Dietary IntakeNCT05499858
Evaluating Effectiveness of Spices and Herbs to Increase Vegetable Intake Among Military
A study testing Spiced and Plain in people with Dietary Intake, run by Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
"The goal of this study is to evaluate whether the addition of spices and herbs to the vegetables served to military personnel on a large military base can increase vegetable intake as compared to typical vegetable offerings without spices and herbs. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 years and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Dietary Intake
- What is being tested?
- Spiced and Plain
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 400 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 6 Nov 2022to 31 Dec 2024
- Phase
- Interventional
- 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
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Junior Service Member (E1-E4 or O1-O3)
- Read and write English
Who cannot join
- Anyone under 18 years of age
- Anyone not in the U.S. military
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
United States1 site
Naval Support Activity Bethesda
Bethesda, Maryland, 20814
About this study
"The goal of this study is to evaluate whether the addition of spices and herbs to the vegetables served to military personnel on a large military base can increase vegetable intake as compared to typical vegetable offerings without spices and herbs.
A two-phase intervention will be conducted on base at Naval Station Activity Bethesda (NSAB) to evaluate whether the addition of spices and herbs to vegetable dishes can increase vegetable intake amongst military service members.
Read more
Phase I will involve extensive engagement with key stakeholders involved in current vegetable consumption at NSAB, including military service members, staff dietitians, the health promotion specialist on base, barracks managers, military culinary specialist, unit leaders, morale welfare and recreations/single sailor program leaders, base senior enlisted leaders, and the base commander. Questionnaires will be administered evaluating current barriers to vegetable intake at NSAB, familiarity with and liking of a variety of spices and herbs, and sensory testing of several vegetables with and without spices and herbs. The recipes in the vegetable sensory testing comparisons will be identical other than spices and herbs content.
Phase II will involve will focus upon the direct measurement of vegetable intake (primary outcome) and vegetable linking (secondary outcome) among active-duty service members with spices and herbs and without spices and herbs. The vegetables will be provided as part of an entire meal on a "grab and go" plate. The other foods in the meal (proteins, starches, etc.) accompanying the vegetables will be kept consistently paired to vegetable recipes to minimize confounding. Vegetable intake will be assessed via cell phone pictures and liking will be assessed by a single 5-point Likert scale question."
- Conditions
- Dietary Intake
- Being tested
- Spiced, Plain
- Keywords
- Military, Vegetable intake, Food photography
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
SpicedOther
Vegetables provided to volunteers will be spiced.
PlainOther
Vegetables provided to volunteers will be plain.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Vegetables | Other | Vegetables will be provided to volunteers as part of a heat and serve meal kit. Receives: Other: Spiced; Other: Plain |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Vegetable consumption
Volunteers will provided with a heat and serve meal kit. Using the food photography mobile application (SmartIntake), volunteers will take a single photo of the meal kit after they have consumed a self-determined desired amount of food. The digital photo will be sent to Pennington Biomedical Research Center (PBRC) for analysis via the SmartIntake app. The team at PBRC will download the image and use a validated algorithm to estimate, in cups, the remaining vegetable component from the meal kit.
Measured: Volunteers will be provided with a series of heat and serve meal kits over approximately 2 month time period.
Phase I - Primary Outcome: United States Military - Menu Item Survey
Overall liking of menu item, specific ratings of the appearance, aroma, flavor, texture, and overall appeal of the menu item, and qualitative feedback on general impressions of the menu item
Measured: Volunteers will be provided with a series of 8 recipes to evaluate over the course of a single taste testing session through study completion, an average of 1 year.
