Cooking as a Health Behavior in College Students

NCT ID: NCT04084028

Last Updated: 2021-07-08

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 53 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2019-09-01
• Study Completion Date: 2020-05-18

Brief Summary

Students who live off campus at the University of Vermont will be recruited to participate in the study which will begin in Fall 2019 and run through May 2020. The intervention is a randomized-controlled trial where students will be randomized into one of four conditions: 1) Active cooking classes followed by meal kits and recipes, 2) Active cooking classes followed by no further instruction, 3) No cooking classes followed by meal kits and recipes, or 4) No intervention. Assessments will be conducted at baseline and following each phase.

Detailed Description

The proposed pilot study is a randomized trial to evaluate whether cooking classes produce greater gains in cooking skills, food agency, and cooking frequency than meal kits or no intervention. There will be three phases to the study intervention and four study conditions (as outlined below).

Phase 1- Cooking classes. All participants will attend 1 kitchen intensive session followed by 1 cooking class per week for 6 weeks

Phase 2- Meal Kits. Assigned participants will receive meal kit deliveries once per week for 6 weeks.

Phase 3- Recipes. Assigned participants will receive 5 healthy recipes by email once per week for 6 weeks. This phase was planned, but was canceled due to disruptions caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.

The investigators will randomize 64 students to one of four intervention conditions.

Group A (n=16) - Active cooking classes followed by meal kits and recipes Group B (n=16) - Active cooking classes followed by no further instruction Group C (n=16) - No cooking classes followed by meal kits and recipes Group D (n=16) - No intervention

Assessments will be conducted at baseline, and following each phase.

Cooking Classes: Subjects in the cooking class conditions will begin with a brief lecture on the day's lesson followed by a demonstration from the chef instructor. Subjects will then work with a partner to prepare the recipe with guidance from the chef instructor. All participants will receive printed copies of the weekly recipe(s). At the end of the class period all subjects will take part in a sensory experience led by the chef instructor in which they will observe the appearance, smell, taste, and texture, of the meal they have just prepared.

Meal Kits: With the meal delivery service, participants will get all the ingredients they need to make a meal as well as a recipe for the meal which includes step-by-step photos. They are then responsible for doing the actual cooking of the meal. Students will all receive kits for 3 meals per week from the same delivery service and will have the option to select meals that fit their dietary needs (vegetarian, gluten free, etc.). Meal kits are designed to serve two individuals therefore students should have enough food for six meals, though they will only need to cook three times. The service used is open to the public, therefore students who enjoyed the meal kit service could opt to continue service and pay for it themselves. However, students will be instructed to wait until study completion to do so.

Recipes: Recipes will be designed by the research team, which includes three registered dietitians and a trained chef. Students will receive recipes for five healthy meals per week. Participants will need to shop, budget, and plan on their own. Recipes will accommodate major dietary preferences including vegetarian and gluten-free.

Conditions

Diet, Healthy

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Active Cooking +meal kits and recipes

Participants will attend a weekly 2-hour cooking class to learn how to prepare meals. Participants cook and sample the meal at the end of class and the chef will walk them through a sensory exercise. At the end of each class, participants will be provided with the recipe for the next class and asked to create a timeline for the various steps of preparation. Participants will bring this timeline to class and discuss as a group before preparing the meal.

Following 6 weeks of cooking classes, participants will receive 6 weeks of home-delivered meal kits. Following 6 weeks of meal kits, participants will received 6 weeks of recipes. Both the meal kits and recipes will accommodate major dietary needs (vegan, gluten-free, etc.)

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Active Cooking Classes

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

6 cooking classes will be held every week for 6 consecutive weeks. The lessons are patterned after Dr. Amy Trubek's cooking pedagogy and will be tailored for those cooking for themselves for the first time. Classes begin with a brief lecture on the day's topic. Students will work in teams of 2 in the foods lab to actively practice skills and cook a meal. Students receive recipes and information sheets that cover pantry supplies, grocery lists, knife skills and cooking equipment. All students attend a 2 hour kitchen intensive demonstration as an orientation.

