(R33 Phase) DELISH Study: Diabetes Education to Lower Insulin, Sugars, and Hunger (DELISH R33)

May 20, 2026 updated by: University of California, San Francisco

Optimizing Lifestyle Interventions With Mindfulness-based Strategies in Type 2 Diabetes

The investigators plan an R33 phase trial in which 120 persons with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) will be randomized (using a 1:1 ratio) to education alone (Ed) on following a carbohydrate restricted diet for T2DM, or this same education content with added mindful eating/Mindfulness-Based Intervention components (Ed+MBI).

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

The investigators will randomize 120 persons with T2DM in a 1:1 ratio to a nutrition education alone arm (Ed n=60) vs. a nutrition education with mindfulness-based intervention components (Ed+MBI n=60) arm and follow them for 12 months. The interventions will be provided in a weekly group setting, with about 10 to 12 persons per group. Some educational intervention components will be delivered using a smartphone app. After the 12-week initial intervention, the investigators will re-randomize participants using an adaptive intervention design to receive low, medium, or high intensity maintenance training, depending on level of adherence achieved during the initial intervention period. Follow-up assessments will be performed at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months. The investigators will address the following specific aims:

  1. Test the hypothesis that the Ed+MBI arm will have better dietary adherence than the Ed arm.
  2. Test whether our proposed behavioral mechanisms (e.g. decreased eating in response to cravings or difficult emotions) predict dietary adherence.
  3. Obtain preliminary assessment of intervention effects on clinical outcomes

This is the second phase of a two-phase study. Pilot testing has been completed in the first phase (R61). The focus of the second phase (R33) is on comparing dietary adherence between the Ed only and ED + MBI arms over a 12-month period. This phase will also include employing an adaptive intervention design in the post-treatment phase to test optimization of the maintenance intervention (i.e. assigning maintenance intensity/dose based on how a participant is doing). The maintenance phase intensities will be assessed to provide preliminary data for planning future trials. The primary analysis focus of this phase will be on the comparing the groups formed by the initial randomization to Ed versus Ed + MBI. The investigators will use fingerstick blood ketone measures, which provide an objective measure of whether the target levels of carbohydrate restriction have been attained, as our primary adherence outcome measure. This will be supplemented by 24-hour diet recall measures of carbohydrate consumption. Important secondary outcome measures will include clinical measures such as glycosylated hemoglobin and behavioral measures such as frequency of eating in response to food cravings.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
125

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • California
      • San Francisco, California, United States, 94115
        • Osher Center for Integrative Medicine

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. History of T2DM mellitus.
  2. HbA1c ≥ 6.5% and < 12.0% at screening.
  3. Experience food-related cravings most days of the week and eat in response to these cravings regularly.
  4. Aged 18 years old and older.
  5. Able to engage in light physical activity.
  6. Willing and able to participate in the interventions including appropriate participation in the group setting.
  7. Have smartphone and are willing to use it on a regular basis for data collection.
  8. Ability to speak English.

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Unable to provide informed consent.
  2. A substance abuse, mental health, or medical condition that, in the opinion of investigators, will make it difficult for the potential participant to participate in the intervention, that may need immediate changes in medical management that will affect study outcome measures, or that may require important adaptations in the study diet.
  3. Pregnant or planning to get pregnant in the next 12 months, breastfeeding or less than 6 months post-partum.
  4. Current use of weight loss medications, such as Alli or amphetamine-based drugs that may affect weight.
  5. Planned or history of weight-loss (bariatric) surgery, or other intestinal surgeries that cause malabsorption. These are likely to change study outcome measures, making it difficult to distinguish the effects of the intervention program, or require extensive tailoring of the diet intervention.
  6. Currently enrolled in a weight loss program, such as Weight Watchers or a self-help group such as Overeaters Anonymous, or have unalterable plans to enroll in one of these programs in the next year; using a ketogenic low carbohydrate diet in the past 6 months with advice from a health care professional; or use of a mindful eating program with guidance from a professional in the past 6 months or have ever used the study mindful-eating app.
  7. Vegan or vegetarian.
  8. Unwilling to do regular blood testing at home for glucose or ketone monitoring.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Active Comparator: Diet Education
All participants will receive instruction in the Carbohydrate-Restricted (CR) diet and basic behavioral strategies in weekly, in-person, group sessions for 3 months. The study diet has approximately 10% of kcal coming from carbohydrate, typically 50 grams/day or fewer, not including fiber. Participants will be encouraged to eat a normal amount of protein, typically about 80-100 grams/day (about 20-25% of calories), and the rest of their calories from fat.
Behavioral: Carbohydrate-restricted diet
Education for carbohydrate-restricted diet
Experimental: Diet Education + Mindfulness
In addition to the diet components described above, participants randomized to the Education + Mindfulness (Ed+MBI) group will receive MBI components using the Eat Right Now (ERN) platform. This will consist of two integrated components: 1) use of the ERN app at home, during the week, to learn and practice mindfulness skills for food-cravings and eating, and 2) in-person group-based discussions of how the mindful eating practices are going, trouble-shooting obstacles/pain points, and doing group exercises and reflecting on them.
Behavioral: Carbohydrate-restricted diet
Education for carbohydrate-restricted diet
Behavioral: Mindfuless
Mindful eating app use plus group sessions to learn mindfulness

