Time-Restricted Eating and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction to Reduce the Risk of Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer (MBSR&TRE)

Feasibility and Acceptability of a Remote Time-Restricted Eating and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Intervention to Reduce Risk Factors Associated With Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer Development Among Young Adults

The goal of this clinical trial is to evaluate the feasibility of remote time-restricted eating (TRE) and mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) interventions and the preliminary effect on EOCRC-related markers. The main question[s] it aims to answer are:

• Is it feasible and acceptable to conduct 8-week remote interventions of TRE, MBSR, and combined TRE+MBSR among young adults with excess adiposity and moderate-to-severe perceived stress?
• Will participants in the combined group lose more body weight and reduce their stress levels than those in the remaining groups?
• Will participants in the combined group experience better body composition changes and improve their cardiometabolic health compared to those in the remaining groups?
• Will participants in the combined group exhibit changes in the microbiome compared to those in the remaining groups?

Participants will:

• Complete 8 weeks of a TRE intervention
• Complete 8 weeks of a remote MBSR intervention

Researchers will compare 1. TRE alone; 2. MBSR alone; 3. TRE + MBSR; and 4. Control to see if the study is feasible and acceptable; to see if individuals lose body weight; to see if individual stress levels reduce; to see changes in the microbiome.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Obesity; Stress, Psychological; Colorectal Cancer; Microbial Colonization; Time Restricted Feeding
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: TRE; Behavioral: MBSR

Detailed Description

Early onset colorectal cancer (EOCRC) is defined as a diagnosis of colorectal cancer (CRC) in patients younger than 50 years old. The American Cancer Society reported that 12% of all CRC diagnoses as occurring in individuals younger than 50 years old. Worldwide, a steady increase in EOCRC cases is observed among Westernized countries, which suggests that similar risk factors and exposures within these developed countries are contributors to EOCRC. In particular, increased adiposity from an early age that persists through adulthood and chronic psychosocial stress are under investigation as drivers of the recent uptick in EOCRC in the United States (US) and other Westernized countries. Obesity in early adulthood is strongly associated with increased risk of EOCRC; in the US, obesity affects 42% of adults. In addition, obesity is associated with metabolic, hormonal, and immune perturbations that can promote gene mutations that drive EOCRC tumorigenesis. Chronic stress can negatively impact several different systems of the human body including the sympathetic nervous system (SNS)-related catecholamines, epinephrine and norepinephrine, and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis related hormones including adrenocorticotropic hormone and the glucocorticoid, cortisol. Due to the broad impact that exposure to chronic stress has in the human body, chronic stress has been linked to several diseases, including cancer. The gut and the brain are connected through a bidirectional system coined the gut-microbiota-brain axis (GMBA). Chronic stress can disrupt the SNS, HPA-axis and immune system, leading to a shift in gut microbial ecology and metabolic function that tips the balance to a more pro-inflammatory colonic state conducive to the formation of EOCRC. This study will examine if mitigating chronic stress and weight loss can modify EOCRC risk in young adults at risk of EOCRC. Accumulating evidence suggests that time-restricted eating (TRE), a type of intermittent fasting, produces a ~300-500 kcal/d energy deficit by limiting an individual's daily eating window to 4-8 hours each day. Mindfulness meditation is the practice of cultivating a moment-to-moment awareness of internal and external experience in an accepting and open manner. In 1990, Kabat-Zinn developed Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR): an intervention with a goal of reducing stress, pain, and suffering. MBSR is associated with lower perceived stress and decreased circulating cortisol concentrations. Existing evidence suggests that MBSR also yields EOCRC preventive effects specific to body weight reduction, increase of insulin sensitivity and reduction of inflammation. We propose to conduct an 8-week 4-arm randomized-controlled study of 1. TRE alone; 2. MBSR alone; 3. TRE + MBSR; and 4. Control among 40 young adults with obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) and moderate to severe perceived stress (Perceived Stress Score ≥14) to evaluate the feasibility of the interventions and preliminary effect on EOCRC-related markers. Data generated from this preliminary trial would serve in developing a fully powered efficacy trial testing TRE+MBSR for EOCRC prevention among young adults in the Chicagoland area.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 43
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Illinois
    • Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60612
      • Applied Health Sciences Building - University of Illinois at Chicago

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

1. 18-39 years old.
2. BMI 30-49.99 kg/m2.
3. Own and use a smartphone, computer, or tablet with access to the Internet.
4. Score ≥ 14 on the Perceived Stress Score (PSS) at screening.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Have a personal or family history of EOCRC.
2. Have taken antibiotics in the previous 2 months.
3. Have an inflammatory bowel disease or genetic predisposition to EOCRC or CRC (e.g., Lynch syndrome);.
4. Any cancer diagnosis or cancer treatment in the past 12 months.
5. Consume >50 grams ethanol daily (approximately 4-5, 12 ounces beers).
6. Use combustible tobacco.
7. Have history of bariatric surgery or bowel resection.
8. Have an active infection.
9. Have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, immunodeficiency/autoimmune disorder, or inflammatory bowel disease.
10. Use fiber or pre-/probiotic supplements >3 days per week.
11. Currently taking corticosteroids medication - inhaled, topical, or oral in the past 2 months (affects cortisol measures).
12. Are on a weight-loss diet or involved in a formal weight-loss program or are not weight stable for 3 months (+/- 4.5 kg) prior to the study.
13. Females who are pregnant/trying to become pregnant.
14. Have schizophrenia (medication can affect study outcomes).
15. Have an eating window of <10 hours/day or are currently following an intermittent fasting pattern.
16. Night shift workers (shift passes midnight).
17. Present a history of eating disorder.
18. Currently taking weight loss medication.
19. Illegal drug use in the past month (not marijuana).

