Adherence to 24-Hour Movement Guidelines and Association With Diet Quality in Multi-Disciplinary Football Team Staff

Completed

• Conditions: Physical Activity; Diet Quality; Staff; Soccer

• Registration Number: NCT06771752
• Lead Sponsor: University Ramon Llull

Brief Summary

The goal of this observational study is to assess whether adherence to 24-hour movement guidelines is associated with diet quality in professional football staff, an underrepresented population affected by irregular schedules, travel, and high-pressure environments. The main objectives are to:

* Assess and describe the sleep quality of football sports staff

* Measure and contextualise the adherence to 24-hour movement guidelines in football sports staff

* Analyse and describe the diet quality of football sports staff

* Describe correlations between job title, gender and location for physical movement and diet quality

Participants will answer a questionnaire that incorporates:

* Personal descriptives (height, weight, age, location, job title)

* Data on physical activity (movement, sleep, sedentary behaviour, strength training, screen time) based on the Canadian 24-hour Movement Guidelines

* The Mini-EAT dietary screening tool that evaluates diet quality (intake of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy, and sweets)

Statistical analyses will examine adherence levels, diet quality and the potential associations, aiming at informing health and performance strategies for football staff.

Detailed Description

This study investigates the relationship between adherence to 24-hour movement guidelines and diet quality among professional football sports staff, addressing the challenges posed by irregular schedules, travel and high-pressure environments. The aim is to determine whether staff meet the health recommendations they advocate for players and to inform strategies that enhance their health and performance. Using an observational and cross-sectional research design, the study will collect data on physical activity according to the Canadian 24-hour Movement Guidelines to assess adherence, and the validated Mini-EAT dietary screening tool to evaluate diet quality. The dependent variables include factors such as physical activity levels moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), light physical activity (LPA), sedentary time, sleep quality and consistency, strength training, sedentary breaks, and screen time usage. Diet quality is assessed through the frequency of intake of various food groups (e.g., fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, dairy, and sweets) and summarised with an overall diet quality score. There is a minimum of 229 participants required and the questionnaire will be distributed to individuals with confirmed employment of football staff, football clubs and universities with football teams. Statistical analyses will include descriptive statistics to summarise participant characteristics, adherence levels, and diet quality scores, MANOVA, Shapiro-Wilk to assess normality, with Pearson's or Spearman's correlations (depending on normality distribution) to examine associations between adherence scores and diet quality. Chi-square tests will identify relationships between categorical adherence levels and diet quality. These findings will inform targeted interventions to improve health outcomes for football staff, enabling them to better support players while maintaining their own performance. The proposed start date of the study is January 2025.

Study Timeline

• Study First Submitted: 2025-01-07
• Study First Submitted QC: 2025-01-07
• Study First Posted: 2025-01-13
• Study Start: 2025-01-15
• Status Verified: 2025-03
• Primary Completion: 2025-03-15
• Study Completion: 2025-03-16
• Last Update Submitted: 2025-03-17
• Last Update Posted: 2025-03-20

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 236

Inclusion Criteria

• Individuals who work in football / soccer in professional leagues or semi-professional leagues in both men's and women's teams
• Individuals aged between 18 and 65
• Individuals who have confirmed status of their occupation on LinkedIn or football club website

Exclusion Criteria

• Jobs in other sports besides football / soccer
• No public profile on LinkedIn or football club website to confirm job status
• No signing of the consent form in the questionnaire

Study & Design

• Study Type: OBSERVATIONAL
• Study Design: Not specified

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity Time	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ratio scale, measured in minutes per week. From 0 minutes (low adherence) to 240+ minutes (high adherence).; Question from the Whole Day Matters Toolkit: 24-hour movement questionnaire from The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology.
Light Physical Activity Time	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ratio scale, measured in hours per day. From 1 hours (low adherence) to 10+ hours (high adherence).; Question from the Whole Day Matters Toolkit: 24-hour movement questionnaire from The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology.
Sedentary Time	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ratio scale, measured in hours per day. From 1 hour (high adherence) to 10+ hours (low adherence).; Question from the Whole Day Matters Toolkit: 24-hour movement questionnaire from The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology.
Sleep Duration	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ratio scale, measured in hours per day. From 1 hours (low adherence) to 10+ hours (high adherence).; Question from the Whole Day Matters Toolkit: 24-hour movement questionnaire from The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology.
Frequency of Fruit Intake	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ordinal scale. Scored from 0 ("Do not eat it at all") to 9 ("4 or more servings per day"). Question from validated Mini-Eat questionnaire.
Frequency of Vegetable Intake	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ordinal scale. Scored from 0 ("Do not eat it at all") to 9 ("4 or more servings per day"). Question from validated Mini-Eat questionnaire.
Frequency of Sweets Intake	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ordinal scale. Scored from 9 ("Do not eat it at all") to 0 ("4 or more servings per day"). Question from validated Mini-Eat questionnaire.
Frequency of Whole Grain Intake	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ordinal scale. Scored from 0 ("Do not eat it at all") to 9 ("4 or more servings per day"). Question from validated Mini-Eat questionnaire.
Diet Quality Summary Score	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Accumulation of diet quality scores from Mini-Eat validated questions. A score of \<61 is Unhealthy / Poor diet, a score between 60 and 68.9 is Intermediate / Diet needs improvement, a score of \>69 is Healthy / Comparable to scores of \>80.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Sedentary Breaks	From enrollment to the end of assessment	To identify whether participants interrupt prolonged sedentary periods. Nominal scale, with two possible values: Yes (high adherence) or No (low adherence).; Question from the Whole Day Matters Toolkit: 24-hour movement questionnaire from The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology.
Strength Training Frequency	From enrollment to the end of assessment	To determine whether participants do strength training exercises at least twice weekly. Nominal scale, with two possible values: Yes (high adherence) or No (low adherence).; Question from the Whole Day Matters Toolkit: 24-hour movement questionnaire from The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology.
Screen Time Adherence	From enrollment to the end of assessment	To evaluate whether participants limit daily recreational screen time to 3 hours or less. Nominal scale, with two possible values: Yes (high adherence) or No (low adherence).; Question from the Whole Day Matters Toolkit: 24-hour movement questionnaire from The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology.
Frequency of Legumes, Nuts, and Seeds Intake	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ordinal scale. Scored from 0 ("Did not eat it at all") to 9 ("4 or more servings per day"). Question from validated Mini-Eat questionnaire.
Frequency of Fish or Seafood Intake	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ordinal scale. Scored from 0 ("Did not eat it at all") to 9 ("4 or more servings per day"). Question from validated Mini-Eat questionnaire.
Frequency of Refined Grain Intake	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ordinal scale. Scored from 9 ("Did not eat it at all") to 0 ("4 or more servings per day"). Question from validated Mini-Eat questionnaire.
Frequency of High-Fat Dairy and Saturated Fats Intake	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ordinal scale. Scored from 9 ("Did not eat it at all") to 0 ("4 or more servings per day"). Question from validated Mini-Eat questionnaire.
Frequency of Low-Fat Dairy Intake	From enrollment to the end of assessment	Ordinal scale. Scored from 0 ("Did not eat it at all") to 9 ("4 or more servings per day"). Question from validated Mini-Eat questionnaire.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

University Ramon Llull; 🇪🇸 Barcelona, Spain