Whats 'App-ening': the help of new technologies in nutrition in digestive diseases

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The aim of this study is to review the basic concepts of electronic health (eHealth), with a focus on its nutritional applications and its usefulness for digestive diseases.

RECENT FINDINGS: eHealth applications for the treatment and monitoring of digestive disease are growing in number. ehealth helps patients in coping with their disease by promoting self-management, which increases adherence to medical treatment and diets, and leads to an improved quality of life. For irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), there are multiple applications that provide dietary advice, for example, a low FODMAP (Fermentable Oligo, Mono, Disaccharides And Polyols) diet. However, many applications lack a symptom scoring function and do not include a module for assisting the essential reintroduction of high FODMAP foods. In general, there are very few applications that enable direct patient communication with healthcare professionals. A more holistic approach that educates patients and enables them to communicate directly with eCare provider through a web application is one of the functions most requested by patients.

SUMMARY: eHealth solutions for digestive diseases have a supportive function and a positive impact on patients. However, there is a need to increase patient education and further develop the possibility for care team-patient communication within eHealth solutions.