The Effect of a Web-Based Education Program on Eating Habits, Metabolic Control, and Self-Management in Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus and Their Mothers With Irregular Eating Behavior

January 14, 2026 updated by: Gökhan GÖNÜL, TC Erciyes University

The study was planned as a randomized controlled experimental study to investigate the effects of a web-based educational program given to adolescents with diabetes mellitus and their mothers on eating habits, metabolic control, and self-management.

The prevalence of Type 1 diabetes is increasing worldwide and is reported to be the third most common chronic disease in childhood (Lowes et al., 2015). It is generally accepted that effective management of diabetes requires education for both the patient and the family regarding management components such as blood glucose monitoring, insulin replacement, diet, exercise, and problem-solving strategies (Couch et al., 2008). Since diabetes management requires lifestyle changes, many health professionals recommend providing education to the whole family (Shiel et al., 2023).

Adolescence is a period of developing autonomy and often means reduced parental involvement; however, an adolescent with Type 1 diabetes is also coping with a serious, life-threatening disease (Polfuss et al., 2015). Increased self-care responsibilities during adolescence create additional complex challenges for the management and treatment of diabetes. Websites providing information about diabetes to adolescents offer problem-solving opportunities and an interactive environment for sharing experiences.

The study population will consist of adolescents and their mothers followed at the Pediatric Endocrinology Outpatient Clinic of Erciyes University Mustafa Eraslan and Fevzi Mercan Children's Hospital. In the first phase of the study, the Descriptive Characteristics and Eating Disorder Behavior Scale (DESPR) will be administered to adolescents and their mothers to identify adolescents with eating disorder behaviors. The sample was determined as 272 adolescents using the G Power program with a margin of error of d=0.2, a margin of error of 0.05, and a 95% confidence interval. For the second phase of the study, adolescents with a DESPR score of 20 or higher will be divided into three groups: Intervention I (Adolescents Only), Intervention II (Adolescents and Mothers), and Control Group (Clinical Practice Routine). The sample size was calculated using the G Power program with a margin of error of d=0.4, a margin of error of 0.05, and an 85% confidence interval, resulting in a total of 72 individuals, with 24 individuals in each group. The groups into which individuals will be placed will be determined using the block randomization method applied on the www.randomizer.org website.

Training Implementation:

Training will be given to two groups: Web-Based Intervention Group I (Adolescents) and Intervention Group II (Adolescents and Mothers). An initial introductory meeting will be held, and training on how to use the web program will be given in a single 40-minute session. Website Preparation: The website will be structured using WordPress, a web-based software development tool that supports most web browsers. Website content will be evaluated using the DISCERN Measurement Tool by a faculty member from the Department of Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases, three faculty members from the Faculty of Nursing, three Diabetes Education Nurses, and a faculty member from the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics. The researcher will introduce the website to adolescents by explaining its name and how to use it. Individuals in the intervention group will also be given usernames and passwords to access the site. New topics, blog posts, and quizzes related to the topic will be added to the site each week, and a reminder message will be sent to individuals in the intervention group when a new topic is added. The website will include an interface where members can log in to their own pages, enter blood glucose measurements, access training modules, exchange messages, and perform administrative tasks (user lists, monitoring all measurements, and tracking training results). The "Contact" page on the website will allow users to send messages to site administrators. Six menus are planned for the website: "Home", "Our Team", "Blog", "Training", "Surveys", and "Contact". Blog Menu: This will be a space where members can chat with each other and share their experiences. The aim is to encourage members to comment on topics determined by the site administrator and share their experiences. After using the website, everyone will be given the opportunity to comment on the materials provided. Educational materials cover topics such as Type 1 diabetes, nutrition for young people with diabetes, carbohydrate counting, acute complications such as hypoglycemia, long-term complications, physical exercise in diabetes, diabetes treatment, insulin, and continuous glucose monitoring.

