Skip to main content
OpenTrials
Completed

NCT Number: NCT04148560

Free-living Validation of the RFPM in Adolescents

The primary aim of this small study is to test the validity of the Remote Food Photography Method and an updated SmartIntake app in a sample of adolescents. The investigators will test the validity (accuracy) of the method/app at estimating energy intake in free-living conditions over approximately three days compared to doubly labeled water. This is a small study that has low statistical power, but will provide important data nonetheless and inform future research.

Completed

Looking for future studies?

Notify Me

Key information

Conditions

Dietary Assessment Energy Intake Food Intake Food Photography

Age range

12 year–18 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Pennington Biomedical Research Center

Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70808, United States

About this study

Energy intake (EI) is an important predictor of weight gain (1) and accurate methods to measure children's and adolescent's EI are needed. Self-report methods (e.g., 24-hour recall and food records) have their strengths and are frequently used to measure children's EI. Nonetheless, they also have significant limitations, including participant and caregiver burden and lack of near real-time data.

Our group developed the Remote Food Photography Method (RFPM) to measure the EI of adults in near real-time and the validity data in adults are exceptional; the RFPM underestimates EI in laboratory settings by less than 6% and in free-living conditions by less than 7% compared to weighed foods and by less than 4% compared to doubly labeled water (DLW) over 6 days. At the same time, participant burden is drastically reduced compared to self-report methods, as participants are only required to capture images of their food selection and plate waste with a smartphone app and send these images to the laboratory for analysis. This validation study aims to assess the accuracy of the RFPM and SmartIntake app in a sample of adolescents in free-living conditions.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • boy or girl of any race
  • age between 12 and 18 years
  • willingness to use the RFPM/SmartIntake app for 3 days, in addition to a 1-2 day run-in period
  • willingness to be responsive to study staff when prompted for additional information when using the RFPM/SmartIntake app
  • parental support of the project, except for 18-year-olds

Exclusion criteria

  • Individuals may not qualify for this study based on other eligibility criteria not listed. The study coordinator determine this on a case-by-case basis

Treatment and study plan

Tests of the validity of the RFPM and SmartIntake app.

Other

Participants who enroll will be trained in using the RFPM/SmartIntake app and a food record and will complete the Food Intake Assessment Preference Survey. They will also use both methods to estimate intake during a simulated lab-based meal (they will not eat during this simulated meal). They will be dosed with DLW at this visit and will use the RFPM for the subsequent 1-2 days to get accustomed to using the method, with the following three days comprising the data collection period.

Primary outcomes

  1. Equivalence between energy intake (kcal/day) measured with the RFPM and DLW

    Time frame: 3 days

    Energy intake is measured by the RFPM and DLW in kcal per day over 3 days. We will use the mean of the 3 days in the analyses. Two one-sided paired t-tests (α = 0.05 for each) will be performed in this pilot with equivalence bounds at 2% increments between 8% and 34% to determine equivalence in kcal estimates between RFPM and DLW.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Mean difference between the RFPM and DLW on kcal/day

    Time frame: 3 days

    RFPM - DLW (kcal), with each method measuring energy intake over three days, and the mean of the three days for each method being included in the calculations and analyses.

  2. Mean percentage error of RFPM relative to DLW

    Time frame: 3 days

    MPE = (RFPM - DLW) / DLW × 100

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Pennington Biomedical Research Center

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Validity of the Remote Food Photography Method to Measure Food Intake in Adolescents in Free-living Conditions

Acronym: FoodPhone2

Important dates

Study start
2020
Primary completion
2023
Study completion
2025
First posted
Nov 1, 2019
Registry last updated
May 5, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

Related clinical trials

Published trials that share one or more normalized conditions with this study.