problem
After a (self-) diagnosis, most people with celiac disease can’t find dependable resources on gluten-free living.
Solution
To prevent further damage and potentially severe health threats, it’s critical to understand the challenges and build safe habits around food right away.
I’ve developed a tool that provides three features that clarify the “new normal” for people with Celiac Disease + their friends and families.
1. Lessons with bite-sized bits of information
2. A scanner to detect gluten-related ingredients on product labels
3. A tracker to help identify harmful behaviors
Outcome
Newbie and veteran Celiac patients have science-backed information at their fingertips. The scanner protects them from ever again accidentally buying a product with hidden gluten. And the tracker lets them create their own journal for visits with their health practitioner.
What is Celiac Disease (CD)?
Celiac Disease is a serious autoimmune disease that occurs in genetically predisposed people where the ingestion of gluten leads to damage in the small intestine. It is estimated to affect 1 in 100 people worldwide. Two and one-half million Americans are undiagnosed and are at risk for long-term health complications.
Source: celiac.org
Watch the short Walkthrough video, …
… and Try the Clickable Mockup.
Have a go at the interactive Figma prototype! You can log a regular day, a day where you think you’ve been glutened, find a lesson, or scan a product ingredient list.
1. Discovery – understand & observe
Initial Goals
Our newly diagnosed person with Celiac Disease needs a way to find reliable and accurate information because it’s hard enough to adjust to a new way of living with little-to-no guidance.
Hypothesis
We will know this to be true when we see how many people with Celiac (and their family members) continuously use our app to find the information they need to build new healthy habits.
1. Surveys
A: Online survey in Celiac specific groups on Facebook and Reddit
B: Observed interactions at gatherings over 6 years
C: Remote user interviews
2. audience definition
A: Newly diagnosed people with Celiac (within the past year)
B: People who have lived with the diagnosis for more than one year.
3. content survey
Analyzed apps that offered related content to find focus and nuance and see where people are still underserved.
4. user scenarios
Found three scenarios that people wanted and needed resolved in their daily lives. Scanner, tracker, lessons.
A: 9-question Online Survey | typeform
Quantitative Research
responses
READ THE FULL REPORT >
(you won’t believe how many people track their 💩 !)
B: Observations | real social situations
Qualitative Research
years
occasions
C: Remote video interviews | Zoom
Qualitative Research
people with celiac disease
THE TWO PERSONAS >
that materialized after the research
2. Audience & tasks
2.1 Personas
Neha the CD Newbie – Persona #1
Neha has a busy schedule. She’s juggling her 3/yo twin girls, her work, and her passion—cooking healthy food for her family daily.
Neha gets most of their groceries delivered weekly in order to save time, but she goes to the store every now and then to find new, gluten free treats.
Neha's Goals and Needs
- Neha loves to cook for her family; She needs quick & easy, everyday budget-friendly recipes to cook for herself that are tasty enough so her kids and partner would eat.
- She is looking for a comprehensive list of safe foods, non-GF foods, debatable foods + explanations.
- Neha needs visual indicators of any gluten or inactive gluten on any and all kinds of products because she gets horrible skin reactions that last for days.
Neha's Frustrations
- Neha has Dyslexia–when she goes to the store, she gets discouraged trying to read the ingredients.
- She’s still in the initial learning phase and keeps getting glutened, because there’s a lack of reliable and detailed information that’s easily accessible.
- Her friends and family don’t understand her new dietary needs and keep her at risk in social gatherings, which make her avoid those more and more.
Neha's Motivation
- Neha’s main motivation is that she knows she can be pain-free and have more energy when she stays gluten-free.
- Neha wants be able to cook delicious and safe food for her family so they can continue to eat together.
- She is scared of the long-term dangers of Celiacs (cancers, organ damage, depression, the negative consequences of nutrient malabsorption) and wants to avoid that.
Neha's Quotes
“I just want to be able to make an informed decision about the things I put in my body.”
“I don’t want to be fussed about. I just wanna do my own thing. If I have to explain myself every single time I reach for something, I’d rather just not go.”
Jim the CD Veteran – Persona #2
Jim usually has a busy schedule, running a restaurant with his two siblings and doing most of the work.
Celiac Disease runs in his family (his dad had it and two of his three grown up children have it, too) and they have similar experiences as Jim (going out, eating at friend’s houses, office meetings with shared food—essentially trying to be social)
Jim's Goals and Needs
- Jim’s constantly trying new GF food to serve in his celiac’s friendly restaurant.
