NCT03783962

Examining Cooking as a Health Behavior

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 56 (actual)
• Sponsor: University of Vermont · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

The proposed pilot study will examine cooking as an intervention target for weight control in overweight adults. The study will also examine whether interventions designed to promote cooking at home can increase participants' sense of food agency, and overcome common barriers to cooking at home such as time scarcity and budget constrictions. The study will utilize a cooking pedagogy designed to not just teach participants the basics of cooking different foods, but how to be efficient, mindful cooks. If cooking class participation positively impacts diet and health outcomes, it will bolster the case for promoting cooking at home as a health behavior for multiple populations.

Detailed description

A two arm randomized control trial will examine whether the addition of an active cooking lesson versus a passive observed lesson to a behavioral weight loss intervention results in significantly greater weight loss. Additionally, the study will examine whether interventions designed to promote cooking at home can increase participants' sense of food agency, and overcome common barriers to cooking at home such as time scarcity and budget constrictions. Overweight and obese but otherwise healthy participants (n=64) will be recruited. Recruitment and study initiation will occur in two waves. Wave 1 aims to recruit 32 individuals who will then be randomized to 1) a 24 week, 24 session group behavioral weight loss intervention with 12 bi-weekly cooking lessons; or, 2) the same 24 week, 24 session group behavioral weight loss intervention with 12 bi-weekly cooking demonstrations. Both groups get the same intervention and the same counselor delivered intervention elements; the presence of active cooking lessons vs. passive observed cooking demonstrations is the only difference between conditions. Assessments will be conducted at 0, 3 and 6 months. Wave 2 (n=32) will follow the same process as Wave 1 approximately two months after Wave 1 is initiated.

Conditions

• Obesity

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Active Intervention - Cooking	Key behavioral strategies to facilitate making sustained changes in dietary habits and activity patterns are introduced, promoted and reinforced throughout the program. In-person sessions facilitated by an interventionist provide the group meetings. The program provides 24 weekly facilitated group sessions over 6 months. In addition to attending weekly classes, participants will track food intake, exercise, and weight. Participants will share online tracking diaries with the group facilitator who will offer individualized feedback on individual progress. Twelve cooking classes will be run every other week after the in-person weight loss meetings.
BEHAVIORAL	Demonstrations - Cooking	The Demonstrations group will receive the exact same behavioral weight loss intervention as the cooking group. The only difference is that this group will attend cooking demonstrations as opposed to actively cooking.

Timeline

• Start date: 2018-11-01
• Primary completion: 2019-09-30
• Completion: 2019-09-30
• First posted: 2018-12-21
• Last updated: 2021-05-17
• Results posted: 2021-05-17

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States