Edible Insects: Good for the Gut and the Globe

NCT06397924 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 2973
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 18
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Edible insects have been eaten by people throughout human history and are consumed today across the globe. Insects are also currently being incorporated into a number of food products in the United States, Canada, and Europe due to their unique nutritional and sustainability attributes. Insects have been touted as an environmental alternative to conventional meat products, but they are unique in containing dietary fiber. The investigators have recently demonstrated in a population of healthy individuals that two weeks of consuming 25 g/day cricket powder may be associated with prebiotic effects by stimulating the growth of Bifidobacterium in the gut. In addition, participants had reduced inflammatory markers in the blood after the cricket intervention. Crickets and other edible insects contain a unique form of fiber called chitin. They would like to explore whether chitin may be responsible for these previously observed effects and particularly if chitin consumption can mitigate symptoms and inflammation associated with the gastrointestinal disorder Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). This project aims to examine the impact of consuming 4 grams of cricket-derived chitin daily for 30 days on the gut microbiota, intestinal and systemic markers of inflammation, and symptom severity and quality of life in individuals with IBS.

Conditions

Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Keywords

IBS; Cricket; Chitin; gut microbiome; gut health

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Examine the impact that consuming 4 grams of cricket-derived chitin daily for 30 days has on the gut microbiota, intestinal and systemic markers of inflammation, and symptom severity and quality of life in individuals with IBS.

  The time commitment for the study is approximately two and a half months, during which participants will spend ~1 hour (15-20 min/visit) at clinic appointments, eat small chocolate bars containing either the cricket chitin or a maltodextrin placebo daily

Study Arms (2)

Chitin Fiber

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Chitin Fiber

Dietary Supplement: Chitin Fiber

Placebo

PLACEBO COMPARATOR

Maltodextrin

Dietary Supplement: Placebo

Interventions

Chitin Fiber DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT

Dietary fiber isolated from an edible insect (chitin)

Chitin Fiber

Placebo DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT

Maltodextrin

Placebo

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Participants must be 18 years of age or older with a medical diagnosis of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and/or recurrent abdominal pain greater than 1 time per week persistent for at least 3 months while also meeting 2 of the 3 criteria for IBS diagnosis according to the Rome IV assessment. Both adult males and females of any race or ethnicity will be included in this study. (Rome IV Diagnostic Criteria for IBS link: www.mdcalcl.com/rome-iv-diagnostic-criteria-irritable-bowel-syndrome-ibs)

You may not qualify if:

• pregnant and lactating women,
• individuals taking antibiotics or who have recently taken antibiotics (within 60 days of the study start date),
• individuals with any self-reported shellfish, milk, or soy allergies
• individuals with a current diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease, gastrointestinal cancers, other cancers, liver or kidney disease,
• individuals who feel that they will not be able to adhere to study requirements

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Colorado State University: lead
• University of Wisconsin, Madison: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Colorado State University

Fort Collins, Colorado, 80523-1571, United States

Location

Related Publications (5)

• Stull VJ, Finer E, Bergmans RS, Febvre HP, Longhurst C, Manter DK, Patz JA, Weir TL. Impact of Edible Cricket Consumption on Gut Microbiota in Healthy Adults, a Double-blind, Randomized Crossover Trial. Sci Rep. 2018 Jul 17;8(1):10762. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-29032-2.

  PMID: 30018370 BACKGROUND

• FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP & WHO. The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2018. Building Climate Resilience for Food Security and Nutrition. (2018).

  BACKGROUND

• Korpe PS, Petri WA Jr. Environmental enteropathy: critical implications of a poorly understood condition. Trends Mol Med. 2012 Jun;18(6):328-36. doi: 10.1016/j.molmed.2012.04.007. Epub 2012 May 25.

  PMID: 22633998 BACKGROUND

• Prendergast A, Kelly P. Enteropathies in the developing world: neglected effects on global health. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2012 May;86(5):756-63. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.2012.11-0743.

  PMID: 22556071 BACKGROUND

• Vita AA, Teo S, Murphy C, Khandaker AM, Hart RA, Mathews P, Wilson JW, Chaparro J, Aquilino T, Dinsmore I, Wei Y, Stull VJ, Weir TL. Safety, tolerability, and preliminary effects of cricket chitin for adults with IBS: a double-blind randomized crossover pilot trial. Food Funct. 2025 Sep 15;16(18):7434-7454. doi: 10.1039/d5fo01540e.

  PMID: 40891151 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Colonic Diseases, Functional; Colonic Diseases; Intestinal Diseases; Gastrointestinal Diseases; Digestive System Diseases

Study Officials

• Tiffany Weir, MSc,PhD

  Colorado State University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: QUADRUPLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT, CARE PROVIDER, INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: CROSSOVER
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Professor

Model Details: One group will be given the small chocolate patties containing the insect chitin for 30 days, and the other group will be given the patties containing the placebo. The study was double-blinded.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 30, 2024
• First Posted: May 3, 2024
• Study Start: July 6, 2023
• Primary Completion: May 31, 2024
• Study Completion: August 31, 2024
• Last Updated: July 24, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-07

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Shared Documents: STUDY PROTOCOL, SAP, ICF

Locations

US (1)