Effects of Watermelon or Low-fat Cookie Consumption on Wellness

August 25, 2026 updated by: San Diego State University
The objective of the proposed research is to determine the effects of fresh watermelon consumption on physiological indicators of wellness regarding sexual, skin and gut health in adults.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

80

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 Contact

  • Name: Mee Young Hong, PhD
  • Phone Number: 619-594-2392
  • Email: mhong2@sdsu.edu

Study Locations

  • United States
    • California
      • San Diego, California, United States, 92182
        • Recruiting
        • School of Exercise and Nutritional Sciences
        • Contact:

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

  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Generally healthy subjects
  • BMI 20-40 kg/m2

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Smoker
  • Pregnant woman
  • Required antibiotics use
  • Required dietary supplement use
  • Required medication of metabolic disorders, mental health and sexual health
  • Allergy to watermelon or wheat

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
Active Comparator: Low-fat cookies
Subjects consume 100 kcal of low-fat cookies daily for 4 weeks.
Other: Low-fat cookies
To determine the effects of low-fat cookie consumption on physiological indicators of wellness regarding sexual, skin, and gut health
Experimental: Watermelon
Subjects consume 100 kcal of watermelon daily for 4 weeks.
Other: Watermelon
To determine the effects of watermelon consumption on physiological indicators of wellness regarding sexual, skin, and gut health

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change of sexual health questionnaire scores
Time Frame: Baseline and week 4
Change of sexual health questionnaire scores will be determined to examine effects of watermelon consumption vs low-fat cookies.
Baseline and week 4
Change of skin hydration scores
Time Frame: Baseline, 1 min post application and week 4 consumption
Change of skin hydration scores will be determined to examine effects of watermelon consumption vs low-fat cookies.
Baseline, 1 min post application and week 4 consumption
Change of microbiome diversity
Time Frame: Baseline and week 4
Change of microbiome diversity will be determined to examine effects of watermelon consumption vs low-fat cookies.
Baseline and week 4

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change of depression questionnaire scores
Time Frame: Baseline and week 4
Change of depression questionnaire scores will be determined to examine effects of watermelon consumption vs low-fat cookies.
Baseline and week 4
Changes of trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) levels
Time Frame: Baseline and week 4
Changes in trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) levels will be determined to examine the effects of watermelon consumption vs low-fat cookies.
Baseline and week 4
Changes of cholesterol levels
Time Frame: Baseline and week 4
Changes in cholesterol levels will be determined to examine the effects of watermelon consumption vs low-fat cookies.
Baseline and week 4

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

San Diego State University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Mee Young Hong, PhD, San Diego State University

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)

March 1, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

December 1, 2028

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 1, 2028

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

March 14, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 14, 2024

First Posted (Actual)

March 21, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

August 28, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 25, 2026

Last Verified

August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • HS-2023-0281

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

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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