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About the Study

Who runs this study?

This study is part of the Section on Growth and Obesity at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Dr. Jack Yanovski, a pediatric endocrinologist, is the Principal Investigator of the study. Dr. Nichole Kelly, a counseling psychologist, is the Lead Associate Investigator of the study. The research coordinator for this study is Katie Thompson.

What is this study about?

The goal of the study is to examine the biopsychosocial mechanisms through which disinhibited eating behaviors contribute to excessive weight gain and associated comorbidities.

What kind of commitment is involved?

This study involves coming to the National Institutes of Health Clinical Research Center in Bethesda, Maryland for up to 13 visits that span 6 years.

Interested volunteers will be asked to attend two screening appointments to find out if they are eligible to take part in the study. These visits will be approximately two weeks apart.

  • The first screening visit is a 4-hour appointment that involves going over the consent form for the study, completing a brief medical history and physical exam, filling out some questionnaires, and doing some interviews.
  • During the two week period between visits, participants will wear an actigraphy watch on their wrist to measure things like physical activity and sleep for 15 days.
  • The second screening visit is from about 8:15AM-4PM. We will do a number of things at this visit, including measuring teens' body composition, examining genes, hormones, and general health from a blood draw, drinking a breakfast shake and eating a meal, a brief walk/run exercise test, and completing questionnaires and computer tasks.

After the first two screening visits, participants will return for yearly follow-up visits for the next six years:

  • Most of the annual visits (years 1, 2, 4, and 5) will be short visits (3-4 hours) during which we will get some body measurements, including teen's body composition, undergo a medical history and physical exam, and answer some questionnaires.
  • Follow-up visits during years 3 and 6 will be more comprehensive, lasting from about 8:15AM-4PM. During these visits, we will repeat many of the same tasks from the second screening visit including: measuring teens' body composition, examining genes, hormones, and general health from a blood draw, drinking a breakfast shake and eating a meal, a brief walk/run exercise test, and completing questionnaires and computer tasks.

Are there other research opportunities for this study?

We are also very interested in learning more genetic factors related to eating behaviors, and about the connections between physiological factors (like salivary cortisol and heart rate variability), cognitive factors (like attention and thinking skills), and eating behaviors.

For Parents: Parents of teens who are eligible to participate in the main longitudinal study have the option of participating themselves as a parent during the first and second screening visits.

During the first screening visit: Parents can answer some questionnaires about their own mood, behaviors, and health in addition to questionnaires about their child's mood, behaviors, and Health

During the second screening visit: Parents can also have a blood draw to look at genetic factors that might be related to eating behaviors and obesity

For Children: Additionally, teens who are eligible to do the main longitudinal study have the option of participating in two supplemental studies: the Stress and Hormone study, and the Sleep, Attention, and Eating study. The Stress and Hormone study involves one extra visit that will take place in the afternoon from about 3:30-6:30PM, and the Sleep, Attention, and Eating study involves two extra visits that will take place two separate mornings from about 8:30AM-12:30PM.

What's involved for the Stress and Hormone study:

  • Putting a small cotton swab in the mouth several times to measure stress hormones
  • Completing a brief math test
  • Answering some online questionnaires

What's involved for the Sleep and Attention study:

  • Drinking a breakfast shake
  • Answering some online questionnaires
  • Completing a computer task
  • Eating a lunch meal

What are the potential benefits of participating?

Because this is observational research, there may not be any direct benefits to participating. This study is not designed to improve the health of its volunteers, we are simply observing how each child grows and develops.

However, each teen is compensated (up to $1,235) for their time and inconvenience of participating:

  • $50 for completing the first screening visit
  • $100 for wearing the actigraphy watch
  • $120 for completing the second screening visit
  • $40 for providing an optional stool sample (can provide up to one sample every year)
  • $75 for completing the supplemental Stress and Hormone study
  • $150 for completing the supplemental Sleep, Attention, and Eating study
  • $75 for completing each of the short annual follow-up visit (years 1, 2, 4, and 5)
  • $100 for completing each of the lengthier follow-up visits (years 3 and 6)

For their participation during both screening visits, parents are compensated $70.

How can I ask questions or ask for help?

Contact the research coordinators for this study by phone at 301-435-9266
You can also email us: katie.thompson@nih.gov

We do our best to respond to emails within 2 business days.