Daily Self-weighing and Holiday-associated Weight Gain in Adults

May 28, 2022 updated by: Jamie Cooper, PhD, University of Georgia

Background: Previous studies report 0.4-1.5kg of weight gain during the holiday season, which may contribute to annual weight gain.

Purpose: To test whether daily self-weighing (DSW) can prevent holiday weight gain.

Hypothesis: We hypothesized that daily self-weighing would effectively prevent weight and fat gain, and that individuals with overweight and obesity would respond most favorably to DSW.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

A single-blinded randomized control trial:

Adults (age 18-75y, BMI ≥ 18.5kg/m2) were randomized to either a control or daily self-weighing (DSW) group. There were 3 testing visits: pre-holiday (v1: within 7d before Thanksgiving), post-holiday (v2: within 7d after New Year's Day), and a follow-up (v3: 14 weeks after v2). The DSW group were given Wi-Fi scales that provide graphical feedback of daily weight. They were instructed to perform DSW during the holidays and to try not to gain weight above baseline weights. Anthropometrics were measured at each visit.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

111

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

    • Georgia
      • Athens, Georgia, United States, 30602
        • University of Georgia - Department of Foods and Nutrition

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 75 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • BMI of at least 18.5 kg/m2
  • Recognizing or celebrating at least two holidays between November and January
  • Access to WiFi

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Current eating disorder, history of an eating disorder
  • Involvement in a current weight loss and/or exercise program
  • Pregnancy or nursing
  • Any medications or chronic diseases affecting metabolism or body weight

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: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: Control
Participants in this group received no intervention during t he holiday season
Experimental: Daily Self-Weighing (DSW)
Participants in this group performed daily self-weighing using digital WiFi scales during the holiday season
DSW was conducted using digital WiFi scales during the holiday season. Participants received electronic graphic feedback of their weight fluctuations immediately after weight measurement.
Other Names:
  • DSW

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Body Weight (kg) From Pre- to Post-holiday and 14-week Follow-up Post-holiday
Time Frame: Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Mechanical Beam Scale (Model 402KL, Health o Meter professional scales, McCook, IL, USA); Capacity: 390 lbs / 180 kg; Readability: 1/4 lb / 100 g.
Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Body Mass Index (BMI) (kg/m^2)
Time Frame: Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
weight and height will be combined to report BMI in kg/m^2
Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Body Fat (%)
Time Frame: Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Dual Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry
Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Waist Circumference (cm)
Time Frame: Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Measuring tape
Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Hip Circumference (cm)
Time Frame: Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Measuring tape
Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Concentration of Blood Triglyceride (mg/dL)
Time Frame: Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Fasting blood draw
Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Concentration of Blood High-density Lipoprotein (HDL) (mg/dL)
Time Frame: Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Fasting blood draw
Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Concentration of Blood Low-density Lipoprotein (LDL) (mg/dL)
Time Frame: Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Fasting blood draw
Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Concentration of Blood Total Cholesterol (TC) (mg/dL)
Time Frame: Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.
Fasting blood draw
Measured at 3 testing visits: Visit 1 (pre-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days before Thanksgiving, visit 2 (post-holiday visit) occurred within 7 days after New Year's Day, and visit 3 (follow-up visit) occurred 14 weeks after visit 2.

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: jamie.cooper@uga.edu Cooper, Ph.D., University of Georgia

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.

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)

November 1, 2017

Primary Completion (Actual)

January 30, 2018

Study Completion (Actual)

April 30, 2018

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

October 17, 2018

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 22, 2018

First Posted (Actual)

October 24, 2018

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

June 1, 2022

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 28, 2022

Last Verified

June 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

The plan is to share group averages through publication.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

Yes

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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