Meals and Grazing Study (MAGS)

September 10, 2015 updated by: Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of low vs. high eating frequency (EF) on biomarkers of health and subjective appetite.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Observational studies have demonstrated an inverse relationship between eating frequency (EF), obesity, and other markers for disease risk. It has been suggested that consumption of several small, frequent meals may influence physiological mechanisms, reducing the risk for disease and lowering appetite. Participants in this randomized crossover study completed two intervention phases lasting three weeks each: one of low eating frequency ("low-EF"; 3 eating occasions/day) and one of high eating frequency ("high-EF"; 8 eating occasions/day). Fasting C-reactive protein, insulin-like growth factor, and leptin were measured at baseline and endpoint of each phase and an optional subjective appetite testing session lasting four hours was offered at the endpoint of each phase. During appetite testing sessions, participants consumed an amount of food equal in total energy and macronutrient content at either one occasion at 8:00 am ("low-EF" condition) or spread evenly over two smaller eating occasions at 8:00 am and 10:30 am ("high-EF" condition). Ratings of hunger, desire to eat, fullness, thirst, and nausea were made every 30 minutes using paper-and-pencil semi-anchored 100-mm Visual Analog Scales. A composite appetite score was calculated as the mean of hunger, desire to eat, and 100-fullness. The generalized estimating equation modification of linear regression was used to compare fasting plasma biomarkers and mean ratings of subjective appetite.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

15

Phase

  • 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
    • Washington
      • Seattle, Washington, United States, 98109
        • Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center

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

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 50 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Participants will be overweight and obese (BMI 25 and over) males and females ages 18-50 years.
  • Participants must be willing to report to FHCRC on 5 occasions (initial screening appointment + 4 testing sessions)
  • Participants must be willing to provide a 7-day food record for analysis prior to Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the study
  • Participants must be willing to follow diet protocol during Phase 1 of the study
  • Participants must be willing to undergo 4 blood draws

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Non-diabetic (self-report)
  • Non-smokers (self-report)
  • Not following a diet to gain or lose weight (self-report)
  • Normal cholesterol (self-report)
  • Normal blood pressure (self-report)
  • Not currently taking any medication (self-report)
  • Not pregnant or nursing (self-report and verification by DEXA)
  • Not athletes in training (self-report)

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: Crossover Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: High Eating Frequency (High EF)
8 Eating Occasions
Behavioral: High Eating Frequency (High EF)
Free-living participants complete a 21-day high eating frequency (high EF) Phase in which they consume all daily energy at 8 eating occasions.
Experimental: Low Eating Frequency (High EF)
3 Eating Occasions
Behavioral: Low Eating Frequency (Low EF)
Free-living participants complete a 21-day low eating frequency (low EF) Phase in which they consume all daily energy at 3 eating occasions.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Inflammatory biomarkers in high vs. low eating frequency conditions
Time Frame: 3 weeks
Inflammatory biomarkers in high vs. low eating frequency conditions
3 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Subjective appetite in high vs. low eating frequency conditions
Time Frame: 4 hours
Subjective appetite as reported using visual analog scale in high vs. low eating frequency conditions
4 hours

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

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

January 1, 2011

Primary Completion (Actual)

June 1, 2012

Study Completion (Actual)

June 1, 2012

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

September 8, 2015

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 10, 2015

First Posted (Estimate)

September 14, 2015

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

September 14, 2015

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 10, 2015

Last Verified

September 1, 2015

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 7439

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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