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Diet Adherence Between Intervention Arms as Measured by % of Ketones >= 0.5 mmol/L
Time Frame: Measures from ketone measure initiation (week 5) to 12 months. Ketones were measured daily over 7 days at 5 study timepoints: 5 weeks, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months.
Percent of participant ketone measures > or = 0.5 mmol/L during trial, by study arm
Measures from ketone measure initiation (week 5) to 12 months. Ketones were measured daily over 7 days at 5 study timepoints: 5 weeks, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months.
Diet Adherence Between Intervention Arms as Measured by % of Participants in Each Arm With < 50 Grams/Day of Non-fiber Carbohydrate on 24- Hour Diet Recall
Time Frame: Average of three measures, done at 3, 6 and 12 months
Average percent of participant measures with consumption of < 50 grams/day of non-fiber carbohydrate (from 24-hour diet recall) by arm. Each participant was assigned a % of up to three measures reporting < 50 grams/day of non-fiber carbohydrate consumption, and this percent was averaged across each arm.
Average of three measures, done at 3, 6 and 12 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Emotion-related Eating
Time Frame: change from baseline to 12 months
change in emotion-related eating as measured by the Coping subscale of the Palatable Eating Motives Scale (PEMS). The coping subscale ranges from 1 to 5 (based on a mean of 4 items), with higher values indicating more emotion-related eating (the intervention aimed to lower this score--lower scores represent improvement).
change from baseline to 12 months
Glycemic Control--HbA1c
Time Frame: change from baseline to 12 months
Change in Hemoglobin A1c from baseline to 12 months with study arm
change from baseline to 12 months
Frequency of Eating in Response to Cravings
Time Frame: Change from baseline to 12 months
Frequency of eating in response to cravings (indulgence) using ecological momentary assessment (EMA), operationalized as the percent of solicited occasions when a participant reported eating in response to cravings (rather than in response merely to hunger). Participants received 18 queries about eating in response to cravings over 3 days. Participants had to respond to at least 9 queries to have adequate data completeness for analysis. Frequency of eating in response to cravings is the proportion (scaled as a percent) of queries that participants responded to with responses that reported eating in response to cravings.
Change from baseline to 12 months
Diet Adherence Between Intervention Arms as Measured by Mean Grams of Non-fiber Carbohydrate Consumed Per Day From 24- Hour Diet Recall
Time Frame: From 3 to 12 months, using measures done at 3, 6, and 12 months
Mean grams of non-fiber carbohydrate consumed per day (from 24-hour diet recall) during trial. We calculated average grams of non-fiber consumed per day across up to three measures during the trial for each participant, and this was averaged across arms.
From 3 to 12 months, using measures done at 3, 6, and 12 months
Salzburg Stress Eating Scale
Time Frame: change from baseline to 12 months
Change in stress-related eating as measured by Salzburg Stress Eating Scale. Range is from 1 to 5. Higher scores indicate greater stress-related eating.
change from baseline to 12 months
Weight Change
Time Frame: change from baseline to 12 month weight data
Body mass in kilograms (kg) from baseline to 12 months
change from baseline to 12 month weight data

Other Outcome Measures

Other Outcome Measures

For clinical trials, a planned measurement described in the protocol that is used to determine the effect of an intervention/treatment on participants. For observational studies, a measurement or observation that is used to describe patterns of diseases or traits, or associations with exposures, risk factors, or treatment. Types of outcome measures include primary outcome measure and secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Stress-related Eating
Time Frame: change from baseline to 12 months
Change in stress-related eating as measured by two questions about stress-related eating from the MIDUS study and one additional stress-related eating question. Range is 2 to 8. Higher scores indicate more stress-related eating.
change from baseline to 12 months
Perceived Stress Scale
Time Frame: change from baseline to 12 months
Change in Perceived Stress Scale total score. Range is 0 to 40. Higher scores indicate more perceived stress.
change from baseline to 12 months
HOMA-2IR Index of Insulin Resistance
Time Frame: change from baseline to 12 months
Insulin resistance estimated from the Homeostatic model assessment (HOMA) model 2 index of insulin resistance. The basic formula is: (glucose × insulin) / 22.5, where glucose is measured in mmol/L and insulin in mU/L. The computer assisted re-calibration in model 2 addresses variations in the glucose resistance of the peripheral tissue and liver, increases in the insulin secretion curve for glucose > 180 mg/dL, and contribution of circulating pro-insulin. Higher values indicate more insulin resistance (worse outcome). The Oxford University HOMA-2IR calculator was used (https://process.innovation.ox.ac.uk/software/p/2112/homa2-calculator/1). HOMA index values < 2.0 are generally considered normal and indicate adequate sensitivity of cells to insulin. HOMA index values between 2.0 and 2.5 may indicate borderline changes in insulin sensitivity. HOMA index values > 2.5 clearly indicate insulin resistance.
change from baseline to 12 months
Fasting Glucose
Time Frame: change from baseline to 12 months
Glycemic control as measured by fasting blood glucose
change from baseline to 12 months
Mindfulness: FFMQ
Time Frame: change from baseline to 12 months
Five-factor mindfulness questionnaire scale (FFMQ). Values represent an overall score summing five sub-scales. Range is 24 to 120. Higher scores indicate greater mindfulness.
change from baseline to 12 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of California, San Francisco

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Rick Hecht, MD, University of California, San Francisco
  • Principal Investigator: Elissa Epel, PhD, University of California, San Francisco

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
December 12, 2018

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 17, 2021

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
June 17, 2021

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
February 8, 2019

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
February 8, 2019

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
February 12, 2019

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
June 17, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 20, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 4R33AT009333 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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