Tracking every bite and step: Associations between diet and fitness app use, disordered eating, body image concern and compulsive exercise

Background: Diet and fitness applications (apps) aim to enhance users’ physical health. Many of these apps allow users to monitor their diet or fitness-related data, such as the number of calories consumed or burnt. However, they may not be suitable for all individuals due to their focus on dietary restriction and weight loss. 

Objectives: The present study sought to determine whether the use of specific app types (e.g., diet versus fitness) differ in their associations with disordered eating, body dissatisfaction, and compulsive exercise. Fit-ideal internalisation and exercise motivations were examined as moderating and mediating factors, respectively. An online questionnaire was administered to 386 Australian women (17–35 years). 

Results: Diet monitoring app users and those who used both fitness and diet apps had greater disordered eating, body dissatisfaction, and compulsive exercise compared to fitness monitoring app users and non-users. Fit-ideal internalisation moderated the relationship between diet and fitness monitoring app use and disordered eating. Exercise motivations mediated the relationships between diet and fitness monitoring app use and disordered eating symptomology. 

Conclusions: Despite diet and fitness apps’ intentions to promote health and wellbeing, their use is linked to disordered eating symptomology. Educating app users, screening for unhealthy behaviours within apps, and advising professionals how to monitor app use could provide suitable interventions to encourage more positive app use. In addition, more research is needed to determine associations in other understudied and at-risk populations such as adolescents, as well as longitudinal and experimental studies to establish directions of effects.