Health coaching app helpful for inflammatory bowel disease management

29 May 2026, 18:00 · Medical Xpress

by Lori Solomon

Robert Egan

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Integrating a mobile app with online health coaching into usual care boosts outcomes for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), according to a study published online April 26 in Crohn's & Colitis 360.

Celeste M. Lavallee, R.D., from the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada, and colleagues assessed whether online health coaching focusing on self-management helps reduce mental health burden and improve quality of life (QoL) in people with IBDs. The analysis included 14 adults with ulcerative colitis and 31 with Crohn disease.

The researchers found that patients who chose the intervention in addition to conventional management had a decreased risk for anxiety and improved QoL from baseline to week 12 compared with those receiving only usual care. Both groups had significant decreases in the risk for depression, but these decreases did not differ significantly between groups. Similarly, both groups experienced significant improvements in physical activity, stress, and sleep, but changes were not significant between groups. The intervention was associated with significantly greater increases in intakes of vitamin C, folate, total fruit, and legumes compared with conventional management alone.

"The current study is amongst the first to report the effects of a mobile app and online health coach-supported program of mental health, diet, physical activity, perceived stress, and sleep interventions in patients with IBD in clinical remission," the authors write.

The study was funded by Pfizer. Several authors disclosed ties to Lyfe.

More information

Boosting mental health and quality of life for people living with inflammatory bowel disease using a mobile app and online health coaching, Crohn's & Colitis 360 (2026). DOI: 10.1093/crocol/otag041. academic.oup.com/crohnscolitis … /8/2/otag041/8662554

Key medical concepts

Inflammatory Bowel DiseasesUlcerative ColitisCrohn's Disease

Clinical categories

GastroenterologyHealthy livingPsychology & Mental healthNutrition & Healthy eating Who's behind this story?

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