The Reinforcing Value of Added Sugars

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Obesity
• Interventions: Other: Low Added Sugar Diet

• Registration Number: NCT02744001
• Lead Sponsor: USDA Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to determine how daily diet relates to eating choices.

Detailed Description

Despite the long-term emphasis on reducing intake of and added sugar, this behavioral change has been hard to instill amongst most of the population. Foods with added sugars are highly reinforcing and, as such, reducing their consumption in order to adhere to the dietary guidelines (DGA) may be difficult to maintain. Sugar produces effects similar to some drugs of abuse such as increased extracellular dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens shell resulting in a reinforcing effect. Reducing any reinforcing behavior can be challenging, but in terms of food, it is not known whether the reinforcing value of foods high in added sugar increases when access to these foods is reduced. If so, this would present a mechanistic barrier to meeting the DGA and making dietary changes in general. That the reinforcing value of a behavior (e.g., eating sugar) will be increased when the rate of that behavior is decreased has strong theoretical underpinnings in the "Disequilibrium Approach". This theory predicts that the circumstances of reinforcement are created or limited by changing baseline access. According to the Disequilibrium Approach, a response deficit will result in an increase in reinforcement. Applied to the proposed study, the Disequilibrium Approach would predict that lowering the consumption of dietary added sugar would increase the reinforcing value of foods high in added sugar. The Disequilibrium Approach has accurately predicted an increase in the relative reinforcing value (RRV) of snack foods among children. However, dietary changes would need to occur at the whole diet level for adults and children to meet the DGA for reducing added sugar intake. It is important to know if reducing added sugars at the whole-diet level results in increases in the reinforcing value of foods high in added sugars.

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2016-04
• Study First Submitted: 2016-04-15
• Study First Submitted QC: 2016-04-15
• Study First Posted: 2016-04-19
• Primary Completion: 2018-01-16
• Study Completion: 2018-01-16
• Status Verified: 2022-01
• Last Update Submitted: 2022-01-18
• Last Update Posted: 2022-02-02

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 44

Inclusion Criteria

• BMI within 18.5-24.9 kg/m2 or BMI within 30.0-50.0 kg/m2
• Willing to consent to study conditions
• Habitually consume at least 10% of daily energy intake from added sugars

Exclusion Criteria

• BMI 25.0-29.9 kg/m2
• Currently taking drugs that change hunger
• Have an eating disorder
• Current tobacco user
• Have diabetes or heart disease
• Pregnant, lactating or planning pregnancy
• Low liking of all available study test foods
• Allergy/aversion to any of the foods provided during the diet intervention

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: SINGLE_GROUP

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Low Added Sugar Diet	Low Added Sugar Diet	Menu containing \<10% of total daily energy intake from added sugars.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Change in relative reinforcing value (RRV) of snacks as assessed by indicator	Baseline and 1 week	RRV of snacks will be assessed by evaluating the number of responses (mouse button presses) a subject is willing to complete to gain access to a high added sugar snack or low added sugar alternative.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

USDA Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center; 🇺🇸 Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States