Abstract:
A system stores nutritional information for a variety of foods. A user, interactively connected to the system, via the Internet or the like, accesses the system. The system stores user characteristic data including current weight, diet characteristic information. The dieter inputs their daily food intake to the system. The system monitors the natural diet over a predetermined time, the length of time being sufficient to determine the natural eating patterns of the individual. As a function of the goal, the server ranks the foods eaten in order of worst to best for achieving the goal. The system compares the worst food to foods of the same type and suggests an alternative food to be included in the diet, which is more in keeping with the diet goal. This process is then repeated until the diet is sufficiently modified to achieve the diet goal.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     This invention is directed to a method for dieting, and more particularly, a method and apparatus for transitioning from one diet to another.  
         [0003]     2. Background  
         [0004]     By the time people reach adulthood, they have established their own natural personal diet which is a function of what they eat, how much of each thing they eat, and even when they eat it. It is also very common for an adult to be placed on a diet. An adult may be placed on a diet for a variety of reasons, the most common of which is weight loss. However, people also diet for weight gain and muscle mass, for health reasons such as lowering cholesterol or sodium intake, or for cultural reasons such as a vegetarian diet.  
         [0005]     To facilitate dieting, it is now known in the art that web portals, such as www.ediets.com, provide interactive software engines which receive personal information about the potential dieter such as the dieting goals, and then create a menu of meals to help the dieter attain the goals. Furthermore, the menu may be governed by the type of diet the dieter desires, such as low-carb as opposed to low-fat, as opposed to high-protein, as opposed to low-calorie, or Kosher, or allergic to dairy or the like. The menu may also be governed by medical considerations such as Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, lactose intolerance and the like.  
         [0006]     Although a significant portion of the population is dieting on any given day, many people have a hard time keeping with a diet resulting in what is known as the “yo-yo” effect. People strictly adhere to a diet and obtain the results, such as weight loss, then drop the diet and return close to their original position, and then perform corrective dieting again. In some cases, there is no “yo-yo” and the person never is able to maintain the diet and merely gives up.  
         [0007]     Accordingly, what is desired is a method of dieting, which avoids the inevitable dropping of a new diet and a system for making it possible.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0008]     A system stores nutritional data for a variety of foods. A user, interactively connected to the system, via the Internet or the like, accesses the system. This system stores user characteristic data including current weight and diet characteristic data. The dieter inputs their daily food intake into the system. The system monitors the natural diet over a predetermined time, the length of time being sufficient to determine the natural eating patterns of the individual. As a function of the goal, the system ranks the foods eaten in order of worst to best for achieving the dieting goal. The system compares the worst food to the nutritional data for foods of the same type and suggests an alternative food to be included in the diet, which is more in keeping with the diet goal. This process is then repeated until the diet is sufficiently modified to achieve the diet goal.  
         [0009]     In a preferred embodiment, the system establishes the food to be substituted by applying a series of rules as a function of the diet goal. The diet goal may be one or more of fewer calories, lower carbohydrates, lower cholesterol, lower sodium, lower fat, or the like. The system ranks the eaten foods in relation to the person&#39;s objectives and described conditions. It then periodically suggests one or two alternative foods for the dieter to choose from to replace the worst ranked foods and, over time, the natural diet is modified in a way that the mental and physical challenges are avoided. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0010]     For a fuller understanding of the invention, reference is had to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:  
         [0011]      FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram of a system for providing the on-line transitioning of a diet in accordance with the invention; and  
         [0012]      FIG. 2  is a flow diagram of the method for transitioning a diet in accordance with the invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0013]     This invention provides for a system and method for transitioning users onto a diet in a manner that increases the likelihood that they remain with the diet. Applicant has noted that one of the reasons that diets are difficult to maintain is the system shock of immediately transitioning from one&#39;s natural diet to a brand-new diet. This is because a new diet is a significant mental and, in some cases, physical challenge that most people cannot manage. It causes a physical reaction, such as cravings for forbidden foods, and a mental reaction as a result of the dieter being forced to forego many of the foods which have formed a staple of their diet, and replace them with other foods; to some of which they are not accustomed. People become “addicted” to their natural diet. When forced to go “cold turkey” with a new diet many natural diet items may be unnecessarily removed from the diet increasing the “shock” effect of the new diet to the dieter.  
