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The psychology of helpful swaps

2026-03-28 · 3 min read

The classic mistake of "healthy swap" apps is suggesting things people will not actually buy. Greek-yogurt-instead-of-mayo is technically nutritious and practically a meme.

We anchor on three constraints. The swap must be plausibly available at a regular grocery store. It must be reasonably similar in form factor to the original (a chip for a chip, a sauce for a sauce). And it must respect the user's actual dietary pattern and allergies — no recommending Greek yogurt to a vegan.

The fourth constraint, often overlooked: the swap should improve at least two dimensions of the score, not just one. A swap that drops added sugar but doubles sodium is a wash.

We also rank by the per-dollar nutritional improvement when we have price data. A $14 alternative protein bar "better" than a $2 conventional bar is not a swap real people will adopt.