Piloting a Web-based Personalised Nutrition App (eNutri) with UK University Students

NCT05544461 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 41/2022
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 50
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 2

Brief Summary

University students account for 50% of the UK young adult population and dietary assessment of this population is crucial in understanding the dietary changes that may occur as they transition to university and adulthood. At this time, many students will leave home for the first time and become responsible for their dietary intake through food shopping and meal preparation. The limited body of evidence in this population group suggests that starting university may be associated with weight gain and the adoption of unhealthful dietary patterns however the extent of these changes may vary based on gender, cooking ability and grocery budget, to name a few. Furthermore, dietary guidance is not typically given to university students although evidence suggests that personalised nutrition advice based on an individual's habitual dietary intake could help to provide the education and support needed for individuals to adopt a healthier diet. This student pilot study will test whether providing university students with eNutri personalised nutrition advice (intervention group) has a differential impact on diet quality in UK university students compared with those who do not receive any advice (control group) after a 4-week intervention period. 50 university students will use eNutri to record their dietary intake before being randomly allocated to the control or intervention group. After 4 weeks, both groups will repeat the eNutri food and drink questionnaire. Those in the intervention group will also be invited to complete a follow-up questionnaire after a further 8 weeks.

Conditions

Diet Habit; Diet, Healthy; Diet Modification

Keywords

Food frequency questionnaire; Nutrition; Dietary intake; Diet quality; Personalised nutrition

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Diet quality score (DQS)

  An 11-item eNutri DQS will be automatically calculated by eNutri after completing the FFQ. The eNutri DQS was developed for Northern European adults and quantifies diet quality (i.e. the healthiness of a diet). It is composed of 11 food and nutrient components that are summed to give an overall score, where higher scores reflect the healthiest diets based on adherence to dietary guidelines

  Baseline

• Diet quality score (DQS)

  An 11-item eNutri DQS will be automatically calculated by eNutri after completing the FFQ. The eNutri DQS was developed for Northern European adults and quantifies diet quality (i.e. the healthiness of a diet). It is composed of 11 food and nutrient components that are summed to give an overall score, where higher scores reflect the healthiest diets based on adherence to dietary guidelines

  Week 4

Secondary Outcomes (20)

• Weight

  Pre-baseline

• Weight

  Baseline

• Weight

  Week 4

• Height

  Pre-baseline

• Height

  Baseline

Study Arms (2)

Intervention group

EXPERIMENTAL

Those in the intervention group will receive eNutri PN advice after completing the eNutri FFQ at baseline only. At weeks 1 and 3 of the study, participants will also receive coaching emails which includes reminders of their PN advice, questions asking them to reflect on their goal progress (if any), and tips and recipes to help them follow the PN advice.

Behavioral: eNutri personalised nutrition advice

Control group

NO INTERVENTION

Those in the control group will not receive any PN advice from eNutri and hence, will not receive any coaching emails. They will only record their diet using the eNutri FFQ.

Interventions

eNutri personalised nutrition advice BEHAVIORAL

eNutri is a web-based app that administers an FFQ and delivers PN advice to the user. The advice is generated from their responses in the FFQ and considers their sex and dietary restrictions (such as whether they eat meat) so the reports are unique to each participant. This report (referred to as a 'healthy eating report') will also include an interactive component, allowing the participant to reflect on the advice received and set personal healthy eating goals to motivate behaviour change. The messages presented in the report have been developed by the eNutri Team, including a registered dietitian and registered nutritionist and are in line with UK dietary guidelines (primarily the EatWell Guide).

Intervention group

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Solely responsible for their own meal preparation and/or food purchases (includes catered and non-catered students)
• Studying at the University of Reading or University of Hertfordshire, UK
• Student in any year of study
• years or older
• Able to read and understand written English without difficulties
• Able to access eNutri using a suitable device (laptop, computer, tablet, or smartphone) with access to the internet
• Have an active email address
• Willing to complete online questionnaires and interact with eNutri on multiple occasions

You may not qualify if:

• Students who are not studying full time in-person at university in the academic year 2022-2023 (e.g., part-time students, apprenticeship students or those on a work placement)
• Students whose food choices are in part influenced/determined by others (e.g., students who live with parents, partner, or children during term time, including those who return home every weekend)
• Those reliant on meals where there is limited choice/alternative options (e.g., Recipe boxes such as Gousto, Hello Fresh and Mindful Chef, or those who eat frozen meals brought from home); catered students can take part.
• Pregnant, lactating or planning a pregnancy within the next 4 months
• Food allergies to dairy, nuts/seeds and/or fish/shellfish
• Medical conditions/treatments that have a considerable impact on an individual's diet/appetite on a day-to-day basis (e.g., severe gastrointestinal disorders)
• Have a current or previously diagnosed eating disorder
• Usually eat on fewer than 2 occasions per day
• Receiving dietary advice from a dietitian, nutritionist or medical professional or plan to do so within the next 4 months
• Following a restrictive diet, such as a vegan diet, sport's nutrition diet, meal replacement shake/juice diet (e.g., SlimFast), intermittent fasting diet (e.g,. 5:2), very low carbohydrate diet (e.g., keto, Atkins) or any "fad"/"celebrity" diet, or plan to do so within the next 4 months; vegetarians can take part.
• Following a weight-loss programme, such as Weight Watchers, Noom, LighterLife and Slimming World, or plan to do so within the next 3 months; those aiming to lose weight through general healthy eating and "cutting down" without following specialised weight loss advice can take part.
• Taking weight-loss medication (prescribed or over the counter) or plan to do so within the next 3 months.
• Visual and/or physical impairments that prevent an individual from interacting with visual elements on the screen on their device/using their device, such as clicking buttons/mouse or using the touch pad or viewing images.
• Taking part in another nutrition-related research study.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Reading: lead

Study Sites (2)

University of Reading

Reading, Berkshire, RG6 6DZ, United Kingdom

Location

University of Hertfordshire

Hatfield, Hertfordshire, AL10 9EU, United Kingdom

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Zenun Franco R, Fallaize R, Weech M, Hwang F, Lovegrove JA. Effectiveness of Web-Based Personalized Nutrition Advice for Adults Using the eNutri Web App: Evidence From the EatWellUK Randomized Controlled Trial. J Med Internet Res. 2022 Apr 25;24(4):e29088. doi: 10.2196/29088.

  PMID: 35468093 BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Feeding Behavior

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavior, Animal; Behavior

Study Officials

• Julie Lovegrove, Professor

  Hugh Sinclair Unit of Human Nutrition, University of Reading

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Masking Details: Due to the nature of the study, the participants and researchers will be unblinded. Although the participants will not be explicitly told which group they are in, they will become aware of their group after completing the eNutri FFQ at baseline. Those randomised to the intervention group will receive their eNutri PN advice and those randomised to the control group will not receive any PN advice from eNutri and therefore know which group they have been allocated to.
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Professor

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: September 13, 2022
• First Posted: September 16, 2022
• Study Start: September 20, 2022
• Primary Completion: April 11, 2023
• Study Completion: June 6, 2023
• Last Updated: October 29, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-10

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Time Frame: No later than the time of first publication and available indefinitely thereafter.
• Access Criteria: We plan for open access.

Locations

GB (2)