Effects of a Daily Time-Restricted Feeding Protocol on Diet Quality

November 30, 2021 updated by: Carol Johnston, Arizona State University

Mealtime Matters: An 8-wk Randomized-Controlled Trial to Examine the Effects of a Daily Time-Restricted Feeding Protocol on Diet Quality

As a result of unhealthful lifestyle practices including nighttime ingestion and excess energy-dense food and beverage intake, college students are presenting with metabolic abnormalities and excess weight gain that increases their risk for chronic health conditions including cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes. Research has shown that prolonging nightly fasting intervals can result in health improvements in both animal models and human subjects. Time-restricted feeding (TRF), a form of intermittent fasting may offer an exciting, non-pharmacologic approach to improve cardiometabolic health in this population by restricting food intake to feeding windows that align with circadian biology.

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

This 8-wk randomized-controlled, parallel arm trial will examine the effects of a daily 18 h fast (TRF protocol) compared to a daily 8-h (CON protocol) on (1) diet quality, (2) cardiometabolic health, and (3) anthropometry in college students enrolled at ASU. Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval will be granted prior to recruitment and commencement of trial activities. Participants will be stratified by age, waist circumference, gender, and METS (activity score) and randomly assigned to one of two study arms: intervention and control. [Women will begin the trial within 5 days of menses.] Participants in the intervention arm of the study will consume food and beverages of their choice within one hour of waking and the feeding window will extend 6 hours. Beyond these hours, participants will observe a prolonged fast (i.e., an 18-h overnight fast). Participants in the control arm of the study will fast each night for 8 hours. During fasting hours, participants will only be permitted to consume non-caloric beverages (preferably water only but unsweetened and non-caloric coffee, tea, etc. will be permitted). Participants will adhere to their daily protocol for 8 weeks. Participants will not receive diet instruction other than 'to fast' and are told to maintain their typical physical activity patterns for the duration of the trial. Participants will choose one 'cheat-day' per week where they are excused from the fasting protocols; this day of the week will be consistent throughout the 8-week trial. Diet quality will be measured by the REAP-S questionnaire, 24-h recalls will be obtained by a registered dietitian via a three-step multiple-pass interview method, a registered nurse or radiology technician will obtain fasting blood draws for biomarkers, and trained research personnel will obtain measures of anthropometry.

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.
29

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
    • Arizona
      • Phoenix, Arizona, United States, 85004
        • Arizona Biomedical Collaborative

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

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • healthy (no unresolved medical condition)
  • non-smoking (includes vaping)
  • normal to under-active (< 420 minutes of activity/week; not training for or competing in sports events)
  • college students (≥18 years old)
  • free of acute illnesses or diagnosed chronic diseases (by self-report)
  • waist circumference ≥ 80 cm for women, and ≥ 94 cm for men. Participants will not be excluded based on race/ethnicity or socioeconomic status.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • participants who regularly fast for >12 hours/d or adhere to a fasting regimen (i.e., alternate day fasting, Ramadan-style fasting, 5:2 fasting) at the time of screening or within the past six months
  • those with weight loss attempt(s) or weight change (≥ 5 lbs.) within the past six months (including pregnancy)
  • those with a history of weight cycling (repeated weight loss and weight gain over time)
  • those who currently work night-shifts (i.e., midnight to 6AM), and those unwilling to adhere to the protocol will be excluded from the trial
  • pregnant or lactating women, and women not on prescription contraceptives (i.e., birth control pills, IUDs, and patches) (however, if a female applicant states her menstrual cycle is regular, the need to be on prescription contraceptives will be waived)

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: Prevention
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

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.
Experimental: Time restricted feeding
Participants in the intervention arm of the study will consume food and beverages of their choice within one hour of waking and the feeding window will extend 6 hours. Beyond these hours, participants will observe a prolonged fast (i.e., an 18-h overnight fast).
Behavioral: Fasting
Fasting was defined as no foods or caloric beverages.
Placebo Comparator: Control
Participants in the control arm of the study will fast each night for 8 hours.
Behavioral: Fasting
Fasting was defined as no foods or caloric beverages.

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 quality
Time Frame: Change from Baseline at week 8
A REAP-S questionnaire will be completed for the previous week's intake during Trial Visits 1-3. The REAP-S questionnaire is a 16-item validated measure of diet quality whereby participants respond to questions that estimate the intake of fruits and vegetables, fiber, sugar, milk, fat, and dietary cholesterol. Responses of 'usually/often' will receive 1 point, 'sometimes' will receive 2 points, and 'rarely/never or does not apply to me' will receive 3 points. Per the REAP-S protocol, responses will be tabulated, and higher scores will indicate better diet quality.
Change from Baseline at week 8
Blood pressure
Time Frame: Change from Baseline at week 8
Both systolic and diastolic blood pressure will be obtained prior to blood draw. Participants will be instructed to sit quietly with their feet planted flat on the floor. After a 10-minute rest period, a non-invasive Omron auto cuff blood pressure monitor equipped with IntelliSense technology, which allows the machine to inflate and deflate at optimum levels depending on arm size, will be utilized to obtain blood pressure in mm Hg.
Change from Baseline at week 8
Blood lipids
Time Frame: Change from Baseline at week 8
. LDL and HDL cholesterol will be measured using a commercially available diagnostic test kit on a bench-top, fully automated, clinical chemistry analyzer (Randox Laboratories Ltd, Crumlin, UK), and results will be expressed in milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL). Triglycerides will be measured using a commercially available diagnostic test kit on a bench-top, fully automated, clinical chemistry analyzer (Randox Laboratories Ltd, Crumlin, UK), and results will be expressed in milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL).
Change from Baseline at week 8
Waist circumference
Time Frame: Change from Baseline at week 8
Waist circumference will be obtained to the nearest 5 cm using a research-grade ergonomic measuring tape placed horizontally around participants' natural waist (i.e., narrowest circumference above the umbilicus). Waist circumference will be measured twice and averaged unless the difference between the first and second measurement is above 5 cm. In that event, a third measurement will be obtained, and the mean of the nearest two circumferences will be recorded.
Change from Baseline at week 8

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.
Arizona State University

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.
October 11, 2019

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.
April 30, 2020

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.
December 30, 2020

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).
April 13, 2020

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.
April 13, 2020

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.
April 15, 2020

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.
December 2, 2021

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.
November 30, 2021

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.
November 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

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.
  • TRF-DQ

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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