different format. For example, if the originally displayed or selected item is a red delicious apple, then the swap may be a granny smith or honey crisp apple. As another example, if the originally displayed or selected item is canned sweet corn, then the swap item may include fresh corn on the cob or frozen corn. For any given original items, its switch items may overlap with its swap items. Additionally, switch and swap items may be categorized together under a single label (e.g. “switch” or “shuffle”). The use of the terms rem ix, switch, and swap are arbitrary and other terminology, such as “shuffle,” may be used to describe the different types of food alternatives.
If the user selects remix, then remix items are retrieved at step 166. If the user selects switch, then switch items are retrieved at step 168. If the user selects swap, then swap items are retrieved at step 170. A user may optionally select two or more of remix, switch, and swap. Most preferably, a food score is then calculated at step 160 (or retrieved from step 142) for the items retrieved at steps 166, 168, and/or 170. Food scores 142, 160 for the originally displayed items are compared at step 148 to food scores for the alternative remix, switch, swap items from steps 166, 168, and/or 170. Alternative remix, switch, and/or swap items with food scores equal to and/or higher than the food scores for the original items are displayed to a user at step 174.
Optionally, the items retrieved at steps 166, 168, and 170 may enter comparing and scoring stage 22 (or 22A) in the same way originally or initially retrieved items from steps 43, 48, 54, 58, and 60 are compared and scored according to one or more user food criteria rules 118, shopping criteria rules 124, subjective weighting rules 116, objective weighting rules 148, 156, and/or calculated or retrieved food scores 142, 160, rather than only comparing food scores 160, 142 as described above. The overall ranking of the alternative remix, switch, and/or swap items after applying all desired rules and/or food scores used in stages 22, 22A (the list from step 159 or more preferably from step 162 for the remix/switch/swap items) would then be compared to the overall ranking of the original food items after applying all desired rules and/or food scores used in stages 22, 22A (the list from step 159 or more preferably from step 162 for the original items) at step 172. Alternative items of the same and/or better overall ranking compared to the original item would then be displayed to a user as step 174.
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Overall scoring stage 38 preferably comprises determining subjective improvements at step 175 and objective improvements at step 185. Subjective improvements 175 preferably comprises determining overall scores for a scoring category at step 176 for the user's current cart or list (such as a completed cart or list from steps 72 or 74), saving the current overall score for that scoring category at step 178, and displaying the current overall score for that scoring category to a user at step 180. Subjective scoring step 175 also preferably comprises retrieving one or more prior scores for the user in a scoring category at step 182 and calculating an average score for that category from the prior scores or comparing one or more prior scores to the current score at step 184. Objective scoring step 185 preferably comprises comparing attributes from the user's profile information 12 (a first user's profile information) to attributes in a user profile information 12 for one or more other users (such as a second user's profile information, a third user's profile information, etc.) to determine a group of other users with one or more attributes in common with the first user at step 186. Any number and combination of attributes may be used to determine the group of other users at step 186. For example, the other users may reside in the same zip code or metropolitan area as the first user, may have one or more medical conditions in common (such as high blood pressure), may be in the same age range as the first user, same sex, same food preferences (such as vegetarian), adhering to the same health goal (such as diet, lose 10 pounds), etc. Prior scores for any given category for each of the other users (or a representative sample size of such other users) are retrieved at step 188. An average score for the group is preferably determined and compared to the current or average score for the first user in that category at step 190. Alternatively other comparisons may be made between a score for the group and a current or prior score or scores for the first user at step 190 (such as median scores, comparisons of trending scores up or down, etc.). Results of the user's subjective comparisons from step 184 and/or objective comparisons to the group from step 190 are preferably displayed to a user at step 192. Prior scores retrieved at steps 182 and/or 188 may include all prior scores in a given category/categories or be limited in number or by date.