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted12 Aug 2022
- Study start6 Nov 2022
- Primary completion30 Jul 2024
- Study completion31 Dec 2024
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (4)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Dietary IntakeStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
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 N/A
- Primary purpose
- Health services research
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 400 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
- Sponsor type
- US federal agency
- Collaborators
- University of Maryland, Baltimore, Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Pennington Biomedical Research Center, McCormick Science Institute
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Jonathan Scott, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
- Investigators
- Chris D'Adamo, PhD, Principal investigator, Assistant Professor
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05499858
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- USUHS- 2022-105
- Status last verified
- Aug 2025
- First submitted
- 9 Aug 2022
- Last updated
- 22 Aug 2025
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No: No Personal Identifiable Information (PII) will be collected. All results will be deidentified and analyzed in aggregate.
Publications
D'Adamo CR, McArdle PF, Balick L, Peisach E, Ferguson T, Diehl A, Bustad K, Bowden B, Pierce BA, Berman BM. Spice MyPlate: Nutrition Education Focusing Upon Spices and Herbs Improved Diet Quality and Attitudes Among Urban High School Students. Am J Health Promot. 2016 May;30(5):346-56. doi: 10.1177/0890117116646333.
PubMed 27404643Pierce B, Bowden B, McCullagh M, Diehl A, Chissell Z, Rodriguez R, Berman BM, D Adamo CR. A Summer Health Program for African-American High School Students in Baltimore, Maryland: Community Partnership for Integrative Health. Explore (NY). 2017 May-Jun;13(3):186-197. doi: 10.1016/j.explore.2017.02.002. Epub 2017 Feb 24.
PubMed 28373062D'Adamo CR, Parker EA, McArdle PF, Trilling A, Bowden B, Bahr-Robertson MK, Keller KL, Berman BM. The addition of spices and herbs to vegetables in the National School Lunch Program increased vegetable intake at an urban, economically-underserved, and predominantly African-American high school. Food Qual Prefer. 2021 Mar;88:104076. doi: 10.1016/j.foodqual.2020.104076. Epub 2020 Sep 1.
PubMed 32999533D'Adamo CR, Troncoso MR, Piedrahita G, Messing J, Scott JM. Spices and Herbs Increase Vegetable Palatability Among Military Service Members. Mil Med. 2025 Jan 16;190(1-2):e266-e272. doi: 10.1093/milmed/usae367.
PubMed 39078749
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 22 Aug 2025. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Evaluating Effectiveness of Spices and Herbs to Increase Vegetable Intake Among Military
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05499858
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- USUHS- 2022-105
- Conditions
- Dietary Intake
- Keywords
- Military, Vegetable intake, Food photography
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 400 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Uniformed Services University of the Health SciencesUS federal agency
- Collaborators
- University of Maryland, Baltimore, Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Pennington Biomedical Research Center, McCormick Science Institute
- Study start
- 6 Nov 2022 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 30 Jul 2024 (actual)
- Study completion
- 31 Dec 2024 (actual)
- First posted
- 12 Aug 2022 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
"The goal of this study is to evaluate whether the addition of spices and herbs to the vegetables served to military personnel on a large military base can increase vegetable intake as compared to typical vegetable offerings without spices and herbs.
A two-phase intervention will be conducted on base at Naval Station Activity Bethesda (NSAB) to evaluate whether the addition of spices and herbs to vegetable dishes can increase vegetable intake amongst military service members.
Phase I will involve extensive engagement with key stakeholders involved in current vegetable consumption at NSAB, including military service members, staff dietitians, the health promotion specialist on base, barracks managers, military culinary specialist, unit leaders, morale welfare and recreations/single sailor program leaders, base senior enlisted leaders, and the base commander. Questionnaires will be administered evaluating current barriers to vegetable intake at NSAB, familiarity with and liking of a variety of spices and herbs, and sensory testing of several vegetables with and without spices and herbs. The recipes in the vegetable sensory testing comparisons will be identical other than spices and herbs content.