- He wants to educate newer Celiacs
who haven’t gotten any help from their doctors/the internet (he has created a pamphlet with all the information he thinks is useful and gives it out for free to customers if they ask for information.) - Jim is an optimist and wants to see the positive aspects of staying on a gluten-free diet.
Jim's Frustrations
- He’s upset with other restaurant owners who claim that their food is gluten-free, but in reality, the meals are prepared in shared (and hence highly likeably cross-contaminated) areas.
- When he was diagnosed, all his doctor said to him was “Good luck.” His doctor’s WIFE had celiacs, too! He believes that doctors don’t know enough about CD.
- Jim rarely gets on Facebook groups
because he can’t stand the rampant victim-mentality. His diagnosis saved him from potentially dying from colon cancer like his dad did, 15 years ago.
Jim's Motivation
- Jim’s main motivation is to keep his gut healthy.
- He understands that people still want to keep some of their old social habits after the diagnosis, and helps make that happen by using celiac’s safe substitutes for his customer’s favorite foods.
- He knows that no one can see and know everything, so continued education on the topic for himself and his staff is one of his main priorities.
Jim's Quotes
“I wouldn’t say I’m happy about it, but I’m relieved to know that I have Celiacs. Now I can take control over my life and wellbeing again.”
“If I don’t trust that it’s safe, I’m not eating it. There’s no way I’m going back to eating gluten ever again.”
“I need to check everything. Always.”
2.2 User Journeys
Lessons – Neha
Neha was diagnosed with Celiac Disease a few weeks ago, but didn’t get any practical information on what this means for her future besides “stay away from gluten”. She just downloaded the Livey app.
In this scenario, her goal is to use our educational feature to quickly get up to speed on the first steps she needs to take to keep from getting glutened.
Tracker – Jim
It is important to Jim to keep track of his gut health. He’s hurting today and needs a safe place to keep some notes.
In this scenario, Jim his goal is to quickly use our tracker feature to jot down the key pieces he wants to remember later when he talks to his doctor.
2.3 Task Flows
Lessons
Tracker
3. Information architecture
3.1 Open card sort
Participants were asked to organize topics (“cards”) from content within the app into groups that made sense to them. After creating them, they were asked to then name each group in a way that they felt accurately described the content.
The higher the number in the blue boxes below, the more often the participants had grouped the items together.
3.2 Closed card sort
Cards are sorted into clusters in predetermined groups or categories.
The row titles at the top of the graph indicate the given categories. The higher the number in the blue boxes below, the more often participants had grouped the items together.
3.3 Sitemap
4. Testing & refining the design
4.1 User Testing
I carried out six usability tests via Zoom meetings. Five out of six participants were able to complete all three tasks, while the sixth participant completed all but one task. Two out of 6 participants took the follow-up survey and said they would recommend the app. Listed below are the main challenges and errors experienced by the participants.
4.2 Wireframes and design Iterations after continuous Testing
4.2.1 Tracker wireframes
The Tracker feature was welcomed with mixed emotions. Some people didn’t want to be reminded of their glutenings, others simply didn’t want “another food tracker app”.
The fact that they could track as much or as little they need whenever they fear to have eaten gluten, though, made a lot of sense to all of them. I did some more peer testing and got feedback on layout and content. Read more on the case study here soon.
4.2.2 Lessons wireframes
There is a lot of potential content that wants to be sorted and filtered, and finding the best way to do that is a whole different chapter. I’m a fan of borrowing a bit from apps from different industries that have filter functions, such as real estate apps, e-comm stores, and platforms like Youtube.
I’m also thinking about how or if to have users add individual tags to the lessons in the future, and where and how to showcase the saved lessons.
4.2.3 Scanner wireframes
The Scanner was pretty much clear from the beginning. A big area to scan the product label, with two buttons for Cancel and Save. This feature was created based on feedback I got on my survey. Newly diagnosed people, people who have Dyslexia, or people who want to explore new products and don’t know what to look for on ingredient labels were big proponents from the first time I brought it up.
After going through a few iterations in the early phases of the scanner, I saw that the Cancel button didn’t have a real purpose. So I got rid of the small refresh icon underneath the scanner area and added a refresh button instead.
5. What’s next?
This app concept shows a lot of potential for future development. Modeling after more renowned apps, there’s an option to add a premium version or a subscription based paywall for more personalized content.
In the commercial space, we can see options to work with companies that serve the Celiac group. There are for-profits as well as non-profits who could benefit from a collaboration with Livey.