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

24

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

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

  • Child
  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • T1DM adolescents and their mothers who have internet access at home,
  • have a DEPS-R score of 20 or higher,
  • are between the ages of 12 and 18,
  • have been diagnosed with T1DM at least one year ago,
  • have no other chronic illness other than T1DM, and
  • agree to participate in the study

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Diabetes diagnosis lasted less than one year.
  • The adolescent has a chronic condition other than T1DM.
  • The adolescent and their mother have cognitive or perceptual disabilities in understanding the website's content.
  • Participants who did not complete the training program.

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: Health Services Research
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: Control group
Active Comparator: Intervention Group I (Adolescents)
Behavioral: Eating habits, Diabetes self-management, Metabolic control
This study addresses these gaps and offers a unique approach. Initially, unlike existing studies, the goal is to develop a holistic educational model encompassing both adolescents and their mothers. Furthermore, the program will be structured with content specific to disordered eating behaviors, which frequently coexist with Type 1 diabetes. In this respect, the project is one of the few initiatives that address the relationship between eating disorders and metabolic control in a holistic manner. Furthermore, the study is not limited to knowledge or self-management, but conducts a multidimensional analysis by jointly evaluating eating habits, metabolic parameters, and psychosocial indicators. The web-based content will be designed to suit the Turkish cultural context and will also allow for the assessment of the impact of variables such as digital inequality and parental support.
Active Comparator: Intervention Group II (Adolescents and Their Mothers)
Behavioral: Eating habits, Diabetes self-management, Metabolic control
This study addresses these gaps and offers a unique approach. Initially, unlike existing studies, the goal is to develop a holistic educational model encompassing both adolescents and their mothers. Furthermore, the program will be structured with content specific to disordered eating behaviors, which frequently coexist with Type 1 diabetes. In this respect, the project is one of the few initiatives that address the relationship between eating disorders and metabolic control in a holistic manner. Furthermore, the study is not limited to knowledge or self-management, but conducts a multidimensional analysis by jointly evaluating eating habits, metabolic parameters, and psychosocial indicators. The web-based content will be designed to suit the Turkish cultural context and will also allow for the assessment of the impact of variables such as digital inequality and parental support.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Adolescents with Type 1 DM who participated in the web-based training program experienced a decrease in their disordered eating behavior symptom scores.
Time Frame: AFTER 6 MONTHS
The Diabetes Eating Disorders Questionnaire and the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire will be used to assess disordered eating behavior. Measurements are planned to be taken at baseline (T0), 1 month (T1), 3 months (T2), and 6 months (T3) time points before the program. A change of at least 20% in the relevant scale scores between T0 and T3, or a statistically significant change with p<0.05, is defined as the success criterion.
AFTER 6 MONTHS

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Decrease in HbA1c values of adolescents with Type 1 DM who participated in the web-based education program.
Time Frame: AFTER 6 MONTHS
HbA1c laboratory results will be evaluated at time points T0 (baseline), T2 (3 months), and T3 (6 months). A change of at least 0.5 points in mean HbA1c compared to baseline or a significant change (p<0.05) in the percentage of achieving a clinically significant target (e.g., ≤7.5% as defined by the study) was defined as the success criterion.
AFTER 6 MONTHS
Decrease in diabetes self-management skills scores (T1DDYÖS) of adolescents with Type 1 DM who participated in the web-based education program.
Time Frame: AFTER 6 MONTHS
The T1DDYÖÖ scale will be evaluated at time points T0, T1, and T3 (6 months). A change of at least 15% in scale scores from T0 to T3, or a statistically significant change with p<0.05, is defined as the success criterion.
AFTER 6 MONTHS

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

TC Erciyes University

Collaborators

Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Helpful Links

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 (Estimated)

January 16, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

June 16, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 16, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

January 6, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 14, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

January 21, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

January 21, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 14, 2026

Last Verified

September 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • ERU-SBF-GG-01

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

IPD Plan Description

I don't have detailed information on this subject. Therefore, I'm undecided at the moment.

Study Data/Documents

  1. Individual Participant Data Set
    Information identifier: The Diabetes Eating Problems
    Information comments: Statistically significant change with p<0.05 was determined as the success criterion.p<0.05 was determined as the success cr

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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