Study to Evaluate the 'eNutri' Online Personalised Nutrition App in the United Kingdom (UK)

Not Applicable

• Conditions: Dietary Modification; Dietary Habits
• Interventions: Behavioral: Personalised diet advice delivered via the eNutri app (intervention); Behavioral: Non-personalised diet advice delivered via the eNutri app (control)

• Registration Number: NCT03897972
• Lead Sponsor: University of Reading

Brief Summary

The proof-of-principle EatWellEUR pilot study will investigate whether online personalised dietary advice encourages greater dietary behaviour change after 12 weeks compared with general population-based diet advice. Dietary change will be quantified from an 11-item diet quality score (DQS) suitable for Northern European populations that is calculated from the results of the eNutri food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) at baseline and week 12.

Detailed Description

The proof-of-principle EatWellEUR pilot study will investigate whether online personalised dietary advice encourages greater dietary behaviour change after 12 weeks compared with general population-based diet advice. Both groups will receive two prompts to remind them of their diet advice at weeks 4 and 8. Dietary change will be quantified from an 11-item diet quality score (DQS) suitable for Northern European populations that is calculated from the results of the eNutri food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) at baseline and week 12. 98 participants will be recruited per study arm and will be randomly allocated to an intervention arm using a minimisation technique integrated with the eNutri app.

Study Timeline

• Study First Submitted: 2019-03-29
• Study First Submitted QC: 2019-03-29
• Study First Posted: 2019-04-01
• Study Start: 2019-08-05
• Status Verified: 2019-11
• Last Update Submitted: 2019-11-27
• Last Update Posted: 2019-11-29
• Primary Completion: 2019-12
• Study Completion: 2019-12

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: UNKNOWN
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 216

Inclusion Criteria

• Living in the UK
• Can understand written English

Exclusion Criteria

• Food allergies or food intolerances (diagnosed or self-diagnosed)
• Receiving professional nutritional advice from a dietitian, nutritionist or medical professional
• Following a specialised diet (e.g. vegan, calorie-controlled/weight-loss diet)
• Athletes or those following a or sports nutrition regimen
• Pregnant, lactating or planning a pregnancy within the next 3 months
• Diagnosed medical conditions that require specific dietary guidance (e.g. diabetes, Crohn's disease or eating disorders), those who are currently undergoing rigorous medical treatment (e.g. chemotherapy for cancer) or conditions that affect memory (e.g. dementia)
• Medications that impact on diet (e.g. weight-loss medication) or involve dietary restrictions
• Those who eat less than 2 meals per day
• Excessive use of herbal or dietary supplements (e.g. 3 or more per day)
• Taking part in another nutrition study

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Personalised diet advice	Personalised diet advice delivered via the eNutri app (intervention)	Intervention group to receive personalised dietary advice generated by the eNutri app from their actual dietary intakes and tailored according to their body mass index and food preferences. Advice will be delivered to the participant via the eNutri app web application and will be generated based on their adherence to an 11-item diet quality score suitable for Northern European populations.
Non-personalised general diet advice	Non-personalised diet advice delivered via the eNutri app (control)	Control group to receive non-personalised dietary advice based on general public health dietary recommendations for Northern Europe. Advice will be delivered to the participant via the eNutri web application.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
eNutri diet quality score (DQS)	Baseline & week 12	Dietary intake at baseline and week 12 will be assessed via the eNutri food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) from which an 11-item eNutri DQS will be calculated. The eNutri DQS was developed for Northern Europe and quantifies diet quality (i.e. the healthiness of a diet). It is composed of 11 food and nutrient components (contributing 10 points each) that are summed to give an overall score (between 0-110 points), where higher scores reflect the healthiest diets based on adherence to dietary recommendations.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Body mass index (BMI)	Baseline & week 12	Self reported measurements of weight and height will be used to determine BMI.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Hugh Sinclair Unit of Human Nutrition, Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, University of Reading; 🇬🇧 Reading, Berkshire, United Kingdom