{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,5]],"date-time":"2026-10-05T13:56:26Z","timestamp":1791208586916,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":28,"publisher":"Oxford University Press (OUP)","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,23]],"date-time":"2026-09-23T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1790121600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":265,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,17]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>Malnutrition remains a major public health problem in Tanzania, worsened by limited access to personalized, culturally relevant nutrition information. Existing gaps in community nutrition education across sub-Saharan Africa, combined with conventional approaches ignoring individual dietary needs, contribute to undernutrition and chronic disease. However, while AI-powered chatbots have shown global effectiveness in scalable health education, evidence from low-resource, Swahili-speaking settings is scarce. This study, aligned with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2, 3, and 4, developed Lishe Yetu, a culturally localized digital nutrition tool aimed at bridging these gaps. A pre-post quasi-experimental mixed-methods design evaluated Lishe Yetu among 400 Tanzanian residents between January and April 2025. Built on retrieval-augmented generation using GPT-3.5-turbo, the platform drew from over 2500 expert-reviewed sources including World Health Organization (WHO), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Tanzania Food and Nutrition Centre, and validated Swahili materials. Nutritional knowledge was measured using a validated 20-item questionnaire, with engagement tracked via server logs and satisfaction assessed through Likert-scale surveys and thematic analysis of qualitative feedback. Results showed strong engagement, with average sessions lasting 12\u00a0minutes and 15.2 messages exchanged; 87% completed at least one full session. Satisfaction averaged 4.3\/5.0, and 88% found the tool easy to use. Knowledge scores improved significantly from 52% to 73%, a 21 percentage-point gain with a large effect size (Cohen\u2019s d\u2009=\u20091.57, P\u2009&amp;lt;\u20090.001). Additionally, 65% reported intentions to adopt healthier diets. These findings provide strong preliminary evidence that a Swahili-language AI chatbot can improve nutrition literacy in low-resource African settings, though randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm sustained behaviour change.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1093\/oodh\/oqag037","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,22]],"date-time":"2026-09-22T11:41:11Z","timestamp":1790077271000},"source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["An artificial intelligence-based chatbot as a tool for promoting nutrition in a community setting"],"prefix":"10.1093","volume":"4","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2764-1188","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Rajabu","family":"Simba","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health and Community Nursing, University of Dodoma , 1 Benjamin Mkapa Road, Iyumbu, Dodoma District, P.O. Box 259, Dodoma, 41218 ,","place":["The United Republic of Tanzania"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gilbert","family":"Charles","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Physiology, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences , 9 United Nations Road, Upanga West, Ilala District, P.O. Box 65001, Dar es Salaam ,","place":["The United Republic of Tanzania"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"John B","family":"Uiso","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Nutrition, Muhimbili National Hospital , Kalenga Street, Malik Road, Upanga West, Ilala District, P.O. Box 65000, Dar es Salaam ,","place":["The United Republic of Tanzania"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jacqueline","family":"Wetson","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health and Community Nursing, University of Dodoma , 1 Benjamin Mkapa Road, Iyumbu, Dodoma District, P.O. Box 259, Dodoma, 41218 ,","place":["The United Republic of Tanzania"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Hyasinta","family":"Jaka","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology and Hepatology Unit, Catholic University of Health and Allied Sciences , 35 Wurzburg Road, Bugando, P.O. Box 1464, Mwanza, 33102 ,","place":["The United Republic of Tanzania"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Leonard","family":"Katalambula","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health and Community Nursing, University of Dodoma , 1 Benjamin Mkapa Road, Iyumbu, Dodoma District, P.O. 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