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AzTrials

ObesityPhase 1NCT00498394

Effects of a Ketogenic Diet on Body Weight and Cardiovascular Risk Factors

A Phase 1 study testing Clinical diet trial in people with Obesity, run by University of Cincinnati at 1 site in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

This pilot study is a randomized, controlled clinical trial to compare anthropometric and metabolic changes associated with six months of weight management by means of a very low carbohydrate diet or a calorically-restricted low fat diet. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and older, women onlyHealthy volunteers can take part
Conditions the study is for
Obesity
What is being tested?
Clinical diet trial
How many people
103 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
Jun 2000to Oct 2002
Phase
Phase 1
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 years and older
  • Women only
  • Healthy volunteers accepted
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Obese men and women with a BMI of 30-34 kg/m2, at least 18 years of age, who have had stable body weight (i.e., no gain or loss of >5% of body weight) for the preceding six months, who have normal oral glucose tolerance, and who are able to commit to a six month study.

Who cannot join

  • Pregnancy, lactation, active medical or mental illness requiring treatment, recent (within 1 year) use of appetite suppressing compounds, previous use of the ketogenic diet.

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • University of Cincinnati

    Cincinnati, Ohio, 45221-0038

Other trials in United States

About this study

This pilot study is a randomized, controlled clinical trial to compare anthropometric and metabolic changes associated with six months of weight management by means of a very low carbohydrate diet or a calorically-restricted low fat diet. We hypothesized that the low fat diet would be associated with more weight loss and improvement of cardiovascular risk factors than the low carbohydrate diet.

Read the detailed description

Low carbohydrate diets, including high-fat, 'ketogenic' diets, have moved to the forefront of popular diets promoted for weight loss in the United States. These diet plans have been aggressively marketed to millions of Americans every year. However, there has been virtually no rigorous study of low carbohydrate, high fat diets either with regard to efficacy in promoting weight loss or effects on cardiovascular risk factors. Because very low carbohydrate diets (i.e., the ketogenic diets) recommend increased intake of fat, and saturated fat, we hypothesized that following one of these diet plans could actually worsen important risk factors for cardiovascular disease. This is an issue of great importance because large numbers of people experiment with low carbohydrate diets despite not knowing their effects on blood pressure, plasma lipid levels, and glucose tolerance. Therefore, we have proposed a clinical trial to test our hypothesis. In this study, we will compare the effects of three months of a ketogenic diet (as promoted by Dr. Robert Atkins) with three months of a weight loss diet that conforms to the American Heart Association dietary guidelines in a group of 100 otherwise healthy obese subjects. During the course of the study, we will determine the effects of diet on 1) body weight, percent fat, and resting metabolic rate, 2) blood pressure, 3) plasma lipids, 4) measures of glucose tolerance, and 5) measures of psychological health and eating behaviors. This pilot study will provide the preliminary data needed to demonstrate the efficacy (or lack thereof) of a popular weight loss technique (i.e., the ketogenic diet) that is currently being criticized by professional organizations. Armed with preliminary data, the investigators plan to further investigate the long-term anthropometric and metabolic effects of ketogenic diets with a larger sample.

Conditions
Obesity
Being tested
Clinical diet trial
Keywords
Obesity, Weight loss, Diet fads
Medical subject headings
Obesity, Weight Loss

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Clinical diet trialBehavioural

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Body weight

    Measured: 6 months

Secondary outcomes (6)
  1. Body fat via dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA)

    Measured: 6 months

  2. Resting metabolic rate via indirect calorimetry

    Measured: 6 months

  3. Blood pressure

    Measured: 6 months

  4. Fasting plasma total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, and triglycerides

    Measured: 6 months

  5. Fasting insulin and glucose

    Measured: 6 months

  6. Psychological health and eating behaviors via surveys

    Measured: 6 months

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted10 Jul 2007 (estimated)
  2. Study startJun 2000
  3. Study completionOct 2002

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 1
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
103 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00498394
Sponsor's protocol ID
0060334B
Status last verified
Jul 2007
First submitted
6 Jul 2007
Last updated
10 Jul 2007
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No

Publications

  • Brehm BJ, Seeley RJ, Daniels SR, D'Alessio DA. A randomized trial comparing a very low carbohydrate diet and a calorie-restricted low fat diet on body weight and cardiovascular risk factors in healthy women. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2003 Apr;88(4):1617-23. doi: 10.1210/jc.2002-021480.

    PubMed 12679447
  • Brehm BJ, Spang SE, Lattin BL, Seeley RJ, Daniels SR, D'Alessio DA. The role of energy expenditure in the differential weight loss in obese women on low-fat and low-carbohydrate diets. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2005 Mar;90(3):1475-82. doi: 10.1210/jc.2004-1540. Epub 2004 Dec 14.

    PubMed 15598683
  • O'Brien KD, Brehm BJ, Seeley RJ, Bean J, Wener MH, Daniels S, D'Alessio DA. Diet-induced weight loss is associated with decreases in plasma serum amyloid a and C-reactive protein independent of dietary macronutrient composition in obese subjects. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2005 Apr;90(4):2244-9. doi: 10.1210/jc.2004-1011. Epub 2005 Jan 25.

    PubMed 15671108

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 1 study testing Clinical diet trial in people with Obesity, run by University of Cincinnati at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 1 inclusion and 1 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 10 Jul 2007. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 1 studies test a treatment in a small group of people for the first time or in a new way, mainly to check safety and find the right dose.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Body weight (time frame: 6 months). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT00498394, which also lists 3 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 10 Jul 2007.

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