Food CravingNCT07103811
Social Media Use, Food Craving and Ultra Processed Food Consumption in Students
An observational study of Food Craving and Ultra Processed Food, run by Atılım University at 1 site in Turkey (Türkiye).
Trial summary
Social media can increase unhealthy eating habits by influencing individuals' desire to eat, especially through images and advertisements of ultra-processed foods. One of the groups most affected by this situation is university students who use social media intensively. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 25 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Food Craving, Ultra Processed Food, Social Media
- How many people
- 150 participants
- Where
- 1 siteTurkey (Türkiye)
- Study dates
- 1 Apr 2025to 15 Aug 2025
- Phase
- Observational
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
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 to 25 years
- All sexes
- Adult
Study population: The population of this study consisted of male and female university students aged between 18 and 25 years studying in Ankara.
Who may be able to join
- To be between the ages of 18-25
- To reside in Ankara
- Being a university student
- Volunteering
- No communication problems
Who cannot join
- Under 18 years of age and over 25 years of age
- Persons who are not university students
- Those who do not reside in Ankara
- Those with communication problems
- Having any psychological disorder
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
Turkey (Türkiye)1 site, 1 recruiting
- Recruiting
Atılım University
Ankara
Sedef Güngör, +905379561862, sedefglsz@gmail.com
About this study
Official title: The Relationship Between Social Media Use, Food Craving and Ultra-Processed Food Consumption in University Students
Social media can increase unhealthy eating habits by influencing individuals' desire to eat, especially through images and advertisements of ultra-processed foods. One of the groups most affected by this situation is university students who use social media intensively. Therefore, examining the relationship between social media use and ultra-processed food consumption is important in terms of developing healthy eating awareness.
Read the detailed description
Nowadays, social media has gained an important place in the daily lives of individuals and has become a factor that can be effective on dietary habits. Food content frequently shared on social media platforms, especially advertisements related to ultra-processed foods, can shape food perceptions and consumption behaviours. This may increase ultra-processed food consumption by triggering individuals' food craving.
Ultra-processed foods are foods that contain high levels of sugar, fat, salt and additives, have low nutritional value but are attractive in terms of flavour. Such foods can create an addiction-like consumption cycle because they provide fast energy and directly affect the brain reward system. Intensive visual and content exposure to these foods on social media may increase individuals' appetite reactions and lead to the spread of unhealthy eating habits.
University students are one of the most affected groups due to their young age group and intensive use of social media. At the same time, it is known that the eating habits acquired during this period are decisive on sustainable health in the long term. Therefore, examining the relationship between social media use, food craving and ultra-processed food consumption is an important issue in terms of developing nutritional awareness and promoting healthy eating habits.
Objective: This study aims to examine the effect of university students' exposure to ultra-processed food content on their food craving and ultra-processed food consumption on social media platforms.
Method This study will be conducted online via a questionnaire prepared through Google Forms and the students of Atılım University will be included in the study. Before starting the study, participants will be asked to read and approve the Informed Voluntary Consent Form. The study will be conducted with at least 150 participants. It is planned to collect and analyse the data between April 2025 and June 2025.
The first part of the data collection form includes questions about the demographic characteristics (gender, age, marital status, occupation, etc.) and anthropometric measurements (body weight, height) of the participants. In the second part of the form, there will be questions about their social media use (duration of use, exposure to nutrients, etc.). The third part of the questionnaire form includes the 'Food Craving Questionnaire Short Form (FCQT-R)', which was developed to evaluate the desire to eat and was adapted into Turkish in 2021. The scale consists of 15 questions and includes a 6-point scale ranging from 'Never' (1) to 'Always' (6). The scale has a score range of 15-90. A low score indicates a low food craving experience, while a high score indicates a high food craving experience. In the fourth part of the data collection form, the 'Multiprocessed Food Consumption Short Screening Questionnaire' developed for the evaluation of ultra-processed food consumption and adapted into Turkish by Gövez et al. There are 11 items in the scale. For each question, the participants will be asked to tick one of the yes or no answers. The score that can be obtained from the scale varies between 0 and 11. There are no reverse items in the scale. Each yes is scored as 1 point. 6 points and above is considered as high processed food consumption. Participants will not be asked for their names and identity information, and research data will not be shared with any institution.