Phase II will involve will focus upon the direct measurement of vegetable intake (primary outcome) and vegetable linking (secondary outcome) among active-duty service members with spices and herbs and without spices and herbs. The vegetables will be provided as part of an entire meal on a "grab and go" plate. The other foods in the meal (proteins, starches, etc.) accompanying the vegetables will be kept consistently paired to vegetable recipes to minimize confounding. Vegetable intake will be assessed via cell phone pictures and liking will be assessed by a single 5-point Likert scale question."
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Health services research
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 1
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Vegetables | Other | Other: Spiced, Other: PlainVegetables will be provided to volunteers as part of a heat and serve meal kit. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 years and older
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (2 listed)
- Junior Service Member (E1-E4 or O1-O3)
- Read and write English
Key exclusion criteria (2 listed)
- Anyone under 18 years of age
- Anyone not in the U.S. military
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| SpicedVegetables provided to volunteers will be spiced. | Other | Vegetables |
| PlainVegetables provided to volunteers will be plain. | Other | Vegetables |
Primary outcome
Vegetable consumption
Time frame: Volunteers will be provided with a series of heat and serve meal kits over approximately 2 month time period.
Volunteers will provided with a heat and serve meal kit. Using the food photography mobile application (SmartIntake), volunteers will take a single photo of the meal kit after they have consumed a self-determined desired amount of food. The digital photo will be sent to Pennington Biomedical Research Center (PBRC) for analysis via the SmartIntake app. The team at PBRC will download the image and use a validated algorithm to estimate, in cups, the remaining vegetable component from the meal kit.
Phase I - Primary Outcome: United States Military - Menu Item Survey
Time frame: Volunteers will be provided with a series of 8 recipes to evaluate over the course of a single taste testing session through study completion, an average of 1 year.
Overall liking of menu item, specific ratings of the appearance, aroma, flavor, texture, and overall appeal of the menu item, and qualitative feedback on general impressions of the menu item
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 22 Aug 2025.
- Background: PubMed 27404643D'Adamo CR, McArdle PF, Balick L, Peisach E, Ferguson T, Diehl A, Bustad K, Bowden B, Pierce BA, Berman BM. Spice MyPlate: Nutrition Education Focusing Upon Spices and Herbs Improved Diet Quality and Attitudes Among Urban High School Students. Am J Health Promot. 2016 May;30(5):346-56. doi: 10.1177/0890117116646333.
- Background: PubMed 28373062Pierce B, Bowden B, McCullagh M, Diehl A, Chissell Z, Rodriguez R, Berman BM, D Adamo CR. A Summer Health Program for African-American High School Students in Baltimore, Maryland: Community Partnership for Integrative Health. Explore (NY). 2017 May-Jun;13(3):186-197. doi: 10.1016/j.explore.2017.02.002. Epub 2017 Feb 24.
- Background: PubMed 32999533D'Adamo CR, Parker EA, McArdle PF, Trilling A, Bowden B, Bahr-Robertson MK, Keller KL, Berman BM. The addition of spices and herbs to vegetables in the National School Lunch Program increased vegetable intake at an urban, economically-underserved, and predominantly African-American high school. Food Qual Prefer. 2021 Mar;88:104076. doi: 10.1016/j.foodqual.2020.104076. Epub 2020 Sep 1.
- Derived from this study: PubMed 39078749D'Adamo CR, Troncoso MR, Piedrahita G, Messing J, Scott JM. Spices and Herbs Increase Vegetable Palatability Among Military Service Members. Mil Med. 2025 Jan 16;190(1-2):e266-e272. doi: 10.1093/milmed/usae367.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No. No Personal Identifiable Information (PII) will be collected. All results will be deidentified and analyzed in aggregate.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Chris D'Adamo, PhD principal investigator
Assistant Professor
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Spiced and Plain in people with Dietary Intake, run by Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences 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 2 inclusion and 2 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 22 Aug 2025. 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.
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?
Vegetable consumption (time frame: Volunteers will be provided with a series of heat and serve meal kits over approximately 2 month time period.). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. 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 NCT05499858, which also lists 4 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 22 Aug 2025.