Community Dining, Walking, and Glucose in Older Adults

NCT07695675 | Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: HNU-2026-410
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 15
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This study will examine whether eating lunch and dinner at a subsidized community dining site affects postmeal walking and blood glucose patterns in older adults. Participants will be community-dwelling adults aged 60 to 79 years who are eligible for a local elderly meal subsidy and have prediabetes or elevated blood glucose risk. Each participant will complete two 6-day meal conditions in random order. In one condition, participants will eat lunch and dinner at home. In the other condition, participants will eat lunch and dinner at a subsidized community dining site. Participants will wear a continuous glucose monitor and an activity tracker so the study team can measure postmeal glucose levels, daily glucose patterns, and steps after meals. The study will compare community dining with home eating to determine whether community dining increases postmeal walking, improves postmeal glucose responses, and affects loneliness and meal experience.

Conditions

Prediabetes

Keywords

Older Adults; Postprandial Glucose; Continuous Glucose Monitoring; Physical Activity

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Meal-Level 0- to 90-Minute Postprandial Glucose Incremental Area Under the Curve

  Postprandial glucose incremental area under the curve (iAUC) will be calculated for each lunch and dinner from exported timestamped continuous glucose monitoring data using the trapezoidal rule. Baseline glucose will be defined as the mean continuous glucose monitoring value during the fixed 30-minute premeal baseline window. The postprandial calculation window will extend from meal completion through 90 minutes after meal completion.

  Study Days 2-13; fixed premeal baseline window through 90 minutes after completion of each lunch and dinner during the 12-day randomized meal-condition period.

Secondary Outcomes (9)

• Meal-Level 0- to 90-Minute Postmeal Step Count

  Study Days 2-13; from meal completion through 90 minutes after completion of each lunch and dinner during the 12-day randomized meal-condition period.

• Meal-Level Peak Postprandial Glucose

  Study Days 2-13; from meal completion through 90 minutes after completion of each lunch and dinner during the 12-day randomized meal-condition period.

• Meal-Level Time to Peak Postprandial Glucose

  Study Days 2-13; from meal completion through 90 minutes after completion of each lunch and dinner during the 12-day randomized meal-condition period.

• Daily 24-Hour Mean Glucose

  Study Days 2-13; over each 24-hour analytic day during the 12-day randomized meal-condition period.

• Daily Time Above Range

  Study Days 2-13; over each 24-hour analytic day during the 12-day randomized meal-condition period.

Study Arms (2)

Home Eating Followed by Community Dining

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants will complete 6 days of eating lunch and dinner at home, followed by 6 days of eating lunch and dinner at a subsidized community dining site.

Behavioral: Subsidized Community Dining; Behavioral: Home Eating

Community Dining Followed by Home Eating

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants will complete 6 days of eating lunch and dinner at a subsidized community dining site, followed by 6 days of eating lunch and dinner at home.

Behavioral: Subsidized Community Dining; Behavioral: Home Eating

Interventions

Subsidized Community Dining BEHAVIORAL

Participants will eat lunch and dinner at a subsidized community dining site for 6 days. No walking target or exercise prescription will be given. After each meal, participants will be free to walk, sit, rest, remain at the dining site, or return home according to their usual preference.

Community Dining Followed by Home Eating; Home Eating Followed by Community Dining

Home Eating BEHAVIORAL

Participants will eat lunch and dinner at home for 6 days using a standardized Chinese meal rotation designed to approximate the energy and macronutrient composition of the community dining meals.

Community Dining Followed by Home Eating; Home Eating Followed by Community Dining

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 60 Years - 79 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Community-dwelling adults aged 60 to 79 years
• Eligible for the local elderly meal subsidy
• Prediabetes or elevated glycemic risk, defined as HbA1c 5.7% to 6.4% or fasting plasma glucose 100 to 125 mg/dL
• Able to consume meals orally
• Able to walk independently without a walking aid
• Able to attend the community dining site safely
• Able and willing to wear a continuous glucose monitor and activity tracker
• Able and willing to follow the home-meal plan and study procedures
• Able to provide written informed consent

You may not qualify if:

• HbA1c ≥6.5% or fasting plasma glucose ≥126 mg/dL
• Diagnosed diabetes
• Use of insulin or glucose-lowering medication
• Severe cognitive impairment
• Acute illness or recent hospitalization
• Severe gastrointestinal disease affecting usual food intake or gastric emptying
• Severe renal, hepatic, cardiovascular, or neurologic disease that would make participation unsafe
• Skin conditions preventing continuous glucose monitor use
• Food allergy or dietary restrictions incompatible with the standardized meal plan

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Yang Zhang: lead

Study Sites (1)

Community Elderly Meal-Assistance Site

Changsha, Hunan, 410017, China

RECRUITING

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Prediabetic State; Motor Activity

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Diabetes Mellitus; Glucose Metabolism Disorders; Metabolic Diseases; Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases; Endocrine System Diseases; Behavior

Study Officials

• Yang Zhang, PhD

  STUDY CHAIR

Central Study Contacts

Meng-Qi Zhen, MA

CONTACT

8618867413605; 53221639@qq.com

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Masking Details: This is an open-label study because participants and study staff cannot be masked to whether meals are consumed at home or at the community dining site. Glucose and activity data will be processed using coded condition labels when feasible.
• Purpose: HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
• Intervention Model: CROSSOVER
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Independent researcher

Model Details: Participants will complete both meal conditions in a randomized two-sequence, two-period crossover design. One sequence will complete 6 days of home eating followed by 6 days of subsidized community dining. The other sequence will complete 6 days of subsidized community dining followed by 6 days of home eating.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 2, 2026
• First Posted: July 10, 2026
• Study Start: August 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2026
• Last Updated: July 20, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-07

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

CN (1)