‘Food for thought’: Sixth Former receives national science award for nutrition app that promotes better mental health

Richard Turay (pictured left) has received the British Science Association’s Gold CREST Award for designing an app which allows people to better manage symptoms of depression by tracking the impact of food on mood.

Richard, from London, received a Gold CREST Award for his project of designing an app which explores the link between nutrition and mental health. He carried out the project whilst completing an In2Science placement at the Sainsbury Wellcome Centre, part of University College London during his first year of sixth form.

Working with neuroscientists at the Centre, Richard learnt more about the nervous system and the key relationship between diet and mood. Building on this knowledge, he then conducted a survey to discover how effective an app which enables people to better understand and manage the link between diet and depression could be. As part of the survey, he also considered the different factors impacting men’s and women’s mental health, including societal expectations of men to be less emotional.

Following the results of his survey, Richard was determined to design an app that would help anyone who may be struggling with mental health issues with the means to confidently take the steps to feel better. After analysing his results, Richard developed a prototype of the app in Figma, learning new presentation and design skills in the process to display the project, for which he earned a Gold CREST Award, the highest CREST achievement.

CREST Awards is a nationally recognised science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) education scheme that helps to empower children and young people to engage with STEM subjects by acting like real-life scientists as they undertake hands-on projects. Secondary-level CREST projects empower students to design and lead their own investigations, exploring topics of interest to them.

For Richard, the scheme allowed him to explore different strands of STEM and design a project that reflected his own interest in fitness and nutrition, as well as mental health, to demonstrate new links. Gold CREST Award projects typically take around 70 hours to complete, requiring students to conduct in-depth research, problem-solving and analysis to meet the criteria.

Reflecting on his project, Richard said: “I had the idea of nutrition because of my personal interest in fitness and the impact of food on your body. I was also drawn to mental health as a topic because I’ve seen a lot of people go through a hard time with mental health, like friends, and that’s something that’s sensitive to me so I decided to think about it… I knew what you eat has an impact on your mood so I was trying to make that connection.

“[I would] a hundred per cent [recommend CREST Awards] because you take the time, you learn new things, you learn new skills. With the Gold CREST Award you learn project management skills – how to start a project, how to manage a project, how to make sure you meet each goal within that – as well as new technical skills, such as Excel skills. You have the opportunity to learn a lot about science and upskill yourself”.

In addition to challenging young people’s scientific knowledge and investigative skills, CREST Awards are an excellent addition to any CV and give young people unique experiences to draw upon in interviews.

Richard found that interviewers took a keen interest in his project, saying: “It’s hard when you’re a sixth former applying for these big companies, you don’t have much to speak about for yourself.

“Interviewers probably hear generic answers, ‘I did this, I did that’…because of me doing the CREST Awards project, it was a unique thing and they were very interested in knowing why I did that and what I learned.”

Estelle Whewell, CREST Manager at the British Science Association, said: “One of the most exciting things about the CREST Awards, particularly at the Gold level, is seeing the wide variety of projects which are born from each young person’s individual interest. Richard’s project combined his interest in both nutrition and mental health, and led to him designing an app that could have real benefits for people struggling with depression.

“His project is a stellar example of why it is so important to give young people the space to pursue their own interests in the world of science and the chance to gain new skills and knowledge. Empowering young people to act like real-life scientists not only equips them with experiences and transferable skills that will benefit them later in life but also allow them to work on projects that could have a positive impact on society.”

For more information about the CREST awards, please visit: https://www.crestawards.org/

You can also find out more about Richard’s project and experience with CREST here: https://www.britishscienceassociation.org/blog/a-gold-crest-awards-case-study-finding-the-link-between-nutrition-and-mental-health