         [0014]     Reference is made to  FIG. 1  in which a system, generally indicated as  10 , is provided. System  10  includes a server  12  operatively communicating with a database  22 . Server  12  communicates with users (“dieters”)  14  at a dieter computer  16  through Internet  18 . Server  12  may also communicate with third-party databases  20  through Internet  18 . In a preferred embodiment server  12  provides an interactive web-based portal such as a web page for interacting with dieter  14 . It should be noted that computer  16  may be any interactive device which allows dieter  14  to communicate with server  12 . It should be noted, the preferred embodiment is an Internet based system. However, the system may include any computing device capable of calculating a worst food and a replacement food as will be described below. The computing device can communicate with a dieter  14  by Internet, radio frequency, telephone pager, or personal direct input by way of non-limiting example.  
         [0015]     Database  22  stores diet goal characteristic data, a set of diet rules, menu data, and nutritional data for foods stored in database  22 . It should be noted, that in alternative embodiments, any and all of this data can be stored at an accessible third-party database  20  which may be accessed by server  12  over Internet  18 . By way of example, nutritional information may be stored in database  22  or may be accessed at a third party database  20  such as the USDA website by way of non-limiting example.  
         [0016]     Dieter characteristic data may include any combination of a dieter&#39;s weight, height, age, dieting goal as discussed above, dieting preferences as discussed above, and activity level. The stored diet rules are the logic rules for determining which foods bring dieter  14  closer to or maintain dieter  14  within their dieting goal. Menu data are food arrangements grouped as meals as determined by server  12 . Nutritional data is the nutritional information, such as the information found on food packaging for the respective foods which make up the foods grouped in the menu data. It should be noted, that menu data can be a group of combined foods such as a hamburger with lettuce, tomato and condiments or a single item of food in the case of snacks such as peanuts or carrot sticks. The nutritional data may be presented as the nutritional data for each constituent of the hamburger or, the hamburger as a whole as a function of portion size. Any or all of this data may be accessed by server  12  either at database  22  or third-party data source  20 .  
         [0017]     Reference is now made to  FIG. 2  in which a flow diagram for transitioning a diet in accordance with the invention is provided. In a first step  100  it is determined whether or not dieter characteristic data for a dieter  14  is known to server  12  as stored in database  22 . If no, then dieter characteristic data is stored in step  102 . In the preferred embodiment, dieter  14  inputs dieter characteristic data at computer  16  which is transmitted to server  12  over Internet  18  for storage in database  22 . However, it should be noted that other communication means, such as telephone, direct input, or other non-Internet communication may be used to enter the information.  
         [0018]     Furthermore, server  12  may be any device capable of storing data, processing data and communicating with remote parties. Dieter characteristic data would consist of a dieter ID, either name, e-mail address, or identification number such as social security number. It would also include the dieter goal such as weight loss, weight gain, weight maintenance with lowered cholesterol, sodium, fat or carbohydrate intake, or any other goal which can be controlled by the intake of specific food types having characteristics which can be tracked. The height, weight and activity level of dieter  14  may also be stored as dieter characteristic data. Medical conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, Type I diabetes or the like, and other medical information that dieter  14  consider important will be stored as characteristic data and be used to create menus as discussed below.  
         [0019]     In a step  104  dieter  14  keeps track of the types and quantities of food they have eaten by inputting food eaten to server  12 . By way of example, dieter  14  has a fast-food lunch of a hamburger such as a Whopper®, a Quarter-Pounder®, or an unbranded hamburger, with french fries and a diet coke. Dieter  14  enters that information into server  12 . Server  12  checks database  22  which, as discussed above, includes dietary information such as the ESHA Research Library (ESHA data) or the USDA&#39;s Nutrition Library. These databases include nutritional information for commonly known foods, and the components for such commonly known foods. Therefore, the nutritional information such as minerals, vitamins, grams of fat, fiber, carbohydrates, sugars and calories for a Quarter-Pounder® are known. Assuming, that they were not known, then the user would input quarter-pound hamburger with bun, tablespoon of mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard (as appropriate), leaf of lettuce, slice of tomato, etc., 8 ozs. of french-fried potatoes, and 12 ozs. of diet cola. This information would be stored at database  22  along with its nutritional information as determined from database  22 .  