Expected Results of the Study: This study is expected to show that exposure to ultra-processed food content on social media may increase university students' food craving and ultra-processed food consumption. It is predicted that the duration of social media use and content interaction may encourage unconscious eating behaviours and this may lead to unhealthy eating habits. The findings are expected to contribute to understanding the effects of social media on nutrition and shed light on the development of strategies that promote healthy eating.
- Conditions
- Food Craving, Ultra Processed Food, Social Media
- Keywords
- Food craving, Ultra processed food, Social media
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Evaluation of the correlation between social media use and ultra-processed food consumption in university students
Questions about students' social media use (duration of use, exposure to nutrients, etc.) will be collected with a questionnaire form. In order to evaluate ultra-processed food consumption, 'short screening questionnaire of highly processed food consumption (sQ-HPF)' will be applied. There are 11 items in the scale. For each question, the participants will be asked to tick one of the yes or no answers. The score that can be obtained from the scale varies between 0 and 11. There is no reverse item in the scale. Each yes is evaluated as 1 point. 6 points and above is considered as high processed food consumption.
Measured: Up to one month
Evaluation of the correlation between Social Media Use and Food Craving in University Students
Questions about students' social media use (duration of use, exposure to foods, etc.) will be collected with a questionnaire form. 'Food Craving Questionnaire Short Form (FCQT-R)' will be used to evaluate the desire to eat. The scale consists of 15 questions and includes a 6-point scale ranging from "Never" (1) to "Always" (6). The scale has a score range of 15-90. A low score indicates a low food craving experience, while a high score indicates a high food craving experience.
Measured: Up to one month
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted5 Aug 2025
- Study start1 Apr 2025
- Primary completion1 Aug 2025 (estimated)
- Study completion15 Aug 2025 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (8)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Food CravingStudies 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
- Observational
- Observational model
- Case only
- Time perspective
- Cross-sectional
- Enrolment
- 150 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Atılım University
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07103811
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- Sedef Güngör-Atılım-03
- Status last verified
- Jul 2025
- First submitted
- 29 Jul 2025
- Last updated
- 5 Aug 2025
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
Publications
Aleid S, Alshahrani NZ, Alsedrah S, Carvalho AB, Lima MJ, Teixeira-Lemos E, Raposo A. The Role of Social Media Advertisement and Physical Activity on Eating Behaviors among the General Population in Saudi Arabia. Nutrients. 2024 Apr 19;16(8):1215. doi: 10.3390/nu16081215.
PubMed 38674905Filippone L, Shankland R, Hallez Q. The relationships between social media exposure, food craving, cognitive impulsivity and cognitive restraint. J Eat Disord. 2022 Nov 25;10(1):184. doi: 10.1186/s40337-022-00698-4.
PubMed 36434703Cheikh Ismail L, Osaili TM, Naja F, Wartanian M, Elkabat G, Arnous M, Alkoukou H, Mohamad MN, Saleh ST, Al Daour R, Masuadi E, Ali HI, Stojanovska L, Al Dhaheri AS. The association of social media with dietary behaviors among adults in the United Arab Emirates. Heliyon. 2024 Jul 31;10(15):e35574. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e35574. eCollection 2024 Aug 15.
PubMed 39166066Fondevila-Gascon JF, Berbel-Gimenez G, Vidal-Portes E, Hurtado-Galarza K. Ultra-Processed Foods in University Students: Implementing Nutri-Score to Make Healthy Choices. Healthcare (Basel). 2022 May 25;10(6):984. doi: 10.3390/healthcare10060984.