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In overall scoring stage 38, a reward is preferably displayed to the user or added to the user's profile at step 194 for improvements in a user's subjective comparisons (e.g. current OFP score compared to the user's own prior OFP scores or total fats in current cart/list compared to total fats in the user's own prior carts/lists) and/or objective comparisons to the group (e.g. user having OFP score(s) higher than scores for the group of other users or user's total fats are lower than total fats for the group of other users). A reward may be provided for making a positive food selection, varying points values may be assigned to food items (such as based on general healthfulness, food score, or subject healthfulness for the specific user) and added to the user's profile when the user selects those food items, or when a user reaches a predetermined milestone or threshold related to a health goal. Rewards stage 34 may also comprise tracking various levels of rewards or points earned 193 and providing a higher reward (such as a higher value coupon or discount) when the next level is achieved. The tracking of points toward a level or goal may also be displayed at step 192 and the higher reward displayed or provided at step 194. A reward at step 68 and/or 194 may be one or more of the following: (1) an alpha-numeric or graphic badge or icon displayed on the user's profile or a user interface screen for system 10; (2) a pop-up graphic (such as shooting stars or a smiley face) that temporarily appears on the user interface screen; (3) points added to a user's profile; and/or (4) discounts or coupons for one or more of the selected alternative items or other food items or merchants (such as restaurants or gyms). If a reward is given as points, the points may be (1) used simply for comparison to other users to evaluate a user's relative performance to users having the same or similar profile characteristics (to provide a sense of competition as an incentive to make better food choices); (2) accumulated and exchanged for one or more promotional or health-related items (such t-shirts, gym memberships, exercise equipment, a FitBit®, etc.); and/or (3) accumulated and exchanged for one or more discounts or coupons for future food item purchases, restaurant purchases, gym memberships, etc.
Rewards stage 34 may also comprise tracking various levels of rewards or points earned 193 and providing a higher reward when the next level is achieved. The tracking of points toward a level or goal may also be displayed at step 192 and the higher reward displayed or provided at step 194.
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A preferred embodiment of a method and system 310 for improving food selections is shown in
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Most preferably, machine learning algorithms 418 are applied to one or more of the steps as indicated in
Systems 10 and 310 may also be used in connection with prepackaged food delivery services and restaurants, in the same or similar manner as described herein for grocery items, to provide a user with information regarding various food items, menu items, alternative foods items, and to provide incentives for making healthy food choices.
According to one preferred embodiment, a system for carrying out the preferred method of improving food selections according to the invention comprises:
Computer, terminals, and computing devices preferably have a processor and memory storage capability to allow execution of the software component to carry out the steps of the methods according to the invention. Various embodiments of a method according to the invention may also be carried out on a computer, tablet, smart phone, stand-alone kiosk, or similar device having a user interface to allow input of a patient's data, a processor for making calculations, and the ability to store data.
One or more components or steps described with one preferred embodiment of a system or method according to the invention may be used with another embodiment of the system or method, even if not specifically described in connection with the embodiment. Reference numerals used to describe steps of a method herein may also describe the information, data, or results that are input and/or output from such step. For example, reference number 12 refers to user profile entry step and refers to the profile information entered at that step and reference number 48 refers to retrieving previous cart/list step and refers to the food items retrieved at that step. Although not specifically depicted in the figures, additional steps may be added, including additional steps to save data, information, rules, rewards, or results, as will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art. The shapes used in the flow chart figures are not intended to be limiting to a particular type of flow chart step. References to servers, computers, terminals, and other computing devices are intended to include all such devices that permit the data entry, communication, storage, and access to data and information, and/or that are capable of carrying out steps defined in a software program. Steps described herein as a prompt to a user may alternatively be a tab, drop-down box, or other option to be selected by the user or recipient. Unless a specific format is indicated as required, references herein to displaying or providing results or information include any manner of display or providing the results or information, such as displayed on a screen, printouts, postal mail, courier, sent by email, providing access to downloadable information, providing link to external websites containing information, displaying graphics, displaying photos, and displaying videos, providing pop-up blocks containing information, photos, videos, or graphics, uploaded to a file sharing site, text, or other electronic means. Any combination of optional stages or steps may be used in connection with the preferred methods and system of the invention. Those of ordinary skill in the art will also appreciate upon reading this specification, that modifications and alterations to the methodology and system for improving food purchases may be made within the scope of the invention and it is intended that the scope of the invention disclosed herein be limited only by the broadest interpretation of the appended claims to which the inventors are legally entitled.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/930,910 filed on Nov. 5, 2019.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62930910 | Nov 2019 | US |
