Worksite Nutrition Study

Approximately 65 percent of Americans are overweight or obese. They are at increased risk for diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, cardiovascular disease, arthritis, respiratory disorders, pregnancy complications, and premature death. Research has demonstrated that weight status is associated with certain types of malignancies, including endometrial, colon, gall bladder, prostate, kidney, and postmenopausal breast cancer. The total direct and indirect costs attributed to overweight and obesity amounted to 117 billion U.S. dollars in 2000.

The 22-week Worksite Nutrition Study will (1) test whether a worksite intervention, which prescribes a low-fat vegan diet, is effective in promoting clinically significant weight loss, (2) evaluate whether the intervention reduces cardiovascular risk, particularly blood pressure and lipid concentrations, (3) assess whether the intervention improves glycemic control in individuals with type 2 diabetes, and (4) examine how the intervention affects work impairment and absenteeism.

Participants (Group 1, n=60) at a specified worksite will be assigned to the diet intervention program, which prescribes a low-fat, vegan diet. A control group (Group 2, n=60) will be designated at a separate worksite. The participants in the control group will not receive an active intervention during the designated study period. Participants in the active intervention will attend weekly group meetings for nutrition education on the intervention diet.

Diets will be assessed, in order to monitor adherence and for the purposes of comparison, in the intervention and control groups at baseline and at weeks 11 and 22 using a 3-day dietary record. Dependent measures, including body weight, blood pressure, lipid concentrations, quality-of-life measures, and A1c (for those with diabetes) will be assessed in the intervention and control groups at weeks 0, 11, and 22.

Inclusion criteria

• employee at the intervention worksite or the control worksite;
• BMI > 25 or a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes mellitus, as defined by a fasting plasma glucose concentration > 126 mg/dl on two occasions or a prior physician's diagnosis of type 2 diabetes with the use of hypoglycemic medications for at least six months;
• male or female;
• age at least 18 years;
• ability and willingness to participate in all components of the study; and
• a willingness to be assigned to a low-fat, vegan diet or control group.

Exclusion criteria

• a history of alcohol abuse or dependency followed by any current use;
• current or unresolved past drug abuse;
• pregnancy;
• history of severe mental illness;
• unstable medical status;
• already following a low-fat, vegetarian diet;
• an inordinate fear of blood draw; and
• A1c <7 or >10.5% (for volunteers with diabetes).