Edible Seaweeds and Health: Quality Biomarkers to Support Consumer Acceptance ((CuisiAlg))

Seaweeds have been part of the diet of Asian countries for thousands of years, but consumption by Quebecers remains unfamiliar. Because of their rich nutrients content and unique bioactive compounds, seaweeds have a great dietary potential. The overall objective of the project is to determine the potential for sustainable local exploitation of St. Lawrence seaweeds by assessing their quality under growing conditions and following processing, and to use them as a basis for culinary innovations for both industry and consumers. Our specific objectives are as follows:

1. To assess the impact of environmental factors on the specific profile of biomarkers of nutritional quality and health potential of harvested or cultivated seaweed;
2. To determine the impact of processing on the profile of biomarkers of nutritional quality and health potential of harvested and cultivated seaweed;
3. To study changes in dietary attitudes and behaviours through a culinary workshop promoting the acceptance of seaweeds and their appropriation as an ingredient by consumers.

The application for ethical approval and this trial registration applies only to Specific Objective 3.

Study Overview

• Status: Unknown
• Conditions: Self Efficacy; Food Habits
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Culinary workshop

Detailed Description

For recruitment purposes, adults interested in cooking and consuming Quebec seaweeds will be randomly assigned to an experimental group (n=16 x 3 groups, ingredients, recipes and a culinary workshop) or a control group (n=16 x 3 groups, ingredients and recipes). Online questionnaires will be administered via the secure platform of INAF (FANI) at the beginning and the end of the study.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Anticipated): 96
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Veronique Provencher, PhD; Phone Number: 404607 418-656-2131; Email: veronique.provencher@fsaa.ulaval.ca
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Lucie Beaulieu, PhD; Phone Number: 404767 418-656-2131; Email: lucie.beaulieu@fsaa.ulaval.ca

Study Locations

• Canada
  • Quebec
    • Quebec city, Quebec, Canada, G1V 0A6
      • Institue of Nutrition and Functional Foods (INAF)
      • Contact: Veronique Provencher, PhD; Phone Number: 404607 418-656-2131; Email: veronique.provencher@fsaa.ulaval.ca
      • Contact: Mylene Turcotte, MSc; Phone Number: 404031 418-656-2131; Email: mylene.turcotte@fsaa.ulaval.ca

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• be interested in cooking and consuming Quebec seaweeds in various forms
• be available to fill out online questionnaires and perhaps participate in a culinary workshop in Quebec City

Exclusion Criteria:

• have allergies and dietary restrictions

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention group (with culinary workshop); This group will be composed of participants that will answer online questionnaires before and after the study, and will participate in a culinary workshop with a chef (3 hours).	Behavioral: Culinary workshop; A 3-hour culinary workshop will be led by a chef. The aim of this workshop will be to develop participants' culinary skills related to the preparation and consumption of recipes based on seaweeds, through various practical activities in the kitchen (starter, main course, dessert). An evaluation questionnaire will be completed at the end of the workshop.
No Intervention: Control group (without culinary workshop); This group will be composed of participants that will answer online questionnaires before and after the study.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Cooking and food-preparation practices with seaweeds	To evaluate the impact of the culinary workshop on cooking practices of participants (self-efficacy, food attitude, food structure). Will be conducted at baseline and at the end of the study.	2 months
Consumption of seaweeds	To evaluate the impact of the culinary workshop on consumption of seaweeds by participants. Will be conducted at baseline and at the end of the study.	2 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Laval University
• Collaborators: Quebec Maritime Network (Odyssee Saint-Laurent)
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Veronique Provencher, PhD, co-investigator, responsible for Specific Objective 3

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Anticipated): September 1, 2020
• Primary Completion (Anticipated): December 31, 2020
• Study Completion (Anticipated): July 31, 2021

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 28, 2020
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 28, 2020
• First Posted (Actual): July 30, 2020

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 30, 2020
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 28, 2020
• Last Verified: July 1, 2020

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Seaweeds, Food skills, Self Efficacy
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2020-016/11-02-2020

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No