Pediatric Obesity
Conditions
Keywords
Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Energy Intake, Commercials, Children
Brief summary
The purpose of this project is to examine the impact that television food advertisements have on brain responses and eating behavior in children. Food advertisements enhance children's liking and intake of foods that tend to be high in energy content and low in nutritional value. Although several studies have measured the differences in children's food intake after watching advertisements, none have shown the brain mechanisms associated with this change in behavior. In order to clarify the relationship between food advertising and eating behavior, the investigators have assembled a team with expertise in functional imaging, eating behaviors, and clinical pediatric research. First, the investigators will observe the differences in children's eating behaviors after being exposed to food commercials or non-food commercials. Second, the investigators will measure the difference in child brain response to high and low energy foods after being exposed to food commercials or non-food commercials. These data will allow us to identify which areas of the brain are specifically affected by exposure to food commercials and correlate activity in these areas with children's measured food intake in the laboratory. Children ages 7-9 will participate in this 5-visit study which will be completed over the course of 12 months. Understanding how food advertisements impact children's brain responses and subsequent eating behaviors will have implications for understanding why some children respond differently to these cues than others. These outcomes may also inform the development of more effective programs and policies to prevent childhood obesity.
Interventions
None listed
Sponsors
Penn State University
Study design
Observational model
COHORT
Time perspective
OTHER
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
7 Years to 9 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Right-handed * English as native language * Reading at/above grade level * Not Claustrophobic * Generally Healthy
Exclusion criteria
* Left-handedness * Metal in or on body that cannot be removed * Claustrophobic * Medication usage that may alter brain activity or blood flow * Medical disorder that may impact comfort or safety in MRI scanner * Food allergies
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) response to high and low energy foods following food commercial priming | Collected at fMRI scan at week 4 or 5 (randomized) | Whole-brain response to food images varied by 2 levels of energy viewed in 2 conditions |
| Functional magnetic resonance imaging, blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) response to high and low energy foods following toy commercial priming | Collected at fMRI scan at week 4 or 5 (randomized) | Energy intake of foods consumed ad libitum at each laboratory test-meal in 3 conditions |
| Baseline Energy Intake | Collected at week 1 of the study | Energy intake of foods consumed ad libitum at laboratory test-meal with no priming stimulus |
| Energy Intake following food commercials | Collected at week 2 or 3 (randomized) of the study | Energy intake of foods consumed ad libitum at laboratory test-meal following food commercials priming |
| Energy Intake following toy commercials | Collected at week 2 or 3 (randomized) of the study | Energy intake of foods consumed ad libitum at laboratory test-meal following toy priming stimulus |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Region of Interest (ROI)-response to food type by condition | Collected at fMRI scans at weeks 4 and 5 of study | Response in selected regions of interest to images varied by 2 levels of energy viewed in 2 conditions |
Other
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Height | Collected at week 1 | Height in cm measured by stadiometer |
| Weight | Collected at week 1 | Weight in kg measured by standard digital scale |
| Appetitive traits | Collected at week 1 | Parent-reported questionnaire of habitual eating styles in children |
| BMI | Collected at week 1 | Calculated from height and weight (kg/m\^2) |
| Body Fat Percentage | Collected at week 1 | Body Fat Percentage assessed by Bio Electrical Impedance Scale |
| Television and Internet use and exposure | Collected at week 1 | Parent and child reported questionnaires of television and internet use and exposure to shows and commercials |
| BMI-z score | Collected at week 1 | BMI-z score calculated using age, sex, weight, and height |
| Liking and Wanting of Foods | Collected at week 1 | Ratings to how much child likes and wants specific foods used in the test meals on child friendly computerized rating scale |
| Pubertal Development | Collected at week 1 | Parent reported pubertal development through questionnaire |
| Parental feeding strategies | Collected at week 1 | Parent-reported measures of feeding practices |
Countries
United States
Outcome results
None listed