App Design
My Kana is an Android app that aims to promote healthy eating.
Designed and developed in Fiji for the people of Fiji, it allows users to record and monitor what they eat. My Kana shows whether your meals are balanced and healthy.
Download My Kana from Google Play now.
Design Philosophy
The purpose and design of the mobile app were guided by the following:
- To promote and develop conscious healthy eating habits among the people of Fiji
- Simple and easy to use app by the people of Fiji
- Accessible and usable without needing Internet access
Design Considerations
- Users lack knowledge on nutritional and dietary information
- Users may not be technology savvy
- Users may have little or no Internet access, most of the time (due to location, connectivity issues or cost)
- Users mainly use Android-based devices
- User devices have limited capabilities – storage, memory
App Limitations
- Available for devices running Android 4.1 and above
- Nutritional recommendation for adults (people 18 years and older)
Development Tools
- Android Studio 2.3 - main IDE and Android emulator
- Inkspace - SVG editor and creating graphics
- GIMP 2 - Image editor
- DB Browser for SQLite - SQLite database browser and editor
Initial Sketches
Food and Nutrition Database
Included as part of the App is a comprehensive food list that was sourced from:
- Pacific Islands Food Composition Tables (http://www.fao.org/docrep/007/y5432e/y5432e00.htm)
- Fiji Shop Survey 2010 (used with permission from Pacific Research Center for the Prevention of Obesity and Non-Communicable Diseases C-POND)
This eliminates the need for Internet access when searching for food items , since all data, including food list and nutritional information, are already available on the user's device.
Hand Measure Estimation Technique
The Hand Measure Estimation technique is used to allow users to estimate food portion sizes relative to the size of their hands. It is not always possible to measure or determine the correct weights of the food items consumed. In most cases it is not a practical approach. Even estimation in terms of standard household measures such as cup or bowl sizes doesn't suit all users.
The Hand Measure Estimation technique of using your fist, palm and thumb was used for two main reasons:
- NFNC in its public awareness campaign is promoting the use of this technique since it is recommended by the World Health Organisation as well.
- A user can easily compare the food portion against the size of their fist, palm or thumb tip.
A mathematical model was used to determine the food weights from the user’s hand measure. Currently the hand measure estimation technique is available for selected food items that have enough data to allow mathematical model to determine to the corresponding food weight.
General User Survey
A survey was conducted to gather information on knowledge that the general public had on concepts such as calories and the food groups.
Volunteers were also asked to participate in providing data to be used for generating the mathematical model for the Hand Measure Estimation technique.
A measuring tape, digital scale, measuring cup, ruler and Play Doh were used to collect the relevant user data. 5 USP students were recruited to help with the data collection and recording process.
