Can family skills boost weight loss? researchers test four ingredients
NCT ID NCT06724406
First seen Sep 23, 2026 · Last updated Sep 24, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
Researchers are testing which combination of four family-focused components works best alongside a standard six-month behavioral weight loss program for Black adults. The components include communication training, cohesion-building content, the number of sessions, and whether sessions happen in person or online. About 256 participants will join with a family partner, attend group and paired sessions, and track their weight, diet, and activity. The goal is to learn which mix helps people lose the most weight.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- a family-centered behavioral weight loss program with skills training in communication and cohesion
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could show which family-focused elements make behavioral weight loss programs more effective for Black adults, shaping how such programs are designed.
- What could go wrong
- Behavioral weight loss programs often produce modest results that are hard to maintain, and this trial tests different combinations of family components rather than a proven recipe. The findings may not apply to people without a willing family partner or to other groups.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
-
Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
-
About 256 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
-
Feb 2025
- Expected to finish
-
Dec 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
-
Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
-
18 to 75 years
- Sex
-
Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
-
Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * self-identified as Black or African American (Index participant) * BMI equal to greater than 30 kg/m\^2 (Index); BMI equal to greater than 27.5 kg/m\^2 (family partner) * have a partner/family member willing to enroll in the study and must share a mutual goal of achieving weight loss * English speaking * ages 18-75 * any gender * have access to and be able to use a smartphone, tablet, or computer that has web-access (this is required for data collection and some program components being tested) Exclusion Criteria: * participation in an intensive weight loss program (more than 12 visits) in the prior 6 months * type 1 diabetes * significant psychiatric illness, defined as depression or other major psychiatric illness not considered reasonably managed by counseling, medication, or both * had bariatric surgery (surgery for weight loss) in the last 2 years or considering bariatric surgery in the next 6 months * using or planning to start medications intentionally for weight loss * are pregnant or planning to get pregnant in the next 6 months * are breastfeeding and less than 2 months postpartum * alcohol or substance abuse, defined as alcohol or substance use that interferes with work activities and/or has had a major negative impact on family/social function, the latter defined as more than 2 episodes per month. * malignancy other than non-melanoma skin cancer, unless considered cured \> 5 years ago. Exceptions include 1) men with localized prostate cancer (treated with usual modalities or managed with "active surveillance"), and 2) postmenopausal women receiving adjuvant endocrine therapy (e.g., aromatase inhibitor) for non-metastatic, hormone receptor-positive breast cancer * self-report of advanced kidney disease (estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) \< 30 mL/min)
Get updates
Get notified about this study
Sign up to get updates when this study changes or when new studies for Behavior change are added.
By submitting, you agree to our Terms of use
Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
-
The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
-
The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
-
A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
RECRUITINGChapel Hill, North Carolina, 27599, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can a custom Step-Count plan cool down diabetic feet?
- Can a phone app save kidneys in diabetes?
- Camera that sees oxygen in tissue could predict which diabetic wounds heal
- Can a skin sensor replace finger pricks for kids with diabetes?
- Can manitoba crop bars make weight loss easier?
- Sickle cell clues to diabetes risk hidden in DNA