This clinical trial aims to evaluate how group-based food and nutrition education interventions, grounded in the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population, can improve participants' dietary quality and support the treatment of overweight and obesity. The study seeks to determine whether individuals with overweight and obesity receiving outpatient care who participate in collective food and nutrition education activities achieve benefits similar to those receiving individual nutritional counseling, particularly improvements in dietary intake, clinical parameters, and anthropometric measures. Participants will be divided into two groups and will be required to attend four monthly sessions, complete questionnaires before and after the sessions, and provide consent for the collection of data from their medical records. Researchers will compare the outcomes of participants attending group sessions with those receiving individual care to assess whether collective actions provide similar benefits in improving dietary quality, blood test results, and anthropometric measures.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
60
Participants in the intervention group will attend four monthly in-person Food and Nutrition Education sessions based on the Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population. These sessions will facilitate discussions on healthy eating and incorporate activities designed to dispel nutritional myths. The curriculum will address the NOVA classification system, critical appraisal of food labels, and making informed food choices. Additionally, a culinary workshop will feature healthy, affordable recipes. This component aims to enhance culinary skills, broaden dietary repertoire, and ultimately reduce the consumption of ultra-processed foods.
The control group will receive individualized nutritional counseling consisting of four in-person consultations, conducted once monthly over a four-month period. Each session, lasting 50-60 minutes, will be led by a nutritionist. These consultations will focus on establishing goals for dietary habit modification and on developing a personalized nutritional plan to improve overall dietary quality.
Federal University of Health Sciences of Porto Alegre
Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Dietary Assessment
Dietary intake will be assessed using the 24-hour dietary recall available on the Quest Nova platform. This instrument consists of 58 items featuring common foods in the Brazilian diet; participants indicate the consumption of each item via dichotomous (yes/no) responses. The estimated completion time for the questionnaire is 15 minutes. This tool enables the identification of both quantitative and qualitative aspects of the participants' dietary habits. To ensure a representative average of intake, the assessment will be administered twice within the same week, both at baseline (pre-intervention) and post-intervention.
Time frame: Before and After the 4-Month Interventions
Dietary Practice Scale of the Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population
Adherence to healthy eating practices will be measured using the Dietary Practice Scale based on the Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population. This validated, self-administered instrument consists of 24 statements regarding healthy dietary habits as recommended by the guidelines. For each statement, participants indicate their level of adherence using a 4-point Likert scale ranging from "Strongly Agree" to "Strongly Disagree." The scale is a robust tool designed to quantify compliance with national dietary recommendations and to evaluate the overall quality of food-related behaviors.
Time frame: Before and After the 4-Month Interventions
Body Mass Index (BMI)
BMI will be calculated as weight (kg) divided by height squared (m²).
Time frame: Before and after the 4-month interventions
Waist circumference
Waist circumference will be measured using a non-elastic measuring tape at standardized anatomical landmarks. Measurements will be taken three times, and the mean value will be used. Unit of Measure is centimeters (cm).
Time frame: Before and after the 4-month interventions
Fasting blood glucose
The data will be collected from medical records. The unit of measurement used will be mg/dL.
Time frame: Before and after the 4-month interventions
Glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c)
Medical records will be used to gather data. Unit of Measure will be %
Time frame: Before and After the 4-Month Interventions
Total cholesterol
Data will be gathered from medical records. Unit of Measure will be mg/dL
Time frame: Before and After the 4-Month Interventions
HDL cholesterol
Data will be collected from medical records. Unit of Measure will be mg/dL
Time frame: Before and After the 4-Month Interventions
LDL cholesterol
Data will be collected from medical records. Unit of Measure will be mg/dL
Time frame: Before and After the 4-Month Interventions
Triglycerides
Data will be collected from medical records. Unit of Measure will be mg/dL
Time frame: Before and After the 4-Month Interventions
C-reactive protein
Data will be collected from medical records. Unit of Measure will be mg/L
Time frame: Before and After the 4-Month Interventions
Uric acid
Data will be collected from medical records. Unit of Measure will be mg/L
Time frame: Before and After the 4-Month Interventions
Transtheoretical Model of Change
Stage of behavior change will be assessed using the Transtheoretical Model (Prochaska Scale), in which participants will be classified into one of five stages (pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, or maintenance) based on their readiness to engage in weight management behaviors, and the outcome will be analyzed as a categorical variable representing the participant's stage of change (5 levels).
Time frame: Before and after the 4-month interventions
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