Nutritional Counseling Based on Self-compassion vs. Diet Approach on Body Dissatisfaction and Disordered Eating

NCT06084260 | Completed DMC

• 1 other identifier: 2022-0634
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 194
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Current evidence has shown that the accepted standard of beauty, where women must be skinny, has increased body dissatisfaction and disordered eating. In order to deal with body dissatisfaction, the practice of restrictive diets - called the diet approach - becomes very often, although it can reinforce disordered eating and has questionable effects on body dissatisfaction. Self-compassion is an approach that proposes a kind and gentle look at body image issues and eating problems, which can be an alternative tool to deal with them. So, this study aims to compare a nutritional approach based on self-compassion techniques x a diet approach on dissatisfaction with body image, food restriction, and disordered eating in women who feel dissatisfied with their bodies.

Conditions

Body Dissatisfaction; Disordered Eating

Keywords

body image; eating behaviour; diet; self-compassion

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Body dissatisfaction

  Dissatisfaction with body image will be assessed using the Body Shape Questionnaire.(BSQ) to identify concerns about body shape and self-deprecation related to physical shape.It has 34 questions related to body image, labeled from 1 to 6, with 1-never, 2-rarely, 3-Sometimes, 4-Frequently, 5-Very often, and 6-Always. The result is obtained by adding all the scores. The minimum score obtained is 34 points, and the maximum is 204. A rating below 80 points considers that the individual has no dissatisfaction; between 80 and 110, there is mild dissatisfaction; between 111 and 140, moderate dissatisfaction; and more than 140, severe dissatisfaction.

  Baseline and after 8 weeks.

• Disordered eating

  Disordered eating will be measured using The three-factor eating questionnaire - R21 (TFEQ-R21), where three dimensions of eating behavior are evaluated: cognitive restriction, uncontrolled eating, and emotional eating. The higher the score obtained, the more dysfunctional the behavior. A rating below 80 points considers that the individual has no dissatisfaction; between 80 and 110, there is mild dissatisfaction; between 111 and 140, moderate; and more than 140, severe dissatisfaction.

  Baseline and after 8 weeks.

Secondary Outcomes (1)

• Self-compassion

  Baseline and after 8 weeks.

Study Arms (2)

Self-compassion group

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Group meetings using a self-compassion approach related to body dissatisfaction and eating issues.

Behavioral: Self-compassion group

Diet group

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Group meetings using a restricted diet approach related to body dissatisfaction and eating issues.

Dietary Supplement: Diet group

Interventions

Diet group DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT

Individual diet, with caloric restriction, associated with weekly meetings about eating habits modifications.

Diet group

Self-compassion group BEHAVIORAL

Weekly meetings using self-compassion techniques to improve body dissatisfaction and eating behavior.

Self-compassion group

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 25 Years - 59 Years
• Sex: female
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• age between 25 and 59 years;
• access to cell phone and communication apps.

You may not qualify if:

• diagnosis of depression, mood disorders (anxiety, bipolar, borderline), eating disorders, or a history of suicidal ideation;
• diagnosis of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, kidney disease, cardiovascular or neurological diseases.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre: lead

Study Sites (1)

Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre

Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, 90035-903, Brazil

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Ramos AB, da Silva VS, Cardoso DV, de Souza CG. Nutritional approach based in self-compassion versus energy-restricted diet approach in body dissatisfaction and disordered eating in adult women: a protocol for randomized clinical trial. PLoS One. 2025 Jun 2;20(5):e0324030. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0324030. eCollection 2025.

  PMID: 40455797 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Feeding Behavior

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavior, Animal; Behavior

Study Officials

• Carolina G de Souza, PhD

  Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: October 10, 2023
• First Posted: October 16, 2023
• Study Start: August 16, 2023
• Primary Completion: December 20, 2025
• Study Completion: December 20, 2025
• Last Updated: March 6, 2026

Record last verified: 2024-10

Locations

BR (1)