The prevalence of obesity or overweight has been increasing yearly, and there has been rapid development of effective, efficient, and low-cost mobile health (mHealth) apps for managing obesity. In 2016, more than 900 million adults worldwide were overweight, and more than 650 million adults were obese.¹ In 2019, 34.3% of Chinese adults were overweight and 16.4% were obese.² Approximately 250 000 mHealth apps were available in 2016,³ of which more than half involved weight, diet, and exercise.⁴ Usability, feasibility, and acceptability of mHealth apps for management of obesity have been shown in the experimental context.⁵^,6 One study showed that after a 12-week diet and exercise intervention, 30 individuals who used a weight loss app lost 5% of their body weight.⁷ In another study, after a 6-month diet intervention, the mHealth app group had a higher follow-up patient retention rate (100% vs 37%) and lower treatment costs ($855.15 vs $1428.00) than the weight management group that did not use an mHealth app.⁸

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