Skip to main content
OpenTrials
Completed

NCT Number: NCT02908854

Using Spices and Herbs to Increase Vegetable Intake Among Urban High School Students

A two-phase, school-based intervention will be conducted at a high school in Baltimore to evaluate whether the addition of spices and herbs to vegetable dishes in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) can increase vegetable intake among students in an urban and predominantly African-American high school.

Completed

Looking for future studies?

Notify Me

Key information

Conditions

Poor Nutrition Malnutrition Nutrition Disorders Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases

Age range

12 year–21 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Center for Integrative Medicine University of Maryland

Baltimore, Maryland, 21201, United States

About this study

The proposed research will be conducted at Cristo Rey Jesuit High School in Baltimore, Maryland. In this two-phase intervention, the research team will work in Phase I with stakeholders throughout the high school community to identify the barriers to vegetable intake in the NSLP in this student population and to determine how spices and herbs might help overcome these barriers. The stakeholders with whom we will collaborate will include students, school administration, and cafeteria staff.

Phase II will focus on the direct measurement of vegetable intake among students both before and after spices and herbs are added to the vegetables in the NSLP. The spiced vegetable recipes that received the most favorable student rankings in the taste tests of Phase I will be offered.

The vegetable recipes flavored with spices and herbs will meet all NSLP requirements for fat, sugar, total calories, and all other guidelines.

Student vegetable intake will be assessed through two outcomes: 1.) plate waste, and 2.) production waste.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

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

Inclusion criteria

  • Enrolled student at Cristo Rey High School
  • Able to read and write English (exclusive to Phase 1 participants)

Exclusion criteria

  • Does not eat lunch in the Cristo Rey High School cafeteria
  • Not willing to complete questionnaires (exclusive to Phase 1 participants)

Treatment and study plan

Adding spices and herbs to school lunch vegetables

Other

Direct measurement of school lunch vegetable intake among students both before and after spices and herbs are added.

Primary outcomes

  1. Vegetable plate waste

    Time frame: The overall time frame for the outcome measure assessment is up to 8 months. This will occur during the 2016-2017 school year.

    Student vegetable intake will be assessed through plate waste (weighed).

Secondary outcomes

  1. Cafeteria production waste as measured by calculating the difference between total prepared vegetable weight and discarded vegetable weight.

    Time frame: The overall time frame for the outcome measure assessment is up to 8 months. This will occur during the 2016-2017 school year.

    This outcome involves quantifying both the amount of vegetables that were prepared and served and the amount of vegetables that were thrown away by cafeteria staff after lunch.

  2. Attitudes towards eating vegetables

    Time frame: The outcome measure is being assessed up to 12 months. Spring 2016 through Spring 2017.

    Participants will complete a baseline questionnaire in the Spring of 2016 followed by a follow-up questionnaire at the end of the 2016-2017 school year. Changes in attitudes towards eating vegetables will be assessed before and after the addition of spices and herbs to the school lunch vegetables.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

University of Maryland, Baltimore

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Using Spices and Herbs to Increase Vegetable Intake Among Urban High School Students in the National School Lunch Program

Important dates

Study start
2016
Primary completion
2017
Study completion
2017
First posted
Sep 21, 2016
Registry last updated
Sep 14, 2021

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.