NCT06856551

Using Tailored Messages to Encourage Healthy Lifestyle Choices in a Brief, Self-directed Intervention

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 200 (actual)
• Sponsor: University of North Florida · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

The study aimed to investigate 1) if a brief, regulatory focus-based intervention could promote weight control and changes in certain lifestyle behaviors and 2) how weight was affected by changes in these behaviors. The lifestyle behaviors of interest included meal regularity, self-monitoring of diet and physical activity, fast-food eating, screen related viewing and eating, dietary modifications, self-weighing, and physical activity. It was hypothesized that increases in meal regularity, self-monitoring, healthy dietary modifications, self-weighing, and physical activity would lead to better weight control over six months. Conversely, it was hypothesized that increases in fast food consumption and screen related eating and viewing would lead to poorer weight control over six months. It was expected that promotion and prevention conditions, relative to the control condition, would lead to better weight control and increases in meal regularity, self-monitoring, healthy dietary modifications, self-weighing, and physical activity, and decreases in fast food consumption and screen related eating and viewing. Furthermore, it was expected that the promotion condition would lead to better outcomes than the prevention condition.

Conditions

• Weight Control

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Minimal contact control	Participants in the control group received a pamphlet about general dietary and physical activity guidelines.
BEHAVIORAL	Promotion and Prevention Interventions	regulatory focus groups, participants completed a 1-hour educational information session with study staff and received a packet which contained information about energy balance, healthy food choices, exercise recommendations, strategies for weight control, goal setting, and responding to lapses. Participants were encouraged to track their food intake and exercise with a provided log book or free apps (Lose It!; MyFitnessPal). The informational content and intervention procedures were identical except for the framing of messages and tasks. The prevention messages emphasized protecting one's health (e.g., failing to regularly exercise can undermine your weight control program and lead to poor health; if you do not vigilantly follow these behaviors, you will not fulfill your weight control goals or protect your health and well-being; not eating fruits and vegetables results in failure to supply the body with the nutrients it needs). The promotion messages emphasized promoting one's health

Timeline

• Start date: 2015-10-30
• Primary completion: 2017-03-20
• Completion: 2017-03-20
• First posted: 2025-03-04
• Last updated: 2025-04-17

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States