Sustainable Eating for a Healthy Tomorrow - Effectiveness of Digital Nutrition Workshops to Implement the Planetary Health Diet for Hospital Employees
Trial Snapshot
- Phase
- Not Applicable
- Status
- Completed
- Sponsor
- Universität Duisburg-Essen
- Enrollment
- 64
- Locations
- 1
- Primary Endpoint
- Healthy Eating Habits - Healthy Plant-based Diet Index (hPDI)
Study Overview
Brief Summary
The investigators will explore the effect of digital media on communicating a planetary diet and invite participants to change dietary habits. Standardized questionnaires, physical examinations, and qualitative interviews will be used to obtain data on the effectiveness of the intervention. Once initial assessments are complete, a blinded researcher will randomly assign participants to one of two groups, without influence from either participants or study coordinators.
Both groups will participate in a nutrition course over a 13-week period, followed by a booster session five months after randomization, and will be encouraged to practice the methods at home. One group will receive intensive support, including a digital training program (around 2 hours per week), while the other group will receive digital information and sustainable recipes with limited support (about 30 minutes per week).
Study Design
- Study Type
- Interventional
- Allocation
- Randomized
- Intervention Model
- Parallel
- Primary Purpose
- Prevention
- Masking
- Single (Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility Criteria
- Ages
- 18 Years to — (Adult, Older Adult)
- Sex
- All
- Accepts Healthy Volunteers
- Yes
Inclusion Criteria
- •Age from 18 years
- •Employee at the University Hospital Essen
- •A functioning smartphone
- •Moderate willingness (at least 5 points on NRS) to want to change diet
- •Access to digital media and social media
Exclusion Criteria
- •Insufficient knowledge of the German language
- •Simultaneous participation in other clinical intervention studies
Arms & Interventions
Intervention group
The following digital measures are used to provide employees in the intervention group with comprehensive information at various levels and to create a sense of belonging: A digital recipe collection, an email newsletter, digital/hybrid teaching kitchen events and digital cafés with expert input and discussion groups. In addition, participants are provided with interesting information via the hospital's Instagram account and are constantly reminded of the campaign. When selecting the digital media, emphasis was placed on integrating different learning methods. Through self-learning content, such as the email newsletter, participants can absorb the information at their own pace, make a connection and evaluate it. The topics are then explored and discussed in greater depth in digital events. Individual priorities can be set in group discussions. Through regular input, participants experience a growth phase.
Intervention: Digital collection of recipes (Behavioral)
Intervention group
The following digital measures are used to provide employees in the intervention group with comprehensive information at various levels and to create a sense of belonging: A digital recipe collection, an email newsletter, digital/hybrid teaching kitchen events and digital cafés with expert input and discussion groups. In addition, participants are provided with interesting information via the hospital's Instagram account and are constantly reminded of the campaign. When selecting the digital media, emphasis was placed on integrating different learning methods. Through self-learning content, such as the email newsletter, participants can absorb the information at their own pace, make a connection and evaluate it. The topics are then explored and discussed in greater depth in digital events. Individual priorities can be set in group discussions. Through regular input, participants experience a growth phase.
Intervention: E-Mail-Newsletter (Behavioral)
Intervention group
The following digital measures are used to provide employees in the intervention group with comprehensive information at various levels and to create a sense of belonging: A digital recipe collection, an email newsletter, digital/hybrid teaching kitchen events and digital cafés with expert input and discussion groups. In addition, participants are provided with interesting information via the hospital's Instagram account and are constantly reminded of the campaign. When selecting the digital media, emphasis was placed on integrating different learning methods. Through self-learning content, such as the email newsletter, participants can absorb the information at their own pace, make a connection and evaluate it. The topics are then explored and discussed in greater depth in digital events. Individual priorities can be set in group discussions. Through regular input, participants experience a growth phase.
Intervention: digital/hybrid teaching kitchen (Behavioral)
Intervention group
The following digital measures are used to provide employees in the intervention group with comprehensive information at various levels and to create a sense of belonging: A digital recipe collection, an email newsletter, digital/hybrid teaching kitchen events and digital cafés with expert input and discussion groups. In addition, participants are provided with interesting information via the hospital's Instagram account and are constantly reminded of the campaign. When selecting the digital media, emphasis was placed on integrating different learning methods. Through self-learning content, such as the email newsletter, participants can absorb the information at their own pace, make a connection and evaluate it. The topics are then explored and discussed in greater depth in digital events. Individual priorities can be set in group discussions. Through regular input, participants experience a growth phase.
Intervention: Digital events (digital cafés) (Behavioral)
Intervention group
The following digital measures are used to provide employees in the intervention group with comprehensive information at various levels and to create a sense of belonging: A digital recipe collection, an email newsletter, digital/hybrid teaching kitchen events and digital cafés with expert input and discussion groups. In addition, participants are provided with interesting information via the hospital's Instagram account and are constantly reminded of the campaign. When selecting the digital media, emphasis was placed on integrating different learning methods. Through self-learning content, such as the email newsletter, participants can absorb the information at their own pace, make a connection and evaluate it. The topics are then explored and discussed in greater depth in digital events. Individual priorities can be set in group discussions. Through regular input, participants experience a growth phase.
Intervention: Social-Media (Behavioral)
Control group
The control group will have access to the digital prescription collection, which is being developed on the basis of the Planetary Health Diet. In addition, the control group can use information on the clinic's Instagram account. In addition to access to the above-mentioned recipes and information via the Instagram channel, the intervention group receives additional digital support.
Intervention: Digital collection of recipes (Behavioral)
Control group
The control group will have access to the digital prescription collection, which is being developed on the basis of the Planetary Health Diet. In addition, the control group can use information on the clinic's Instagram account. In addition to access to the above-mentioned recipes and information via the Instagram channel, the intervention group receives additional digital support.
Intervention: Social-Media (Behavioral)
Outcomes
Primary Outcomes
Healthy Eating Habits - Healthy Plant-based Diet Index (hPDI)
Time Frame: Month 3
Changes in heathy eating habits are measured using a generally recognized Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) in the validated German DEGS-Version from the Robert Koch Institute, Germany. The DEGS comprises 53 questions and records the frequency of consumption of various food groups and drinks over a certain period of time. The following habits are assessed: healthy plant-based foods, less healthy plant-based foods and animal-based foods. The Helathy Plant-based Diet Index (hPDI) is calculated from the DEGS questionnaire. The score of the hPDI can range from 18 to 90, with a higher index reflecting a more plant-based and less animal-based diet.
Secondary Outcomes
- Adverse events (AEs)(Month 0 to 3 (during intervention))
- Healthy Eating Habits - Healthy Plant-based Diet Index (hPDI)(Month 6)
- Willingness to Change (PIAC)(Month 6)
- Adaptive Coping with Disease (AKU)(Month 6)
- Self-efficacy (HSSES)(Month 6)
- Quality of Life (WHO-5)(Month 6)
- Environmental and Climate Behavior (YCSCB)(Month 6)
- Body Mass Index (BMI)(Month 6)
- Body weight(Month 6)
- Waist Circumference(Month 6)
- Adverse events (AEs)(Month 0 to 3 (during intervention))
- Willingness to Change (PIAC)(Month 3)
- Adaptive Coping with Disease (AKU)(Month 3)
- Self-efficacy (HSSES)(Month 3)
- Quality of Life (WHO-5)(Month 3)
- Environmental and Climate Behavior (YCSCB)(Month 3)
- Body Mass Index (BMI)(Month 3)
- Body weight(Month 3)
- Waist Circumference(Month 3)
Investigators
Heidemarie Haller
Director of Research
Universität Duisburg-Essen