Please sign in to follow a disease.
Can changing when and what you eat trick your body into making less fat?
NCT ID NCT02075710
First seen Jul 24, 2026 · Last updated Jul 24, 2026
Summary
This study investigates how the amount of sugar or fat in a person's diet, along with how many meals they eat each day, influences the body's fat production, blood fat levels, and liver fat storage. Overweight adults aged 20–65 will follow different meal patterns—ranging from two large meals to eight small meals—with either high-sugar or high-fat content. The goal is to understand which combinations may lower cardiovascular risk by altering fat metabolism.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- controlled diets varying in sugar/fat content and meal frequency
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward dietary strategies to reduce liver fat and cardiovascular risk.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study in a controlled setting, so findings may not apply to real-world eating habits or diverse populations.
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
-
33 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
-
Jul 2013
- Finished
-
May 2021
- 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
-
20 to 65 years
- Sex
-
Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
-
Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
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: * overweight or obese men and women * ages 20-65 years Exclusion Criteria: * pregnancy or lactation within the past six months * type 1 or 2 diabetes mellitus\] * AST and ALT above upper limit of normal (ULN) * fasting triglyceride or total cholesterol levels \>ULN * Hgb below the lower of limit of normal * positive HIV antibody test or hepatitis serologies * use of any antidiabetic medications or lipid-lowering drugs * history of surgery for obesity * change in body weight \>5% within preceding 6 months (self report) * claustrophobia, presence of metal implants * weight over 350 lbs
Get updates
Get notified about this study
Sign up to get updates when this study changes or when new studies for Overweight and obesity are added.
Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor
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.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
University of California, San Franciso, San Francisco General Hospital
San Francisco, California, 94110, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can cottonseed oil improve cholesterol? trial tests common cooking oil against similar blends
- Can Weight-Loss surgery weaken protein digestion in older adults?
- Can pole walking boost heart fitness in diabetic patients?
- Weight loss after cancer: a new program aims to help survivors
- Amino acid may shield aging muscles during dieting
- AI-Powered coaching: could tailored texts boost weight loss?