         [0020]     In a step  106  it is determined whether or not there are sufficient entries from step  104  to determine dieter  14 &#39;s natural diet. If dieter characteristic data is already stored as determined in step  100 , then dieter  14  proceeds directly to step  104  and inputs eaten food to server  12 . Server  12  determines, based upon a sampling, whether or not there is statistically significant information to determine the natural diet of dieter  14 . If not, steps  104  and  106  are repeated on a periodic basis until there is sufficient information to determine the natural diet of dieter  14 . If there is insufficient information to develop the pattern of the natural diet, then steps  104  and  106  are repeated until there is a significant sample size to determine dieter  14 &#39;s natural diet. For the purposes of this invention, natural diet corresponds to the average daily nutritional intake of dieter  14  prior to any proposed change in the diet.  
         [0021]     If the natural diet has been determined in a step  106 , in a step  108 , dieter  14  inputs food eaten, or if, as in the first time the natural diet is determined, and the food eaten has been input in a step  104  that data is used by server  12 . In a step  110 , server  12  determines whether the input food eaten is within the parameters of the dieting goal of dieter  14  as determined from dieter characteristic data. By way of non-limiting example, if weight loss is desired by way of a low-calorie diet, and the input food corresponds to the fast-food hamburger meal discussed above, then server  12  will determine the calories and other nutritional information from database  22 , and compare these values to a model nutritional value corresponding to a menu for accomplishing the diet goal. If in fact, the calorie limit or other nutritional parameters have not been exceeded, then in a step  112 , as known in the art, a menu as determined from the dieter characteristic data which maintains the dieting goal of dieter  14  will be suggested to dieter  14  by server  12 . Server  12  will provide menus, meal by meal, day by day, week by week, and will present them either meal by meal or across any predetermined time period to dieter  14  at computer  16 .  
         [0022]     Server  12  determines the extent to which each eaten food is in keeping with the diet goal. In a preferred embodiment, if server  12 , based upon the nutritional data corresponding to the input food, determines in step  110  that the eaten food does not accomplish the dieting goal as determined from dieter characteristic data, then server  12  will rank the components of each meal.  
         [0023]     The rank could be from most in keeping with the desired goal (best) to least in keeping with the desired goal (worst) or vice versa. The ranking is determined by rules stored in database  22  for operation by server  12 . Based upon the input food, and the diet goals as determined from step  104  and the dieter characteristic data, server  12 , utilizing the nutritional information for food stored in database  22  will determine which eaten items are outside the healthy parameters for the diet goal, such as high in calories, high in fat, high in carbohydrate, sodium, cholesterol, or the like.  
         [0024]     Staying with the example of the low-calorie, low-fat diet, server  12  will identify those food items eaten which are outside the healthy parameters. Server  12  will determine which foods are lowest in calories and fat, therefore driving dieter  14  towards their goal diet, and which of those are highest in calories and fat; driving dieter  14  away from their goal and rank the foods accordingly. In step  114 , the food is ranked as discussed above.  
         [0025]     The food is ranked in accordance with the rules stored in database  22 . In the preferred embodiment there will be hundreds of rules, however, for ease of description, and by way of example only, they can be represented in this example by five basic example categories namely; (1) rules on calories; (2) rules on carbohydrates; (3) rules on fats; (4) rules on cholesterol; (5) rules on sodium. It should be noted that there may even be more specific rules such as rules with respect to sodas, red meats, vegetarian or the like corresponding to aspects of the diet as stored as a dieter  14 &#39;s characteristic data. By way of example, the rules may provide more granularity by determining whether or not the fat intake is good fats as opposed to bad fats, or whether the diet is nutritionally sound and requires an increase in vegetables, fruit or minerals above and beyond the overall goal of lower fat and lower calories.  
