Are artificial intelligence and co-active life coaching the future designers of nutrition and fitness matters?

Abstract

Purpose: New priorities for research are emerging in nutrition and sports sciences. These include application of artificial intelligence (AI) and coactive life coaching (CoALC) in nutrition and fitness worlds. Building off such link, this review aims to explore the up-to-date scientific literature at the intersections of AI and CoALC trends, and nutrition and fitness. Design/methodology/approach: A narrative review based on systems thinking approach was used to explore and discuss how AI concepts can affect nutrition and fitness matters, and how life coaching has attempted to deal with healthy lifestyles matters and with considerations of unintended related-consequences and health ethics. Findings: Systems thinking and transdisciplinary approaches could provide more understandings on how to better evaluate the impacts of AI concepts and CoALC and how they are significantly changing nutrition and fitness paradigms of production and consumption. Food and sports systems must continue to build their capacities to understand, regulate, and adapt to these changes. Originality/value: This study suggests a novel argumentative scenario that could be creatively adapted to generate effective strategies and advice on a controversial topic such as nutrition and fitness that involves values, personal attitudes and social behaviors. Practical implications: This paper provides a forward view of the use and impact of AI and CoALC on our dietary patterns and fitness behaviours, and on interventions methods in nutrition and health science research.