Meal Kits

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Students receive 6 weeks of home delivered meal kits. Meal kits include ingredients and detailed instructions for 3 meals, which each serve two people. Students may select meals from a list of 18 options that include vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free options.

Recipes

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Students are emailed a set of recipes once a week for 6 weeks. Recipes include options for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. Recipe sets include vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options. This intervention was cancelled by COVID-related disruptions and did not take place.

Active cooking only

Participants will attend a weekly 2-hour cooking class to learn how to prepare meals. Participants cook and sample the meal at the end of class and the chef will walk them through a sensory exercise. At the end of each class, participants will be provided with the recipe for the next class and asked to create a timeline for the various steps of preparation. Participants will bring this timeline to class and discuss as a group before preparing the meal. Unlike the previous arm, no further instruction will be given once cooking classes end.

Group Type: ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Active Cooking Classes

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

6 cooking classes will be held every week for 6 consecutive weeks. The lessons are patterned after Dr. Amy Trubek's cooking pedagogy and will be tailored for those cooking for themselves for the first time. Classes begin with a brief lecture on the day's topic. Students will work in teams of 2 in the foods lab to actively practice skills and cook a meal. Students receive recipes and information sheets that cover pantry supplies, grocery lists, knife skills and cooking equipment. All students attend a 2 hour kitchen intensive demonstration as an orientation.

Meal Kits only

Participants will receive weekly meal kit deliveries for 6 weeks. Following 6 weeks of meal kit deliveries, students will receive emails at the beginning of each week providing them with 5 healthy recipes.

Group Type: ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Meal Kits

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Students receive 6 weeks of home delivered meal kits. Meal kits include ingredients and detailed instructions for 3 meals, which each serve two people. Students may select meals from a list of 18 options that include vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free options.

Recipes

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Students are emailed a set of recipes once a week for 6 weeks. Recipes include options for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. Recipe sets include vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options. This intervention was cancelled by COVID-related disruptions and did not take place.

Control

Participants will receive no interventions.

Group Type: NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

Active Cooking Classes

6 cooking classes will be held every week for 6 consecutive weeks. The lessons are patterned after Dr. Amy Trubek's cooking pedagogy and will be tailored for those cooking for themselves for the first time. Classes begin with a brief lecture on the day's topic. Students will work in teams of 2 in the foods lab to actively practice skills and cook a meal. Students receive recipes and information sheets that cover pantry supplies, grocery lists, knife skills and cooking equipment. All students attend a 2 hour kitchen intensive demonstration as an orientation.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Meal Kits

Students receive 6 weeks of home delivered meal kits. Meal kits include ingredients and detailed instructions for 3 meals, which each serve two people. Students may select meals from a list of 18 options that include vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free options.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Recipes

Students are emailed a set of recipes once a week for 6 weeks. Recipes include options for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. Recipe sets include vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options. This intervention was cancelled by COVID-related disruptions and did not take place.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Undergraduate students at the University of Vermont living off campus independently (may have roommates but not live with a guardian)
• Ages 18-25
• Cooks dinner at home no more than 3x/week
• Access to a kitchen at home
• Availability during scheduled cooking classes/demonstrations

Exclusion Criteria

• Students will be excluded from the study if they do not complete baseline data collection measures prior to the first class meeting.

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 25 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

University of Vermont

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Lizzy Pope

Assistant Professor and DPD Director

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Lizzy F Pope, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of Vermont

Locations

University of Vermont

Burlington, Vermont, United States

Countries

United States

Provided Documents

Document Type: Study Protocol and Statistical Analysis Plan

View Document

Document Type: Informed Consent Form

View Document

Other Identifiers

VT-H02510

Identifier Type: OTHER_GRANT

Identifier Source: secondary_id

CHRBSS #00000397

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id