Hello,
This is a screening survey for our artificial sweetener (also known as non-nutritive sweeteners) feeding study. This survey will help us see if you are potentially eligible to participate in this study. Following the completion of this survey, we will contact you with the next steps. If you meet the criteria for this pre-screening survey, we will send you an informed consent document which outlines the specifics of the study. We will go through this document in detail at the first visit before any additional eligibility testing is conducted. To confirm if you meet the criteria for this study through additional testing, we will invite you to come to our lab on the Virginia Tech campus.
Briefly, the full study consists of 6 weeks of controlled feeding. That means you only eat the food that we provide for you, and we cannot accommodate special diets/diet restrictions as the diets are standardized for all participants. You will come to the lab each morning for breakfast and take your cooler of food for the day for 6 weeks. On Fridays, you will take a cooler for the whole weekend. We can be flexible and give you multiple days worth of food so you can decrease the amount of times you have to visit each week, if desirable. You will be randomized into 1 of 3 groups: 1 group will receive aspartame (Equal), 1 group will receive sucralose (Splenda), and 1 group will receive no artificial sweeteners. All of the groups will be blinded - neither you or the researchers (besides the study coordinator) will know which group you are in. We will be examining if consuming artificial sweeteners has any impact on glucose levels. In addition to receiving all of your meals, and information regarding your health, you will be given a $1,000 honorarium for completing all study visits. Additional study procedures over the 6 weeks include wearing a continuous glucose monitor on your upper arm for 8 days at the beginning of the study and 8 days at the end of the study; 2 fingersticks for blood samples, 2 blood draws (include oral glucose tolerance tests), 2 48-hour urine collections, 2 stool sample collections, and a DEXA scan to measure your lean body mass and body fat percent.
Your participation in this study is completely voluntary. There are no foreseeable risks associated with completing this survey. However, if you feel uncomfortable answering any questions, you can withdraw from the survey at any point.
Your survey responses will be strictly confidential and data from this research will only be shared with the project director and project coordinator. Your information will be coded and will remain confidential. If you have questions at any time about the survey or the procedures, you may contact Dr. Valisa Hedrick at 540-231-7983 or by email at vhedrick@vt.edu.
Thank you very much for your time and support. Please start with the survey now by clicking on the "Start" button below.
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