PubMed 35742036Cepeda-Benito A, Gleaves DH, Fernandez MC, Vila J, Williams TL, Reynoso J. The development and validation of Spanish versions of the State and Trait Food Cravings Questionnaires. Behav Res Ther. 2000 Nov;38(11):1125-38. doi: 10.1016/s0005-7967(99)00141-2.
PubMed 11060941Meule A, Hermann T, Kubler A. A short version of the Food Cravings Questionnaire-Trait: the FCQ-T-reduced. Front Psychol. 2014 Mar 4;5:190. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00190. eCollection 2014.
PubMed 24624116Martinez-Perez C, Daimiel L, Climent-Mainar C, Martinez-Gonzalez MA, Salas-Salvado J, Corella D, Schroder H, Martinez JA, Alonso-Gomez AM, Warnberg J, Vioque J, Romaguera D, Lopez-Miranda J, Estruch R, Tinahones FJ, Lapetra J, Serra-Majem L, Bueno-Cavanillas A, Tur JA, Sanchez VM, Pinto X, Delgado-Rodriguez M, Matia-Martin P, Vidal J, Vazquez C, Ros E, Basterra J, Babio N, Guillem-Saiz P, Zomeno MD, Abete I, Vaquero-Luna J, Baron-Lopez FJ, Gonzalez-Palacios S, Konieczna J, Garcia-Rios A, Bernal-Lopez MR, Santos-Lozano JM, Bes-Rastrollo M, Khoury N, Saiz C, Perez-Vega KA, Zulet MA, Tojal-Sierra L, Ruiz ZV, Martinez MA, Malcampo M, Ordovas JM, San-Cristobal R. Integrative development of a short screening questionnaire of highly processed food consumption (sQ-HPF). Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2022 Jan 24;19(1):6. doi: 10.1186/s12966-021-01240-6.
PubMed 35073909Erdogan Govez N, Koksal E, Martinez-Perez C, Daimiel L. Validity and Reliability of the Turkish Version of the Screening Questionnaire of Highly Processed Food Consumption (sQ-HPF). Nutrients. 2024 Aug 3;16(15):2552. doi: 10.3390/nu16152552.
PubMed 39125430
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 5 Aug 2025. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- The Relationship Between Social Media Use, Food Craving and Ultra-Processed Food Consumption in University Students
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07103811
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- Sedef Güngör-Atılım-03
- Conditions
- Food Craving, Ultra Processed Food, Social Media
- Keywords
- Food craving, Ultra processed food, Social media
- Study type
- Observational
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Enrolment
- 150 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- Atılım UniversityUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 1 Apr 2025 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 1 Aug 2025 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 15 Aug 2025 (estimated)
- First posted
- 5 Aug 2025 (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.
Social media can increase unhealthy eating habits by influencing individuals' desire to eat, especially through images and advertisements of ultra-processed foods. One of the groups most affected by this situation is university students who use social media intensively. Therefore, examining the relationship between social media use and ultra-processed food consumption is important in terms of developing healthy eating awareness.
Detailed description
Nowadays, social media has gained an important place in the daily lives of individuals and has become a factor that can be effective on dietary habits. Food content frequently shared on social media platforms, especially advertisements related to ultra-processed foods, can shape food perceptions and consumption behaviours. This may increase ultra-processed food consumption by triggering individuals' food craving.
Ultra-processed foods are foods that contain high levels of sugar, fat, salt and additives, have low nutritional value but are attractive in terms of flavour. Such foods can create an addiction-like consumption cycle because they provide fast energy and directly affect the brain reward system. Intensive visual and content exposure to these foods on social media may increase individuals' appetite reactions and lead to the spread of unhealthy eating habits.
University students are one of the most affected groups due to their young age group and intensive use of social media. At the same time, it is known that the eating habits acquired during this period are decisive on sustainable health in the long term. Therefore, examining the relationship between social media use, food craving and ultra-processed food consumption is an important issue in terms of developing nutritional awareness and promoting healthy eating habits.