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

4

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: TRE alone; Participants will be instructed to eat ad libitum from noon - 8:00pm daily and fast from 8:00pm - noon (16-h fast) for 8 weeks. During the 8-h eating window, there will be no restrictions on types or quantities of foods consumed. Participants will meet with a registered dietitian (RD) for 30 minutes at the start of the intervention to review instructions and goals and weekly thereafter. Adherence to the TRE intervention will be assessed as the number of adherent days per week.	Behavioral: TRE; daily ad libitum food intake, 8-h 12pm - 8pm, 8 wks active weight loss phase;
Experimental: MBSR alone; Participants in this study will be granted access to a remote mindfulness-based stress reductions (MBSR) protocol. Participants will have access to the MBSR course, consisting of 30 audio lessons, each ranging from 9 to 14 minutes long. During the study, participants will be asked to complete four lessons per week during weeks 1-7 and two lessons during week 8.	Behavioral: MBSR; Completed 30 sessions of a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) interventions for 8 weeks
Experimental: TRE + MBSR; This group will follow a combined protocol of the TRE and MBSR interventions as described above.	Behavioral: TRE; daily ad libitum food intake, 8-h 12pm - 8pm, 8 wks active weight loss phase; Behavioral: MBSR; Completed 30 sessions of a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) interventions for 8 weeks
No Intervention: Control; The control group will not receive any of the interventions previously described. To maintain a relationship with each participant in the control group, we will contact them once a week via text message to engage them to finalize the intervention period. At the end of the intervention period and after all data is collected, the RD will meet with the participant for 30 minutes and will educate them regarding the TRE protocol and provide access to the MBSR web-based program.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Feasibility of the study	the number of people interested in the study, those who pass phone and in-person screenings, and those who decline enrollment and their reasons. Once enrolled, we will closely monitor attendance, data completeness, session attendance, asynchronous intervention usage, and loss to follow-up/withdrawal. To monitor participant progress, we will update the CONSORT participant flow diagram every week. Participants who withdraw voluntarily will be asked for their reasons.	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
Acceptability of the study	Participants will complete the acceptability of intervention measure (scores range from 4-20 points with higher scores reflecting higher acceptability).	Week 4 of the intervention; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Hair cortisol	Objective stress markers will be measured via hair cortisol	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
Serum adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)	Objective stress markers will be measured via serum ACTH.	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
Serum cortisol	Objective stress markers will be measured via serum cortisol.	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
Serum norepinephrine	Objective stress markers will be measured via serum norepinephrine	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
Perceived Stress Scale.	The Perceived Stress Scale queries participants' perceptions of feeling stress during the last month. Responses were on a 5-point scale from "never" to "very often." Scores will be summed to indicate current stress levels, with higher scores suggesting greater perceived stress (≥ 14 indicates moderate to high perceived stress).	Screening; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
Body fat mass	Body fat mass will be measured via whole body dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) scan.	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
Body lean mass	Body lean mass will be measured via whole body dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) scan.	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
Body bone density	Body bone density will be measured via whole body dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) scan.	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
Triglycerides	Will be measured from plasma by a commercial lab.	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
High sensitivity C-reactive protein.	Will be measured from plasma by a commercial lab.	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR)	calculated from fasting glucose and insulin using a standard formula.	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks
Microbial Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) isolation: 16S on V4 region	performed on stool using Microbial DNA isolation	Baseline; through study completion, an average of 9 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Lisa Tussing-Humphreys
• Collaborators: University of Illinois at Chicago
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Manoela Lima Oliveira, MS, RD, LDN, PHD Candidate; Principal Investigator: Lisa M Tussing-Humphreys, PHD, RD, Associate Professor, Kinesiology and Nutrition

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Sinicrope FA. Increasing Incidence of Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer. N Engl J Med. 2022 Apr 21;386(16):1547-1558. doi: 10.1056/NEJMra2200869. No abstract available.
• Doubeni CA, Major JM, Laiyemo AO, Schootman M, Zauber AG, Hollenbeck AR, Sinha R, Allison J. Contribution of behavioral risk factors and obesity to socioeconomic differences in colorectal cancer incidence. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2012 Sep 19;104(18):1353-62. doi: 10.1093/jnci/djs346. Epub 2012 Sep 5.

Helpful Links

• If you are interested in this research, please answer some eligibility questions in the survey linked here.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): October 18, 2023
• Primary Completion (Actual): July 24, 2024
• Study Completion (Actual): July 24, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: August 23, 2023
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: September 1, 2023
• First Posted (Actual): September 5, 2023

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): August 21, 2024
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 20, 2024
• Last Verified: August 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: obesity; Time Restricted Feeding; microbiome; chronic stress
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavioral Symptoms; Digestive System Diseases; Pathologic Processes; Neoplasms; Neoplasms by Site; Disease Attributes; Gastrointestinal Neoplasms; Digestive System Neoplasms; Gastrointestinal Diseases; Colonic Diseases; Intestinal Diseases; Intestinal Neoplasms; Rectal Diseases; Infections; Communicable Diseases; Colorectal Neoplasms; Stress, Psychological
• Other Study ID Numbers: STUDY2023-0498

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