Smart Tech-Based Nutrition and Exercise for Sarcopenia Risk. (S-TEN)

December 4, 2025 updated by: HSIAO MEI LAN

The Effectiveness of Smart Technology Interventions Combining Nutrition and Exercise for Older Adults at Risk of Sarcopenia

Sarcopenia, characterized by muscle loss and weakness, is a major health issue among older adults and impacts mobility and quality of life. This study addresses the current lack of long-term, technology-assisted support for managing this condition at home. This randomized controlled trial (RCT) will evaluate a 12-week smart-technology-based program for 60 older adults at risk of sarcopenia.

Intervention:

Participants in the intervention group will receive a technology-assisted program delivered through a Line Bot system. The platform provides personalized exercise training videos, nutrition education, daily reminders, and a point-based logging system to support adherence and monitor engagement. The control group will receive standard clinic-based care.

Purpose:

The study aims to examine whether the smart technology intervention can improve muscle mass, physical performance, quality of life, and self-management ability among older adults at risk of sarcopenia.

Expected Benefit:

The digital intervention is anticipated to offer a more effective, accessible, and sustainable approach compared with standard care, providing practical support for preventing muscle decline in community-dwelling older adults

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This randomized controlled trial (RCT) is designed as a 12-week intervention to evaluate the efficacy of a smart technology-assisted nutrition and exercise program for community-dwelling older adults (aged ≥ 65 years) at risk of sarcopenia. Participants (N = 60) will be randomly assigned to either the intervention group (n = 30) or the control group (n = 30). Data will be collected at baseline, week 8 (mid-intervention), and week 12 (post-intervention).

Intervention Group:

Participants will receive the 12-week program delivered through a dedicated Line Bot platform. Core components include:

Exercise Training: Three progressive exercise videos (resistance, aerobic, and balance training) designed to enhance muscle function.

Nutrition Education: One video focusing on adequate protein intake and dietary habits essential for muscle maintenance.

Smart Technology Features: The Line Bot functions as a personalized case management tool, offering daily reminders for exercise and protein intake, an interactive calculator for estimating daily protein consumption, and a digital logging system with motivational rewards to support adherence and self-management behaviors.

Control Group:

Participants will receive standard outpatient care and general health education pamphlets. They will not receive access to the Line Bot system, exercise videos, or personalized support.

Primary outcome data will be collected at week 12. Statistical analyses will include descriptive statistics and inferential methods, such as repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA), to examine the effectiveness of the intervention.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

60

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

Study Locations

  • Taiwan
      • Hualien City, Taiwan, 970473
        • Recruiting
        • BuddhistTCGH
        • 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

  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria

Score ≥ 11 on the SARC-CalF questionnaire, indicating risk of sarcopenia.

No evident functional impairment in the limbs and able to complete handgrip strength, walking speed, and muscle mass assessments.

Possesses basic reading, writing, and calculation abilities sufficient to understand study-related materials and complete informed consent and daily logs.

Owns a smartphone and has used it for at least one year, with basic operational ability (e.g., sending and receiving LINE messages, scanning QR codes).

Exclusion Criteria

Self-reported functional impairment in any limb.

Requires assistance from a wheelchair, walker, or cane for ambulation.

Has an implanted cardiac pacemaker.

Currently participating in, or planning to participate in, other physical training courses or nutrition programs during the study period.

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: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: Standard Outpatient Care
Participants in the control group (n=30) will receive standard outpatient care for sarcopenia risk management, which includes general health education pamphlets and regular follow-ups at the clinic. They will not receive any specialized exercise training, nutrition videos, or access to the Line Bot platform during the 12-week intervention period.
Experimental: Smart Technology-Assisted Exercise and Nutrition Program
Participants in the intervention group (n=30) will receive a 12-week smart technology-assisted combined exercise and nutrition program. The intervention is delivered via a dedicated Line Bot platform, which provides: 1) Three progressive exercise training videos (resistance, aerobic, and balance) , **with the goal of participants completing five exercise sessions per week using the provided materials**. 2) Nutrition education videos focusing on protein intake. 3) Interactive features including daily reminders, protein intake calculation tools, and a digital diary with motivational elements to promote adherence and self-management.
Behavioral: The 12-week exercise component is delivered via the dedicated Line Bot platform. It includes three progressive exercise training videos (resistance, balance) . Participants are in
The 12-week progressive exercise program (resistance, aerobic, and balance training) is uniquely delivered and monitored via a dedicated **Line Bot platform**. This differentiates it from traditional in-person or non-interactive video programs. The platform includes interactive features like daily reminders and a digital diary to enhance adherence and support participant self-management, aiming for five exercise sessions per week.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Appendicular Skeletal Muscle Mass (ASM) by Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA)
Time Frame: Baseline (Week 0), Week 8, and Final Assessment at Week 12.
The change in skeletal muscle mass will be assessed using Appendicular Skeletal Muscle Mass (ASM), derived from bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). The primary endpoint is the between-group difference in the absolute change in ASM (in kilograms) from baseline to the end of the 12-week intervention (Week 12)
Baseline (Week 0), Week 8, and Final Assessment at Week 12.

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

HSIAO MEI LAN

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)

December 3, 2025

Primary Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2028

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2028

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

November 13, 2025

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 13, 2025

First Posted (Estimated)

November 17, 2025

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

December 11, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

December 4, 2025

Last Verified

December 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • IRB114-215-B (Other Identifier: Research Ethics Committee Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital, Buddhist Tzu Chi Medical Foundation)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

IPD will not be shared due to the lack of dedicated infrastructure and resources for data hosting, curation, and the formal management of external data access requests in this small, investigator-initiated study.

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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