Exploring alternative protein diets in families in Copenhagen

Sustainable Diets in Families in Copenhagen - Menus With Alternative Proteins Meals

This study is testing whether families in Copenhagen can change their eating habits by trying meals made with insect-based or plant-based proteins instead of meat.

Quick facts

• Phase: Not applicable
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 160 (estimated)
• Ages: 8 Years to 10 Years
• Sex: All
• Sponsor: University of Copenhagen (Academic / other)
• Locations: 1 site (Frederiksberg)
• Trial ID: NCT05156853 on ClinicalTrials.gov

What this trial studies

This study investigates how exposing families, consisting of an adult and a child, to meals featuring alternative proteins, specifically insect-based and plant-based products, affects their dietary patterns and meat consumption. Over a six-week intervention, participants will be randomized to receive either insect-based or plant-based menus, with the aim of replacing a portion of meat protein while maintaining overall protein intake. The study will collect dietary records, questionnaires, and biological samples to assess the impact of these dietary changes.

Who should consider this trial

Good fit: Ideal candidates for this study are healthy families with one adult and one child aged 8-10 who regularly consume meat for dinner.

Not a fit: Patients who do not consume meat regularly or have dietary restrictions that prevent them from trying insect or plant-based foods may not benefit from this study.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, this study could promote healthier and more sustainable dietary practices among families by increasing acceptance of alternative protein sources.

How similar studies have performed: While the concept of alternative proteins is gaining traction, this specific approach of comparing insect-based and plant-based diets in a family setting is relatively novel and has not been extensively tested.

Eligibility criteria

This study recruits families in which one adult and one child are enrolled as participants.

Adults must:

* Be healthy.
* Determined from the self-reported medical history or when a clinical condition exists, when this is considered to be irrelevant (i.e. not influencing the safety for the participant or study outcomes) for the study by the study medical doctor.
* Eat meat for dinner at least 5 days a week in average.
* Be willing to consume insect- and plant-based foods.
* Be able to talk, read and understand Danish in order to understand the study procedures properly.
* Have basic computer competence.
* Have freezer capacity for two weeks of food.
* If the custody holders of a child, who wants to participant, do not want to participate, another adult from the household can participate. It is still the custody holders who are responsible for the child's participation in the study.

Children must:

* Be healthy.
* Determined from the self-reported medical history or when a clinical condition exists, when this is considered to be irrelevant (i.e. not influencing the safety for the participant or study outcomes) for the study by the study medical doctor.
* Eat meat for dinner at least 5 days a week in average.
* Age: 8-10 years.
* Be able to talk and understand Danish in order to understand the study procedures properly.
* Be willing to consume insect- and plant-based foods.

Exclusion Criteria (adult and child):

Individuals will be excluded if they have:

* Possess any food allergies or intolerances.
* Possess a dust mite allergy or intolerance.
* Follow one or more restricted diets (veganism, gluten-free, keto, vegetarianism, etc.).
* Use protein supplements, such as whey protein powder.
* Participation in other clinical studies.
* Gastrointestinal, kidney or liver disorders.
* Chronic inflammation disorders (excluding obesity).
* Diagnosed psychiatric disorder including depression requiring treatment, but can be accepted in judgement with the daily study manager, site-PI, PI or clinical responsible.
* Systematic antibiotic use \< 1 month prior to the study.
* Lack of abilities (physical and psychological) to be complied with the procedures in the protocol, as evaluated by the daily study manager, site-PI, PI or clinical responsible.

Exclusion criteria related to adults:

* Pregnant or lactating within the study period.
* Self-reported use of drugs of abuse within the previous 12 months, including cannabis.

Where this trial is running

Frederiksberg

• University of Copenhagen - Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports — Frederiksberg, Denmark (Recruiting)

Study contacts

• Study coordinator: Nanna Roos, Associate Professer

Conditions Insect Proteins; Insect proteins; Alternative proteins; Human intervention study; Novel food acceptance