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The FibreGum Study - Changing the Course of Obesity in Children

The FibreGum Study - Changing the Course of Obesity in Children

Status
Terminated
Phases
Unknown
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT05540678
Acronym
FibreGum
Enrollment
93
Registered
2022-09-15
Start date
2022-11-30
Completion date
2026-01-23
Last updated
2026-02-18

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Adolescent Obesity, Child Obesity, Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases

Keywords

Obesity, Chewing gum, Galactooligosaccharides, GOS (Galactooligosaccharides)

Brief summary

The aim of this study is thus to assess the effect of a chewing gum containing fibres on body weight, metabolism and the oral and intestinal microbiomes in a population of obese children.

Interventions

DIETARY_SUPPLEMENTFibreGum

To chew every day during a period of 6 months 3 chewing gums (morning, noon and evening) for at least 20 minutes each.

DIETARY_SUPPLEMENTPlacebo

To chew every day during a period of 6 months 3 chewing gums (morning, noon and evening) for at least 20 minutes each.

Sponsors

Insel Gruppe AG, University Hospital Bern
Lead SponsorOTHER
DCB Research AG
CollaboratorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
QUADRUPLE (Subject, Caregiver, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
10 Years to 16 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Informed Consent according to International Conference on Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Registration of Pharmaceuticals for Human Use/Good Clinical Practice (ICH/GCP) regulations prior to any study specific procedures * Obesity as determined by a BMI ≥97th percentile using the Swiss paediatric, age- and sex-matched growth charts * Newly referred within the last month to a tertiary weight management clinic * Participant willing to use the study specific monitoring app on his/her own or legal representatives' smartphone

Exclusion criteria

* Antibiotic administration in the last 6 months * Pre- or probiotic treatment in the last 6 weeks * Any professionally supervised treatment for weight management within the last year * Consumption of more than one nicotine product per month (e.g. cigarette, gum) * Adolescent females: any stages of known pregnancy or lactation period * Congenital disorder affecting the cardiovascular, hepatic or respiratory system in a relevant way (as per PI's or specialist's evaluation) * Malignant disease on treatment or previous tumour affecting the appetite system (e.g., suprasellar, hypothalamic tumours) * Systemic antibiotic or anti-inflammatory medication (e.g. systemic intake of glucocorticoids) over the last 7 days * Known eating disorder (medically diagnosed) * Participation in another investigation with an investigational drug within the 30 days preceding and during the present investigation * Dependency from the sponsor or the clinical investigator * Inability to follow the procedures of the investigation, e.g. due to language problems, psychological disorders, etc. of the participant and/or legal representative

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Reduction in the Body Mass Index (BMI) Z-score6 monthsDifference in the BMI Z-scores measured at study start and study completion

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Proteinuria6 monthsDifferences in proteinuria between study completion and study start.
Thyroid-Stimulating Hormone (TSH) change6 monthsDifferences in TSH between study completion and study start.
Alanine Aminotransferase (ALAT) change6 monthsDifferences in ALAT between study completion and study start.
Calcifediol (25OH-Vitamin D3) change6 monthsDifferences in Calcifediol between study completion and study start.
Fasting blood glucose change6 monthsDifferences in fasting blood glucose (mg/dL or mmol/L) between study completion and study start.
Fasting insulin change6 monthsDifferences in fasting insulin (mIU/mL) between study completion and study start.
HOmeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) index change6 monthsDifferences in Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance Index (min:0 - max:10) between study completion and study start. Lower scores mean better outcome.
Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) change6 monthsDifferences in HbA1c (mmol/mol) between study completion and study start.
Lipid-profiles change6 monthsDifferences in lipid-profiles (Cholesterol, Triglyceride, HDL, LDL in mg/dL) between study completion and study start.
Systolic and diastolic blood pressures changes6 monthsDifferences in both systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure (mm Hg) between study completion and study start.
Differential blood count change6 monthsDifferences differential blood count (Neutrophils, Lymphocytes, Monocytes, Eosinophils, Basophils in %) between study completion and study start.
Calprotectin and lipocalin-2 change in stool6 monthsDifferences in calprotectin and lipocalin-2 (µg/g) in stool between study completion and study start as determined by Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA)
Oral health6 monthsChanges in oral microbiota as assessed by 16S ribosomal ribonucleic acid (rRNA) gene sequencing from oral washes. Remark: The "S" in 16S is a sedimentation coefficient, that is, an index reflecting the downward velocity of the macromolecule in the centrifugal field.
Intestinal health6 monthsChanges in intestinal microbiota-composition as assessed by metagenome sequencing from stool samples
Ferritin change6 monthsDifferences in ferritin between study completion and study start.
Descriptive analysis of treatment adherence using data from an adherence-tracking app6 monthsThe assessment of adherence to chewing-gum will be assessed as percentage (%) of chewing-gums chewed.

Countries

Switzerland

Contacts

STUDY_DIRECTORMaria Luisa Balmer, Prof. med.

Department of Biomedical Research, Children Clinic Berne, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital University of Bern

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 19, 2026