Cooking Skills for Obesity

(CHEF-ID Trial)

Overseen By Jessica Danon

Age: 18 - 65

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: University of Kansas Medical Center

Disqualifiers: Insulin dependent diabetes, Prader-Willi, cancer, others

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: 24

114 Participants Needed

What You Need to Know Before You Apply

What is the purpose of this trial?

This trial explores whether adding hands-on cooking classes (Cooking Skills Training) to a weight management program can help young adults with intellectual disabilities lose more weight and maintain it better than a standard weight loss program. Participants will join either the cooking-focused program or a traditional weight loss plan and will be monitored over 24 months. The study will track weight loss, cooking skills, body fat, and other health markers. Ideal participants are those with mild-to-moderate intellectual disabilities who can communicate and follow simple instructions, and who live with a supportive caregiver. As an unphased trial, this study offers a unique opportunity to contribute to innovative research that could enhance weight management strategies for individuals with intellectual disabilities.

Will I have to stop taking my current medications?

The trial information does not specify whether you need to stop taking your current medications. However, if you have insulin-dependent diabetes or are on a weight management program involving medication, you may not be eligible to participate.

What prior data suggests that this cooking skills training is safe for young adults with intellectual disabilities?

Research shows that adding cooking lessons to weight loss programs can help people lose more weight. The program under study does not use drugs or involve medical procedures. Instead, it teaches participants how to cook healthy meals. This method is considered safe because it is educational, not medical. Previous studies have found that learning to cook can improve diet-related health without risk. Therefore, the safety risk remains very low, as it involves learning and practicing cooking, a common daily skill. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Why are researchers excited about this trial?

Researchers are excited about this trial because it explores the potential of cooking skills training as a method for managing obesity. Unlike traditional weight loss programs that often focus on diet and exercise alone, this approach empowers individuals by teaching them how to prepare healthy meals, which could lead to more sustainable lifestyle changes. This method not only addresses caloric intake but also enhances the participant's relationship with food, potentially leading to long-term weight management success. By integrating practical cooking skills into weight loss strategies, researchers hope to find a more holistic and engaging way to combat obesity.

What evidence suggests that cooking skills training could be effective for obesity?

This trial will compare a "Weight Loss Plus Cooking" program with a "Traditional Weight Loss" approach. Research has shown that adding cooking skills to weight-loss programs can enhance weight loss. One study found that people who cooked regularly lost more weight than those who did not. Another study discovered a link between poor cooking skills and being overweight. For young people, learning to cook has helped manage obesity. Overall, hands-on cooking lessons can significantly improve weight loss results. ^{1 3 5 6 7}

Are You a Good Fit for This Trial?

This trial is for young adults with intellectual disabilities who are also dealing with obesity. They should be interested in learning cooking skills to help manage their weight. Participants must commit to a 24-month program, including phases of active support and maintenance.

Inclusion Criteria

Diagnosis of mild-to-moderate intellectual disability (ID)

BMI >24.9 and Body weight <350lbs

Plan to attend all study required visits over the next 24 months

Exclusion Criteria

Diagnosis of Prader-Willi Syndrome

I primarily use a wheelchair or power chair to get around.

I cannot join in-person group activities.

Timeline for a Trial Participant

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Active Support

Participants receive active support including cooking classes for the eSLD+Chef-ID group and motivational videos for the eSLD group

6 months

Monthly Zoom check-ins, bi-monthly cooking classes for eSLD+Chef-ID group

Maintenance

Participants continue with maintenance phase with reduced frequency of cooking classes and ongoing support

12 months

Monthly Zoom check-ins, monthly cooking classes for eSLD+Chef-ID group

No Contact

Participants have no contact with the study team to assess long-term weight maintenance

6 months

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for safety and effectiveness after the main phases

6 months

Final assessment at 24 months

What Are the Treatments Tested in This Trial?

Interventions

• Cooking Skills Training

Trial Overview

The study tests if adding cooking classes (Chef-ID) to traditional weight loss programs helps participants lose more weight and maintain it over time. It's divided into three phases: initial active support, ongoing maintenance, and a final no-contact period.

How Is the Trial Designed?

Group I: Weight Loss Plus Cooking Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Group II: Traditional Weight Loss Active Control 1 Intervention

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

University of Kansas Medical Center

Lead Sponsor

Trials

527

Recruited

181,000+

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

Collaborator

Trials

2,103

Recruited

2,760,000+

Published Research Related to This Trial

The vegetable-focused cooking skills and nutrition program significantly improved parental cooking confidence and healthy food preparation skills, with scores increasing from 4.0 to 4.4 and 3.6 to 3.9 out of 5, respectively.

Participants also reported increased vegetable variety and home availability, with parents' vegetable variety scores rising from 30 to 32 and home vegetable availability from 16 to 18 out of 35, indicating a positive impact on dietary habits.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Impacts of a Vegetable Cooking Skills Program Among Low-Income Parents and Children. Overcash, F., Ritter, A., Mann, T., et al.[2019]

A randomized controlled trial involving 80 overweight/obese women showed that both a skill-based intervention (SBI) and counseling-based intervention (CBI) led to significant weight loss at 6 months, with participants maintaining some weight loss at 24 months.

The SBI group demonstrated a significant reduction in dietary fat intake, suggesting that this intervention may positively influence eating habits, although the long-term weight loss differences between SBI and CBI were not statistically significant.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Technical skills for weight loss: 2-y follow-up results of a randomized trial. Yeh, MC., Rodriguez, E., Nawaz, H., et al.[2016]

Citations

1.

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7761020/

Cooking as a Health Behavior: Examining the Role of ...

The data suggest that the addition of an independent active cooking component to a weight-loss intervention significantly improved weight loss ...

2.

jneb.org

jneb.org/article/S1499-4046(23)00395-0/fulltext

Cooking and Its Impact on Childhood Obesity: A Systematic ...

One-third of the studies found a positive effect of a cooking intervention on obesity among children and adolescents. School-based studies ...

3.

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10254578/

Low Cooking Skills Are Associated with Overweight and ...

Our study showed that overweight and obesity were associated with lower cooking skills in the studied undergraduates.

4.

clinicaltrials.gov

clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT03783962

NCT03783962 | Examining Cooking as a Health Behavior

A two arm randomized control trial will examine whether the addition of an active cooking lesson versus a passive observed lesson to a behavioral weight loss ...

5.

sciencedirect.com

sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1499404623003950

Cooking and Its Impact on Childhood Obesity: A Systematic ...

One-third of the studies found a positive effect of a cooking intervention on obesity among children and adolescents. School-based studies conducted among ...

6.

clinicaltrials.gov

clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06961591?cond=Obesity&term=weight-loss%20program;%20weight%20management%20program&aggFilters=funderType:nih%20fed,status:rec&rank=7

Cooking Skills to Improve Long-Term Weight Loss in ...

Changes in cooking skills, body fat, health markers (like blood pressure and cholesterol), daily living skills, and caregiver stress will be tracked.

7.

ijbnpa.biomedcentral.com

ijbnpa.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12966-016-0446-y

Learning cooking skills at different ages: a cross-sectional study

Cooking skills are increasingly included in strategies to prevent and reduce chronic diet-related diseases and obesity.