Active clinical trials for "Obesity"

It is established that resistance training improves metabolic health; however, the mechanisms of this process are not fully understood. A biologically active substance, irisin, has recently received interest in the scientific community with respect to its effects on energy expenditure and weight loss. The purpose of this study is to compare the different irisin release response during a resistance exercise training session. The study will compare individuals two different age groups (young adults: age 18-30; older adults: age 65-75) living with obesity.

There are more and more pregnant women who are obese. It is very difficult for obese women to get into labor. That is why when women are obese, half are likely to need a Cesarean delivery(C-section). Unfortunately, C-sections are more dangerous for obese women. There may be a combination of issues that cause obese women to need C-sections. We believe one of those reasons is that the womb of obese women respond differently to medications and devices compared to non-obese women. There are commonly two ways to help women get into labor. One way is a medication called misoprostol. The second way is a device called Foley balloon. In most studies, both ways are equally effective in helping women get into labor. However, these studies included everyone, and didn't focus on obese women. So far there are no studies in this area that focus only on obese women. Therefore we need to design this study to focus just on obese women and what is the best way to help them get into labor and avoid a C-section.

The purpose of this study is to learn if a new whole-person lifestyle program improves the health of low-income mothers.

Existing obesity prevention efforts have had limited success among underserved, low-income children. This study capitalizes on the strengths of a nationwide ongoing Home Visitation Program (HVP), which serves at-risk, low-income, ethnically/racially diverse mothers and their infants, to test the effectiveness of delivering obesity prevention as part of their weekly, in-home services. The study will evaluate whether the integration of an obesity prevention enhancement module into existing HVP services, reduces the risk and incidence of obesity and associated risk factors in mothers and infants, compared to the provision of standard home visitation services. The study also focuses on the role of maternal factors (maternal diet, physical activity, food insecurity and feeding practices) and social factors (social network support) as mechanisms operating on infant outcomes.

Black adolescents who are pregnant represent a high-risk and understudied perinatal population in health research. Adolescent pregnancy (<20 years) is disproportionately prevalent among Blacks compared with Whites and is a prominent risk factor for obesity. Fortunately, metabolic consequences of increasing physical activity coupled with minimal sedentary time can mitigate biological imperils and behavioral interventions targeting perinatal populations have demonstrated efficacy for this approach. Intervention studies to promote physical activity and reduce sedentarism among Black, perinatal adolescents in disadvantaged, rural settings may be a promising strategy to prevent obesity and reduce disparities. In the proposed study, investigators will assess the feasibility and acceptability of #BabyLetsMove, a mobile health intervention targeting three behavioral goals: (1) limit TV time to less than 2 hours a day (sedentary behavior); (2) take 10,000 steps or more per day (physical activity); and (3) do 20 minutes or more of structured activity like prenatal yoga or dance videos per day (exercise). In the #BabyLetsMove feasibility trial investigators aim to conduct a single-arm, 4-week pilot with 20 Black adolescents (15- to 19-years) enrolled in Mississippi's Supplemental Nutritional Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) to test the intervention's feasibility and acceptability. Participants will receive one text message per day for 4-weeks targeting behavior change strategies and two health coaching sessions via mobile phone; an introduction session in week one and a problem-solving session in week three. Investigators will also use qualitative interviewing with additional adolescents (n=20) to solicit user feedback regarding the acceptability of intervention content and materials. Finally, in preparation for a pilot study using an effectiveness-implementation hybrid study design, investigators will conduct a pre-implementation evaluation using quantitative surveying (n=6 surveys) with WIC providers (n=60) to better under the culture and climate of WIC. Investigators hypothesize the #BabyLetsMove intervention will be acceptable to adolescents and a future pilot randomized controlled trial will be feasible. Investigators also anticipate identifying modifiable barriers and facilitators to implementing the intervention through WIC, which will help to design an implementation strategy with a high likelihood for uptake by WIC.

Infancy is an important target period for obesity prevention because once obese as an infant, the relative risk of remaining obese appears to rise with increasing age at great cost to both individuals and society. The ability to self-regulate energy intake (eating when hungry and stopping when full) is vital to obesity prevention and it is thought that this ability can be derailed by a chronic mismatch between parental feeding behavior and the infant's state (feeding in the absence of hunger and/or feeding beyond fullness). The study will test a novel intervention to help parents and pre-verbal infants better understand one another during feeding and it will offer new insight into how self-regulation of energy intake develops during infancy.

The goal of this study is to evaluate components of a preschool-based intervention designed to (1) increase children's nutrition knowledge, (2) increase physical activity in childcare settings, (3) increase emotional, behavioral and eating-related regulation, and (4) provide guidance to parents/caregivers about appropriate parenting and child-feeding strategies that promote healthy eating behaviors, dietary patterns and physical activity in preschool-aged children. The long-term goal is to help children develop healthy habits that reduce risk for obesity.

Childhood obesity prevention efforts are needed in the United States, especially for families with low income. Educating parents and caregivers on simple lifestyle and affordable home environment changes is an effective strategy to improve health outcomes for the entire family. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to determine whether HomeStyles-2, a nutrition education and childhood obesity prevention program for families with children in middle childhood (ages 6 to 11 years), motivates parents to shape their home environments and weight-related lifestyle practices to be more supportive of optimal health and weight status of their children aged 6-11 years more so than those in the control condition. The study will include the experimental group and an attention control group who will engage in a nutrition education program, Eat Healthy Be Active, that is equal in nonspecific treatment effects but does not overlap on topics covered in HomeStyles-2. This study will be implemented in Florida's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed) program, which provides nutrition education and obesity prevention supports for individuals with low income who are receiving or eligible for SNAP benefits. Nutrition Educators will be randomized to the experimental or attention control condition, and will lead participants through virtual, group-based nutrition education series. The following data will be collected: sociodemographic characteristics of the participant and child; child and parent health status; parent weight-related cognitions; weight-related behaviors of the participant and child; and weight-related characteristics of the home environment. Enrollment for this study will begin late-2021.

The purpose of this project is two-fold: (1) to assess if two different resistance training protocols elicit different responses in the acute phase and (2) to assess if the same two different protocols will elicit different long-term responses on muscular strength, body composition and cardiometabolic health. The project will include 30 adults with obesity (defined as BMI ≥ 30 or abdominal obesity according to the International Diabetes Federation). In the acute phase blood lactate, heart rate, enjoyment and perceived exertion will be assessed after the two resistance training protocols. In addition, the mean 24-h blood glucose concentration after exercise will be compared between the two protocols. For the long-term effects blood markers of cardiometabolic health, blood pressure, body composition, objectively measured physical activity and physical fitness will be assessed before and after the intervention. Also, perceived health-related quality of life will be assessed before and after the intervention.

The aim of this project is to assess the effectiveness of the fruit and vegetable (FV) gardening component of the Preventing Obesity by Design strategy to support preschool fresh fruit and vegetable knowledge, liking and consumption, and physical activity in children 3-5 years old living in under-resourced communities and attending childcare using a Randomized Controlled Trial research design. Sample: 15 childcare centers, 286 children.