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Completed

NCT Number: NCT05672017

Sweet Consumption and Subsequent Sweet Food Preferences and Intakes

This study will assess the effects of repeated sweet versus non-sweet food consumption on subsequent sweet and non-sweet food preferences and intakes.

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Key information

Conditions

Dietary Behaviour

Age range

18 year–65 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Bournemouth University

Bournemouth, US and Canada Only, BH12 5BB, United Kingdom

About this study

Participants will be randomized to receive instructions to either increase, decrease or make no change to sweet food consumption for 6 days, and impacts on food preferences and intakes will be assessed at baseline and after 1 week. Preferences for sweet and non-sweet foods will be assessed during a taste test at each assessment time, where six different foods will be rated. Sweet and non-sweet food consumption will also be measured at a subsequent breakfast at the assessment time. Buffet meals composed of sweet and non-sweet foods suitable for consumption at breakfast will be provided ad-libitum.

A subset of participants (selected at random) (10 participants randomized to increase sweet food consumption and 10 participants randomized to decrease sweet food consumption) will also be assessed via MRI and fMRI scanning to investigate brain structure and functional connectivity.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

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

Inclusion criteria

  • aged 18-65 years;
  • habitually consume breakfast;
  • able to provide consent and complete all study materials;
  • able to attend Bournemouth University for testing.

Exclusion criteria

  • individuals who are pregnant or breastfeeding;
  • underweight (BMI <18.5);
  • have pre-existing clinical conditions such as diabetes mellitus, eating disorders, Crohn's disease and other illness's leading to participants receiving external nutritional advice and dietary restrictions;
  • have pre-existing medical conditions affecting swallow ability, taste and smell perception;
  • currently or within 3 months of starting the study are following a specific dietary programme (e.g.: Slimming World);
  • current smokers or have smoked within 3 months of the study start date.

Treatment and study plan

Dietary Instructions

Behavioral

Dietary Instructions

Primary outcomes

  1. Sweet Food Preferences

    Time frame: Week 1

    Preferences for various sweet foods/fluids, assessed using a taste test, where participants sample several sweet and non-sweet foods and rate them for pleasantness on a 100mm Visual Analogue Scale, from 0 to 100mm. Higher scores signify stronger preferences

  2. Sweet Food Choices

    Time frame: Week 1

    Selection of sweet foods/fluids at a given meal, assessed where participants can consume freely from a meal composed of sweet and non-sweet foods, and proportion of sweet foods consumed is measured as a percentage of weight consumed

Secondary outcomes

  1. Hunger and Thirst

    Time frame: Week 1

    Ratings of subjective perceptions, assessed using 100mm VAS from 0 (lower hunger) to 100 (higher hunger) mm

  2. Sweet Food Perceptions

    Time frame: Week 1

    Perceptions for various sweet foods/fluids, assessed using a taste test, where participants sample several sweet and non-sweet foods and rate them for intensity on a 100mm Visual Analogue Scale from 0 to 100mm. Higher scores signify stronger perceptions

  3. MRI Static Brain Scan (Subset of Participants Only)

    Time frame: Baseline to week 1

    Static brain scan gained from a 3-Tesla Siemens Magnetom Lumina scanner (Siemens Healthcare, Erlangen, Germany), used to investigate brain structure, where the anatomical structure (e.g. size, shape) of the brain, measured via surface area (mm squared), will be compared at baseline and week 1

  4. fMRI Composite Functional Brain Scan (Subset of Participants Only)

    Time frame: Baseline to week 1

    Composite fMRI functional scan to investigate brain functionality and connectivity in response to a 10 min cognitive task, will be gained from a 3-Tesla Siemens Magnetom Lumina scanner (Siemens Healthcare, Erlangen, Germany), where patterns of activity will be measured using blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) contrast whole-brain functional images, acquired using a T2-weighted gradient-echo Echo Planar Imaging (EPI) sequence and a 32-channel head coil during a 10 min cognitive task, and will be compared at baseline and week 1 (for full details of this methodology see Yankouskaya A, et al., Biology, 2023, 12, 211.)

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Bournemouth University

Other

Registry information

Important dates

Study start
2023
Primary completion
2024
Study completion
2024
First posted
Jan 5, 2023
Registry last updated
Jun 26, 2025

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.

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