Objective: This study aims to examine the effect of university students' exposure to ultra-processed food content on their food craving and ultra-processed food consumption on social media platforms.
Method This study will be conducted online via a questionnaire prepared through Google Forms and the students of Atılım University will be included in the study. Before starting the study, participants will be asked to read and approve the Informed Voluntary Consent Form. The study will be conducted with at least 150 participants. It is planned to collect and analyse the data between April 2025 and June 2025.
The first part of the data collection form includes questions about the demographic characteristics (gender, age, marital status, occupation, etc.) and anthropometric measurements (body weight, height) of the participants. In the second part of the form, there will be questions about their social media use (duration of use, exposure to nutrients, etc.). The third part of the questionnaire form includes the 'Food Craving Questionnaire Short Form (FCQT-R)', which was developed to evaluate the desire to eat and was adapted into Turkish in 2021. The scale consists of 15 questions and includes a 6-point scale ranging from 'Never' (1) to 'Always' (6). The scale has a score range of 15-90. A low score indicates a low food craving experience, while a high score indicates a high food craving experience. In the fourth part of the data collection form, the 'Multiprocessed Food Consumption Short Screening Questionnaire' developed for the evaluation of ultra-processed food consumption and adapted into Turkish by Gövez et al. There are 11 items in the scale. For each question, the participants will be asked to tick one of the yes or no answers. The score that can be obtained from the scale varies between 0 and 11. There are no reverse items in the scale. Each yes is scored as 1 point. 6 points and above is considered as high processed food consumption. Participants will not be asked for their names and identity information, and research data will not be shared with any institution.
Expected Results of the Study: This study is expected to show that exposure to ultra-processed food content on social media may increase university students' food craving and ultra-processed food consumption. It is predicted that the duration of social media use and content interaction may encourage unconscious eating behaviours and this may lead to unhealthy eating habits. The findings are expected to contribute to understanding the effects of social media on nutrition and shed light on the development of strategies that promote healthy eating.
Study design
- Observational model
- Case only
- Time perspective
- Cross-sectional
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 25 years
- Sex
- All
- Age groups
- Adult
- Study population
- The population of this study consisted of male and female university students aged between 18 and 25 years studying in Ankara.
Key inclusion criteria (5 listed)
- To be between the ages of 18-25
- To reside in Ankara
- Being a university student
- Volunteering
- No communication problems
Key exclusion criteria (5 listed)
- Under 18 years of age and over 25 years of age
- Persons who are not university students
- Those who do not reside in Ankara
- Those with communication problems
- Having any psychological disorder
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Primary outcome
Evaluation of the correlation between social media use and ultra-processed food consumption in university students
Time frame: Up to one month
Questions about students' social media use (duration of use, exposure to nutrients, etc.) will be collected with a questionnaire form. In order to evaluate ultra-processed food consumption, 'short screening questionnaire of highly processed food consumption (sQ-HPF)' will be applied. There are 11 items in the scale. For each question, the participants will be asked to tick one of the yes or no answers. The score that can be obtained from the scale varies between 0 and 11. There is no reverse item in the scale. Each yes is evaluated as 1 point. 6 points and above is considered as high processed food consumption.
Evaluation of the correlation between Social Media Use and Food Craving in University Students
Time frame: Up to one month
Questions about students' social media use (duration of use, exposure to foods, etc.) will be collected with a questionnaire form. 'Food Craving Questionnaire Short Form (FCQT-R)' will be used to evaluate the desire to eat. The scale consists of 15 questions and includes a 6-point scale ranging from "Never" (1) to "Always" (6). The scale has a score range of 15-90. A low score indicates a low food craving experience, while a high score indicates a high food craving experience.
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 5 Aug 2025.
- Background: PubMed 38674905Aleid S, Alshahrani NZ, Alsedrah S, Carvalho AB, Lima MJ, Teixeira-Lemos E, Raposo A. The Role of Social Media Advertisement and Physical Activity on Eating Behaviors among the General Population in Saudi Arabia. Nutrients. 2024 Apr 19;16(8):1215. doi: 10.3390/nu16081215.
