Living Lab for Citizens’ Wellness: A Case of Maintaining and Improving a Healthy Diet under the COVID-19 Pandemic

Natsuko Tabata,Hiromichi Kimura,Yuri Inoue,Kozue Kubo,Fumihiko Odashima,Mai Tsukada,Koichiro Shiratori,Shintaro Sengoku,Takashi Sekiya,Hideaki Shiroyama,Reiko Miroku

doi:10.3390/ijerph19031254

Abstract

The establishment and implementation of a healthy lifestyle is fundamental to public health and is an important issue for working-aged people, as it affects not only them but also the future generations. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and associated behavioural restrictions, lifestyles have altered, and, in certain environments, significantly worsened. In the present study, we conducted a project to improve the intestinal environment by focussing on the dietary habits of participants, utilising the living laboratory as a social technology to explore how to adapt to this drastic environmental change. We held eight workshops for voluntary participants and implemented a self-monitoring process of recording dietary behaviours (n = 78) and testing the intestinal environment (n = 14). Through this initiative, we developed a personalised wellness enhancement programme based on collaboration with multiple stakeholders and a framework for using personal data for research and practical purposes. These results provide an approach for promoting voluntary participation and behavioural changes among people, especially under the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as a practical basis for the government, academia, and industry to intervene effectively in raising people’s awareness of health and wellness.

Highlights

The recent COVID-19 pandemic has brought into question the nature of healthcare and wellness
We focussed on dietary habits as a part of citizens’ health management during the COVID-19 pandemic and implemented a gut-health improvement project at a living lab
We developed a wellness improvement programme for individuals based on the collaboration among various stakeholders, including local governments, academia, businesses, and citizens, and established a framework for reusing the acquired data for research and practice

Summary

Introduction

Good health and longevity are extremely gratifying, but it is difficult to achieve and maintain wellness, including mental health and healthy social activities, throughout life. It is arduous for many people to change their habits and lifestyles cultivated over time in a purposeoriented manner, maintain the changes, and improve them sustainably. The recent COVID-19 pandemic has brought into question the nature of healthcare and wellness. Lifestyle, including dietary habits and social activities, is an inevitable part of the debate on the response to the COVID-19 pandemic [1]. A nutritionally balanced diet may maintain good health in a general sense but may reportedly replenish the host’s gut microbiota with beneficial microorganisms, conferring a range of health benefits on the host, including improved immunity [2].

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion