Educational Nutritional Intervention for Adolescents

Educational Nutritional Intervention to Increase the Consumption of Vegetables and Fruits and Decrease the Consumption of Ultra-processed Foods in Adolescents: Randomized Controlled Trial by Conglomerates

Randomized controlled trial by conglomerates whose objective is to evaluate the effectiveness of an educational nutritional intervention, based on the Social Cognitive Theory, for the increase in the consumption of vegetables and fruits and the decrease in the consumption of ultra-processed foods in adolescent high school students, in the University of Guadalajara, in Guadalajara, Jalisco.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Health Promotion; Feeding Behavior; Adolescent Health; Early Intervention, Educational
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: ALIADA: Alimentación, Adolescencia y Ambiente

Detailed Description

Background: Adolescent nutrition is of vital importance for their growth and development, at this stage eating habits for adult life are consolidated. However, currently the eating habits of adolescents are mainly characterized by a high consumption of ultra-processed foods and a low consumption of vegetables and fruits. Effective nutritional interventions focused on this age group can contribute to the prevention of adolescent diseases at the current stage and in later stages.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of an educational nutritional intervention, based on the Social Cognitive Theory, to increase the consumption of vegetables and fruits and decrease the consumption of ultra-processed foods, in adolescent high school students at the University of Guadalajara (UDG), in Guadalajara, Jalisco, in the year 2022.

Material and methods: Randomized controlled trial by conglomerates, students from the school groups chosen at random, from two high schools (one as a control group and another intervention) also chosen at random will be included. Adolescents who agree to participate will complete pre- and post-intervention assessments on fruit and vegetable consumption and ultra-processed foods. A multilevel analysis will be used to compare post-intervention variables between groups.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 500
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Mexico
  • Guadalajara, Mexico
    • Upper Secondary Education System of the University of Guadalajara

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 14 years to 19 years (ADULT, CHILD)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Students enrolled in the included high schools (1st to 6th semester, morning and evening shift)
• That they agree to participate and complete the assent and informed consent form

Exclusion Criteria:

• Students who do not wish to participate

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: PREVENTION
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Interventional Model: PARALLEL
• Masking: NONE

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
EXPERIMENTAL: Intervention; Educational nutritional intervention, based on the Social Cognitive Theory	Behavioral: ALIADA: Alimentación, Adolescencia y Ambiente; The objective of the educational nutritional intervention is to promote in adolescents an increase in their consumption of vegetables and fruits and a decrease in their consumption of ultra-processed foods, through the application of the TSC constructs, with the use of education by pairs as the main strategy (peer leaders). It lasts two months, includes three exclusive sessions for peer leaders and five sessions for all participants, where the leaders, together with the researchers, will lead the activities of the sessions, as well as a general event for all high school students. Intervention activities include: electronic presentations, videos, food preparation and label reading workshops, individual and team reflection activities, goal setting and monitoring, board games, contests, among others. In addition, each participant is given a workbook, which contains key messages and activities for each educational session.
NO_INTERVENTION: Control; Regular school education, without educational nutritional intervention

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in vegetables and fruits	Pre-post intervention change in vegetable and fruit consumption (servings/day (direct values, no scores assigned), post intervention consumption minus pre intervention consumption, as measured by a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire, positive values of change are desirable , that is, increased consumption of vegetables and fruits)	2 months
Change in ultra-processed foods	Pre-post intervention change in consumption of ultra-processed foods (servings/day (direct values, no scores assigned)), post intervention consumption minus pre intervention consumption, as measured by a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire, negative values of change are desirable, that is, reduction in the consumption of ultra-processed foods)	2 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Centro Universitario de Ciencias de la Salud, Mexico
• Investigators: Study Director: Gabriela Macedo Ojeda, PhD, Centro Universitario de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad de Guadalajara

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• McAlister AL, Perry CL, Parcel G. How individuals, environments and health behavior interact: social cognitive theory. In: Glanz K, Rimer BK, Viswanath K, eds. Health Behavior and Health Education: Theory, Research and Practice. 4°. Jossey-Bass A Wiley Imprint; 2008:169-188.

Helpful Links

• Encuesta Nacional de Salud y Nutrición 2018

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (ACTUAL): March 1, 2022
• Primary Completion (ACTUAL): May 12, 2022
• Study Completion (ACTUAL): May 23, 2022

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 24, 2022
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 1, 2022
• First Posted (ACTUAL): June 3, 2022

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (ESTIMATE): February 9, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 7, 2023
• Last Verified: February 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Fruit; Vegetables; Ultra-processed Food
• Other Study ID Numbers: 21-88

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