Body Composition Assessment and Smart-phone Based Counselling on Healthy Eating and Weight Management

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Status: Completed

Conditions: Healthy Diet; Weight Management

Treatments: Behavioral: Body composition assessment and smart-phone based counselling

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT05400187

P0013890

Details and patient eligibility

About

This study proposed an integrated multi-disciplinary approach including a professional and convenient body composition measurement and an immediate counselling after the measurement, followed by 6-month smart-phone based individualized counselling. We believe that this approach will promote healthy eating behaviors and weight management among middle-aged Chinese in Hong Kong.

Full description

This is a two-arm, individual level, 6-month randomized controlled trial. The intervention group will receive convenient body composition measurement and 6-month smart-phone based individualized counselling. No specific intervention will be given to the control group except the common anthropometric and body composition measurement. A pretest-posttest evaluation and between-group comparison will be used to test whether the impact/success of the project has been achieved.

Enrollment: 221 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 45 to 65 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Able to understand Cantonese and read Chinese;
• Self-reported vegetable and fruit consumption is less than 5 servings per day (one serving means 125 mL (½ cup) fresh, frozen or canned fruits or vegetables; or 250 mL (1 cup) raw leafy veggies or salad; or 125 mL (½ cup) 100% juice; or 1 fruit;
• Reachable by smart-phone and familiar with the use of smart-phone;
• Would not move from the local area during the study period.

Exclusion criteria

• Self-reported history of cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, neurological disorder, musculo-skeletal disorder, osteoarthritis, and eating disorder;
• Receiving medically prescribed diet or physical activity intervention;
• For women, currently pregnant;
• Have been taking any medications or long-term supplement such as herbs;
• Cannot provide written informed consent.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

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221 participants in 2 patient groups

Body composition assessment and smart-phone based counselling group

Experimental group

Description:

In this study, we consider body composition measurement together with an immediate brief counselling after the measurement as part of the intervention. The body composition measurement will allow the participants to get familiar with their own anthropometric data and serve as cues to actions of healthy diet adoption and weight management and control. Based on the measured body fat and anthropometric data, a trained research assistant will give brief individualized dietary and weight management counselling to the participants. The Whatsapp-based counselling and communication will heighten the awareness through reinforcing the need and benefits of body composition and weight control, the importance of energy balance, as well as providing professional and tailor-made advice on healthy eating and weight management. Qualitative dietary counselling will be offered every two weeks through the Whatsapp.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Body composition assessment and smart-phone based counselling

Control group

No Intervention group

Description:

Participants in the control group will receive the simple body composition measurement only, without an immediate counselling after the measurement. Whey will be informed the values of anthropometric data and body composition parameters, no detailed interpretation of the values will be delivered to them. They will also not receive the professional consultant of the healthy diet and weight management from the diatetitian during the intervention period.