- Background: PubMed 36434703Filippone L, Shankland R, Hallez Q. The relationships between social media exposure, food craving, cognitive impulsivity and cognitive restraint. J Eat Disord. 2022 Nov 25;10(1):184. doi: 10.1186/s40337-022-00698-4.
- Background: PubMed 39166066Cheikh Ismail L, Osaili TM, Naja F, Wartanian M, Elkabat G, Arnous M, Alkoukou H, Mohamad MN, Saleh ST, Al Daour R, Masuadi E, Ali HI, Stojanovska L, Al Dhaheri AS. The association of social media with dietary behaviors among adults in the United Arab Emirates. Heliyon. 2024 Jul 31;10(15):e35574. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e35574. eCollection 2024 Aug 15.
- Background: PubMed 35742036Fondevila-Gascon JF, Berbel-Gimenez G, Vidal-Portes E, Hurtado-Galarza K. Ultra-Processed Foods in University Students: Implementing Nutri-Score to Make Healthy Choices. Healthcare (Basel). 2022 May 25;10(6):984. doi: 10.3390/healthcare10060984.
- Background: PubMed 11060941Cepeda-Benito A, Gleaves DH, Fernandez MC, Vila J, Williams TL, Reynoso J. The development and validation of Spanish versions of the State and Trait Food Cravings Questionnaires. Behav Res Ther. 2000 Nov;38(11):1125-38. doi: 10.1016/s0005-7967(99)00141-2.
- Background: PubMed 24624116Meule A, Hermann T, Kubler A. A short version of the Food Cravings Questionnaire-Trait: the FCQ-T-reduced. Front Psychol. 2014 Mar 4;5:190. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00190. eCollection 2014.
- Background: PubMed 35073909Martinez-Perez C, Daimiel L, Climent-Mainar C, Martinez-Gonzalez MA, Salas-Salvado J, Corella D, Schroder H, Martinez JA, Alonso-Gomez AM, Warnberg J, Vioque J, Romaguera D, Lopez-Miranda J, Estruch R, Tinahones FJ, Lapetra J, Serra-Majem L, Bueno-Cavanillas A, Tur JA, Sanchez VM, Pinto X, Delgado-Rodriguez M, Matia-Martin P, Vidal J, Vazquez C, Ros E, Basterra J, Babio N, Guillem-Saiz P, Zomeno MD, Abete I, Vaquero-Luna J, Baron-Lopez FJ, Gonzalez-Palacios S, Konieczna J, Garcia-Rios A, Bernal-Lopez MR, Santos-Lozano JM, Bes-Rastrollo M, Khoury N, Saiz C, Perez-Vega KA, Zulet MA, Tojal-Sierra L, Ruiz ZV, Martinez MA, Malcampo M, Ordovas JM, San-Cristobal R. Integrative development of a short screening questionnaire of highly processed food consumption (sQ-HPF). Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2022 Jan 24;19(1):6. doi: 10.1186/s12966-021-01240-6.
- Background: PubMed 39125430Erdogan Govez N, Koksal E, Martinez-Perez C, Daimiel L. Validity and Reliability of the Turkish Version of the Screening Questionnaire of Highly Processed Food Consumption (sQ-HPF). Nutrients. 2024 Aug 3;16(15):2552. doi: 10.3390/nu16152552.
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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.
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
An observational study of Food Craving and Ultra Processed Food, run by Atılım University at 1 site in Turkey (Türkiye).
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 5 inclusion and 5 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: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 5 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 Turkey (Türkiye). 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?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Sedef Güngör (+905379561862, sedefglsz@gmail.com), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Evaluation of the correlation between social media use and ultra-processed food consumption in university students (time frame: Up to one month). 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 NCT07103811, which also lists 8 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 5 Aug 2025.