
A Scintigraphic Study to Investigate the Effect of Gelesis100 on Gastric Emptying in Overweight...
OverweightObesityThe purpose of the study is to evaluate the gastrointestinal behaviour of a novel weight loss device in vivo to further understand the device's mechanism of action in aiding weight loss.

Cardiovascular Risk Screening and Risk Reduction in Women Vets
Cardiovascular DiseasesHypertension6 moreBackground: Women Veterans are the fastest growing segment of Veterans Health Administration (VHA) users. This dramatic growth has created challenges for VHA. Gender disparities persist in cardiovascular (CV) and diabetes risk factor control, and rates of depression, anxiety, and mental health comorbidity are disproportionately high among women Veterans. Furthermore, a high rate of women Veterans' attrition from VA care, along with organizational barriers to care, substantiate that organizational changes are needed in order to engage and retain women Veteran VHA users in evidence-based, patient-centered care. Objectives: The Enhancing Mental and Physical health of Women through Engagement and Retention (EMPOWER) QUERI addresses VHA Blueprint for Excellence Strategy 6, by advancing "personalized, proactive, patient-centered" care models, and Transformational Strategy 7.2.g by implementation of innovative care models in women Veterans' health care." The EMPOWER QUERI Program is designed to improve women Veterans' engagement and retention in evidence-based care for three high priority health conditions, i.e., prediabetes, cardiovascular, and mental health. To achieve this impact goal, we propose a cohesive portfolio of projects with the following aims: (1) To use an evidence-based implementation strategy that emphasizes local tailoring of care models, multilevel stakeholder engagement, and systematic evaluation of complex implementation processes in order to enrich organizational capacity for innovations in women Veterans' VHA health care; (2) To implement personalized, proactive, patient-centered innovations in VHA women's health that are acceptable, feasible, satisfactory, relevant, and effective for both providers and patients, thereby encouraging women Veterans' engagement and retention and sustainability of the innovations; and, (3) To generate implementation "playbooks" for our partners that are scalable and serve as guidance for future implementation of a broader array of evidence-based women's health programs and policy. Methods: Three projects will be conducted by an experienced multidisciplinary team. "Tailoring VA's Diabetes Prevention Program to Women Veterans' Needs" is a one-year QI project to be conducted in VA Greater Los Angeles women's health clinics. Women Veterans with prediabetes will select an in-person, peer-led or online gender-specific, evidence-based diabetes prevention program to address their risk behaviors and health conditions. "Facilitating Cardiovascular Risk Screening and Risk Reduction in Women Veterans" will increase identification of CV risk among women Veterans, enhance patient/provider communication and shared decision-making about CV risk, and provide a supportive, coordinated health coaching intervention to facilitate women Veterans' engagement and retention in appropriate health services. "Implementation of Tailored Collaborative Care for Women Veterans" will evaluate implementation of an evidence-based collaborative care model tailored to enhance provider- and system-level capabilities to address women Veterans' anxiety and depression treatment needs, thereby improving organizational primary care-mental health integration (PC-MHI) effectiveness and women Veterans' engagement and retention in PC-MHI. Both implementation research studies will use a modified stepped wedge design and will apply the evidence-based Replicating Effective Programs (REP) implementation strategy. Mixed methods implementation evaluations will focus on investigating primary implementation outcomes of adoption, acceptability, feasibility, and reach. Multilevel stakeholder engagement will be prioritized. Program-wide organizational-, provider-, and patient-level measures and tools will be utilized to enhance synergy, productivity, and impact. As a coherent program of women's health implementation research and quality improvement, the proposed EMPOWER QUERI will constitute a major milestone in achieving BPE strategies and realizing women Veterans' engagement and, ultimately, empowerment in our VHA system.

Effectiveness of Changing Dietary Fat on Weight Loss
OverweightThis study will compare two energy reduced diets; one diet will include one Haas avocado/day while the other diet will follow the usual American dietary pattern. All subjects will receive a dietary plan that reduces their usual intake by 500kcal/day with the same percentage of fat, protein and carbohydrates. The results from this study may help to explain if eating one Haas avocado/day can achieve at least equivalent weight loss when compared to the usual American diet.

Sprint to Fitness: Effect of Outcome Expectations on Responses to Interval Exercise Training
OverweightObesityThe purpose of this study is to research the effects of exercising at high intensities for short periods of time on exercise tolerance and motivation.

Skeletal Muscle Protein Metabolism and Insulin Sensitivity in Overweight Individuals: Effects of...
Insulin ResistanceThe aim of the study will investigate whether impairment in the action of insulin to promote the use of glucose in skeletal muscle (insulin resistance) as a result of oral ingestion of a liquid meal rich in saturated fat is linked to reduced ability of muscles to synthesise new protein in response to dietary protein intake, which ultimately may compromise maintenance of muscle size and quality of life and whether partially replacing saturated fat in the liquid meal with omega 3 polyunsaturated FA (n3PUFA) will ameliorate these negative effects.

The Juice Study: Sensitivity of Skin Carotenoid Status to Detect Change in Intake
OverweightThis study is designed to see if drinking a tomato-based vegetable juice will increase skin carotenoids.

Dietary Guide in Active Older Adult Men
MenDiet Modification4 moreThe present study aimed to determine the effects of negative-calorie diet supplemented with exercise, on weight loss and lipid profile, and to compare its efficiency with low-calorie diet with exercise among elderly adult men with abnormal weight gain.

Effects of Acute Dietary Changes on Estimates of Body Composition
OverweightThe present study sought to investigate the effects of acute dietary changes on estimates of body composition. Specifically, the impact of an acute high-carbohydrate diet (9 g/kg body weight of carbohydrate) and an acute very low-carbohydrate diet (1 - 1.5 g/kg body weight of carbohydrate) were examined.

The Alberta FYBER (Feed Your Gut Bacteria morE fibeR) Study
Overweight and ObesityToo much body-fat has been linked to a low-grade inflammation throughout the body. This inflammation is thought to then cause different diseases, like heart disease and diabetes. A lower amount of inflammation is usually seen in people that follow a high fiber diet. A reason for this is the microbes that live in our gut. Fiber is a main food source for these microbes. This allows fiber to actually change the type of microbes that live in our gut. Also, when fiber gets fermented by these microbes, health-promoting waste products get released. We aim to determine how exactly our gut microbes contribute to the health properties of fiber. We hypothesize that fiber's health properties depend on how the gut microbes respond to the fiber. To test this, we plan to add three different fibers to the diets of healthy overweight and obese individuals for six weeks. We then will determine how the different fibers affect an individuals' health by looking at how established markers of health change from adding the fiber. Following this, we will see how an individual's gut microbes respond to the added fiber. The response will be decided by looking at changes to the microbe community, as well as their ability to ferment the fibers. By connecting health outcomes to the gut microbes' response, we can test if the gut microbes' response to the fiber determines the fiber's ability to effect health. If we can understand how our gut microbes respond to different fibers and the importance of that response. Then we could personalize diets to have a greater impact on improving health.

Whey Protein Micelles and Thermogenesis in Overweight Subjects
OverweightThe main objective of the trial is to measure the thermogenic effect of two different doses of whey protein microgels. It will be a randomized crossover double-blind design conducted in 20 subjects.