         [0026]     Server  12  then utilizes logic as a function of the diet goal such as in our example weight loss through low fat, and low calories and gives each of the rules different weight. For example, a low-carbohydrate diet may give more weight to the low-calorie and low-carbohydrate rules in creating a diet than it gives to a rule concerning the intake of red meat as a low-carbohydrate diet is substantially protein insensitive. On the other hand, as in our example, loss of weight through low-calorie and low-fat intake, the rules on fat may be given highest priority, followed by the rules on calories, and the rules on carbohydrates may be given significantly lesser weight when applied to determining a suggested menu.  
         [0027]     Once the foods have been ranked, in step  116 , the rules are applied to the menu of ranked foods. For example, if it is determined that the calorie intake is greater than the calorie requirement of the goal diet in step  110 , and that the frequency of low-nutrient density foods (empty calories) is greater than two over a predetermined time then server  12  will search database  22 , or third-party data source  20  for a food in the same category which has a medium nutrient density or higher, and is lower in calorie intake. For example, if donuts are part of dieter  14 &#39;s natural diet as input in step  108  (assuming that the donut is the least-nutritional food as ranked), server  12  will search for foods in either the bread category, breakfast category, or snack category such as bagels, whole-grain cereals, or the like as a substitute for donuts. If for a food the calorie intake is greater than the calorie requirements, but the nutrient density is acceptable, then server  12  may determine that a smaller portion size is all that is required to gradually bring the natural diet in line with the goals of a diet for reaching the goals. Lastly, server  12  may determine that the substitution is to entirely remove the worst food without substitution.  
         [0028]     Once the proposed replacement food is selected, server  12  first suggests a menu, which displays the natural diet menu to dieter  14  at their computer  16 . It also provides a suggested menu with a proposed change as determined by the rules applied in rule  118  in step  116  with one or more suggested food substitutions to replace the least dieting goal oriented (worst) food with a more dieting goal oriented food.  
         [0029]     In a preferred embodiment, the substitution may be displayed in several ways, it may be a text recommendation appended to the actual menu, it may be an e-mail to dieter  14 , but in a preferred embodiment, the suggested revised menu is displayed in a side-by-side comparison to the current food menu of the user. Furthermore, the added component which is to be substituted for the existing menu, may be provided in a drop-down graphical user interface manner such that if dieter  14  does not wish to substitute a bagel for the donut as breakfast, dieter  14  will be offered the choice of the prescribed serving of whole-grain cereal, toast with appropriate spreads/toppings or the like so that dieter  14  can select their transition menu in accordance with the rule-determined nutrient and caloric parameters. Steps  108 - 118  are repeated until dieter  14 &#39;s diet conforms to the goal; in our example until the dieter  14  actually consistently observes a low-fat, low-calorie diet sufficient to promote weight loss.  
         [0030]     In the preferred embodiment, the lowest ranked food, i.e., the food which most drives dieter  14 &#39;s diet away from the goal, is suggested to be substituted. However, it should be understood that it is also contemplated that a second or third lowest ranked food could also be suggested for substitution. It should be noted, that by gradually substituting for portions of the dieter&#39;s natural diet, an end result of the transition is a low-fat, low-calorie diet, by way of example, which incorporates a significant portion of the dieter&#39;s natural diet; assuming that the entire beginning diet is not substituted for. This is contrasted to a cold-turkey adoption of a pre-planned, pre-programmed diet menu as is now done with all diet programs. Furthermore, it should be noted, that a low-calorie, low-fat parameter was chosen by way of example, and the general model can be applied to any nutritional goal having components which can be tracked, such as weight maintenance with low cholesterol. It should also be noted and understood, that although only two parameters were discussed, the invention can be applied to multiple, and sometimes conflicting (high protein, low cholesterol) parameters to determine a diet as a function of nutritional information, and nutritional data, dieter characteristics and dieting goal. The goal is to transition the natural diet to the goal diet in a non-aggressive manner to prevent a shock to the dieter sufficient to cause the dieter to “fall off” the diet.  
         [0031]     Thus while there have been shown, described and pointed out novel features of the present invention as applied to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions and change in the form and detail are contemplated so that the disclosed invention may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is the intention, therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the claims appended hereto. It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention, which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.