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Pilot Testing a Novel Approach to Pediatric Obesity Treatment

Emotion Regulation Intervention to Improve Neural Responsiveness and Health

Status
Recruiting
Phases
Phase 1Phase 2
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT06755827
Enrollment
30
Registered
2025-01-01
Start date
2026-03-24
Completion date
2026-12-31
Last updated
2026-05-15

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

Conditions

Obese Adolescents, Overweight Adolescents

Keywords

overweight, obesity, adolescents, neuronal responsiveness, emotion regulation

Brief summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if an emotion regulation and self-monitoring intervention can help treat overweight and obesity in teens. The main question it aims to answer is: * Does emotion regulation and self-monitoring help reduce biases in teens with overweight and obesity? * Do changes in biases relate to changes in health functioning and health behavior? Researchers will compare the intervention to the provision of educational handouts about overweight and obesity to see if the intervention is more effective. Participants will: * Complete self-report questionnaires, an fMRI scan, and have their blood drawn * Received educational handouts or attend weekly telehealth group sessions weekly for four weeks and be asked to self-monitor their mood and behavior between sessions * Return to complete the same questionnaires, fMRI and blood draw procedures

Interventions

BEHAVIORALEmotion regulation and self-monitoring to treat pediatric obesity

Participants will attend telehealth group sessions once weekly and be asked to self-monitor their mood and health behaviors daily between sessions.

OTHERPsychoeducation

Participants who are randomized to the control group will receive an online, one-time, self-led psychoeducation program with information about current daily sleep, diet, and physical activity recommendations (e.g., information about sleep hygiene, the food pyramid, and recommendations for 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity daily).

Sponsors

Texas Tech University
Lead SponsorOTHER
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
CollaboratorNIH
Pennington Biomedical Research Center
CollaboratorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
11 Years to 14 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Being English-proficient * Ages 11-14 * At or above the 85th BMI percentile based on age and sex norms * Having access to WIFI or cellular data to attend the telehealth groups * Living in a home in Lubbock County (TX) or surrounding areas.

Exclusion criteria

* Having a psychiatric or medical diagnosis that interferes with participation (e.g., significant developmental delay; pregnancy) * Current enrollment in overweight/obesity treatment. * Because the study will include entering an MRI scanner, additional standard

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Percentage BOLD (Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent) signal changeFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at week 5Used to index pre-post changes in neuronal responsiveness to obesity-related cues
Glucose tolerance per blood samplesFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at week 5Used to index pre-post changes in health indicators linked to overweight and obesity severity
Triglycerides per blood samplesFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at week 5Used to index pre-post changes in health indicators linked to overweight and obesity severity
Cholesterol per blood samplesFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at week 5Used to index pre-post changes in health indicators linked to overweight and obesity severity
C peptide per blood samplesFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at week 5Used to index pre-post changes in health indicators linked to overweight and obesity severity
Emotion regulation per Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale-Short Form (DERS-SF) and Positive Affect (DERS-PA) versionsFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at week 5Used to index pre-post changes in difficulties with positive and negative emotion regulation. Sum scores and average scores for each measure and subscale are used, with higher scores indicating greater difficulties with each domain
Self-report disordered eating cognitions and behaviors per Eating Disorder Examination-QuestionnaireFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at week 5Used to index pre-post changes in health behavior. Items are summed together and averaged, with higher scores indicating greater disordered eating cognitions and behaviors
Self-report average daily minutes and intensity of physical activity per Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) scaleFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at week 5Used to index pre-post changes in health behavior. Items are summed together with higher scores indicating greater frequency and intensity of physical activity
Self-report average daily minutes and intensity of physical activity per Physical Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents (PAQ-A)From enrollment to the end of treatment at week 5Used to index pre-post changes in health behavior. Items are summed together with higher scores indicating greater frequency and intensity of physical activity
Self-report average daily minutes engaging in sedentary behavior per National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) itemsFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at week 5Used to index pre-post changes in health behavior. Items are summed together with higher scores indicating more frequent sedentary behavior
Self-report acceptability per face-valid questionnaireFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at week 5Sum scored, with higher score indication higher acceptability
Percentage of sessions attended (by participant)From enrollment to study completion, an average of 1 yearUsed to index intervention feasibility
Number of participants enrolledFrom enrollment to study completion, an average of 1 yearUsed to index intervention feasibility
Rate of attritionFrom enrollment to study completion, an average of 1 yearUsed to index intervention feasibility

Countries

United States

Contacts

CONTACTCaroline Cummings, PhD
carolicu@ttu.edu806-834-0931

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: May 16, 2026