In addition to inaccurate calorie errors, meal plans created by Chat may include foods for allergy patients, such as milk, nuts, and chestnuts
Since ChatGPT emerged, discussions about the use of AI in healthcare have increased. Several videos on the Internet even suggest consulting the technology to assemble diets. Would this be a safe option?
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According to a recent study, published in May in Nutrition, n. “Results indicated that while most of the diets designed by ChatGPT were accurate, the process could construct diets that would harm an individual with dietary restrictions”highlights the nutritionist Dr. Marcella Garcez, director and professor at the Brazilian Association of Nutrology (ABRAN).
“The errors consisted mostly of inaccurate calories in diets, meals, specific foods, or portion sizes. One of the recommendations included almond milk for patients with nut allergies, which could create a big problem.”continues the expert.
ChatGPT vs food allergies
The recent study used hypothetical cases of individuals with food allergies to investigate the accuracy and safety of “robo diets” or diets constructed using the deep learning models implemented in ChatGPT. Statistics indicate that ChatGPT has more than 100 million users per month.
“In cases of food allergies, specially designed diets are essential, as the inclusion of only one type of forbidden food can cause anaphylactic shock, and the prevalence of food allergies has increased in recent decades among adults and children”says the nutritionist.
In the present study, the researchers used 14 food allergens to construct diets using ChatGPT prompts, including: gluten-containing cereals, oats, wheat, barley, and rye; shellfish such as crabs, shrimp and lobsters; fish; egg; shellfish; peanuts; milk and derivatives; nuts; sesame; mustard; lupine; celery; and sulfur-containing compounds.
The hypothetical individual with a food allergy was a 30-year-old female, as food allergies are more prevalent in women than in men and women are generally more interested in new diets. Four levels of restriction were used as instructions for ChatGPT to build a diet, and these included:
a) diet for a food allergy with quantity restrictions
b) diet for two food allergies with quantity restrictions
c) diet for a food allergy with a normocaloric energy pattern (equal caloric intake and expenditure)
d) diet for a low energy food allergy.
According to the nutritionist, the researchers’ assessment reported that safety was the weakest feature of an elimination diet built with ChatGPT. “In the case of recommending almond milk in a nut-free diet, this could have led to serious consequences, as nut allergy is one of the most serious forms of food allergy.”the doctor reports.
Furthermore, for the specified low-calorie diets, the researchers aimed to test whether the ChatGPT-prepared diet could formulate a diet with specific nutritional recommendations.
“The robotic diets contained only a general suggestion to consult a health professional for supervision, but did not consist of warnings about calorie restrictions. In addition, an atypical dietary supplement was included in a non-strictly restrictive diet. No supplement should be taken without the recommendation of a professional.”claims the nutritionist.
However, the diets devised by ChatGPT followed certain dietary guidelines, such as increasing the consumption of fruits and vegetables at each meal and preferring poultry and fish over red meat. The robot diets also included cautionary notes, such as carefully reading food labels and the presence of sesame or other nut-based ingredients in common foods, ensuring safe food choices.
Does ChatGPT help you lose weight?
ChatGPT also failed to construct a diet for two soy-free menu requests, and in other cases the energy values of specific meals or the entire menu were calculated incorrectly. “Miscalculating calories can directly impact a patient’s goal. If they want to lose weight and consume more calories than they expend, they will invariably gain weight”explains the doctor.
Furthermore, due to constraints related to specific energy needs, the caloric values of the various meals were not adjusted in the robotic diets. “The menus were also ineffective at suggesting portion sizes, with impractical or highly specific quantities, without including recipes or additional information about toppings or condiments, and general food suggestions, such as fish or berries, without specific recommendations.”, says Dr. Marcella.
While AI tools that use large language models are easily accessible and provide a publicly accessible resource, accepting the results of these tools without proper assessments can pose health risks. “The best thing to do is ask a nutritionist for help”concludes Dr. Marcella Garcia.
SOURCE: *DR. MARCELLA GARCEZ: Nutrologist, Masters in Health Sciences at the PUCPR School of Medicine, Director of the Brazilian Nutrology Association and Professor of the National Nutrology Course at ABRAN. The doctor is a member of the Technical Chamber of Nutrology of the CRMPR, Coordinator of the Academic League of Nutrology of Paraná and Researcher in Food Supplements at the Nutrology Service of the Public Hospital of São Paulo. Furthermore, he is a member of the Brazilian Society of Aesthetic Medicine and the Brazilian Society for the Study of Aging.
Source: Terra
Ben Stock is a lifestyle journalist and author at Gossipify. He writes about topics such as health, wellness, travel, food and home decor. He provides practical advice and inspiration to improve well-being, keeps readers up to date with latest lifestyle news and trends, known for his engaging writing style, in-depth analysis and unique perspectives.
