# AI-powered eHealth systems to support diabetics in their daily diet

> Diabetes is a demanding disease for patients, and it can be seriously debilitating if not managed well. The International Diabetes Federation has calculated that there are approximately 537 million adults (20-79 years) living with diabetes.

## The Global Impact of Diabetes
Diabetes is a demanding disease for patients, and it can be seriously debilitating if not managed well. The International Diabetes Federation has calculated that there are approximately 537 million adults (20-79 years) living with diabetes. The number is projected to rise to 643 million by 2030. In the year 2021, diabetes caused 6,7 million deaths and at least USD 966 billion dollars in health expenditure around the world.

## The Role of eHealth and AI in Management
Educating patients and supporting them throughout their health journey is key to effective diabetes management. eHealth technologies and Artificial Intelligence (AI) have proven to positively impact patients’ lifestyle choices in diabetes self-management. AI research has been growing exponentially in the last decade, and new AI-powered eHealth systems have been created to help patients manage their diabetes better. Chaouf’s (2022) narrative literature review shows some examples of how different AI technology is being used now by diabetics to manage their disease.

## AI-Powered Systems for Diet and Activity
There are several distinct AI-powered eHealth systems for diet self-management:
* **Personalized Recommendations:** Systems provide advice based on taste, lifestyle, metrics, and internal factors like genetics.
* **Nutritional Tracking:** Systems automatically provide a meal’s nutritive and calorific information.
* **Education and Coaching:** Systems educate patients on dietary behaviors through training, coaching, or gaming.
* **Physical Activity Support:** Systems record daily activities and educate patients on how to adapt their movement to blood sugar levels and food intake.

## Automation and Future Integration
AI automates low-value tasks, such as food and physical activity recognition via smartphone apps. Future comprehensive systems aim to:
* Automate insulin bolus calculations based on real-time glucose readings and nutritional data.
* Create personalized notifications for exercise based on patient context (e.g., suggesting a walk instead of taking transportation while at home).

## Engaging Diverse Patient Groups
These systems utilize machine learning, semantic reasoning, and symbolic reasoning to target specific user groups:
* **Robots:** Well-suited for children with type 1 diabetes and at-home coaching.
* **Serious Games:** A convenient medium for children with type 2 diabetes and elderly people, using quizzes and role-playing.
* **Virtual Assistants:** Voice-based tools adapted for non-tech-friendly populations or specific minority groups.

## Personalization and Future Outlook
AI-powered personal robots and systems generate higher engagement by adapting interfaces to user preferences. By personalizing notifications and serious games to a patient's specific lifestyle and knowledge level, these systems nudge users toward better health decisions. 

While most current systems are in a preliminary research phase, increasing processing power and software design are driving development. The future of diabetes management lies in integrating these myriad AI-based features to automate tasks and personalize the user experience.

## References
* **Chaouf K (2022):** Utility of artificial intelligence in diabetes self-management, a narrative literature review.

## Authors
* **Kenza Chaouf:** Graduated Student in Master’s Degree Programme in Digital Health, Savonia University of Applied Sciences
* **Bryn Lane:** Lecturer, MBA (International Business, Finance), CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst), Savonia University of Applied Sciences, Unit of Continuous Learning, Master School, Kuopio
* **Elisa Snicker:** Lecturer, CBC, MSc (Econ and Bus Admin), MSc (Health Sci.), Savonia University of Applied Sciences, Unit of Continuous Learning, Master School, Kuopio