Effects of Acute Sugar Intake on Choroidal Thickness

This study aims to bridge that gap by investigating how acute sugar intake influences choroidal thickness.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Choroid
• Intervention / Treatment: Dietary supplement: Oral glucose

Detailed Description

This investigation will be a prospective, repeated-measures study. All subjects will arrive fasted and will be asked not to consume any outside food or beverages during the three-hour study period, and will be asked to abstain from caffeine intake for 12 hours before participation. A baseline OCT scan of the macula of the right eye will be performed using the Heidelberg Spectralis OCT system. Participants will then consume 30 grams of sugar in the form of glucose tablets. Macular OCT scans of the right eye will be repeated every 30 minutes for 3 hours following sugar consumption.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 47
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Morgan Ollinger, OD, MS; Phone Number: 9017223377; Email: mollinger@sco.edu

Study Locations

• United States
  • Tennessee
    • Memphis, Tennessee, United States, 38111
      • Recruiting
      • Southern College of Optometry
      • Contact: Morgan Ollinger, OD, MS; Phone Number: 9017223377; Email: mollinger@sco.edu

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

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

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• In order to be eligible for enrolment, each subject must have less than 6 diopters of spherical equivalent refractive error, and have no existing diagnosis of diabetes or pre-diabetes.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Any potential subject with known retinal pathology will be excluded. Any potential subject with any other known systemic or ocular conditions that may impact their ability to participate in the study or provide generalizable data will also be excluded.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Oral glucose; Subjects receive 30g of oral glucose	Dietary supplement: Oral glucose; Participants will consume 30 grams of sugar in the form of glucose tablets.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in choroidal thickness	The primary outcome for this investigation will be changes in choroidal thickness from baseline across timepoints.	within 3 hours of baseline

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Southern College of Optometry

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Estimated): January 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): May 1, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): May 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: January 21, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 21, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): January 29, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): January 29, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 21, 2026
• Last Verified: January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Carbohydrates; Sugars; Hexoses; Monosaccharides; Glucose
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2025-12-01PS

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No