# Do Changes in Diet Quality in a Weight Loss Trial Affect Cardiometabolic Risk?

> **NIH NIH F31** · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · 2021 · $46,036

## Abstract

Do Changes in Diet Quality in a Weight Loss Trial Affect Cardiometabolic Risk? Jessica Cheng
Project Summary/Abstract
 Although the importance of diet for weight loss, the prevention of chronic disease, and overall health
has long been clear to researchers, weight loss intervention research favors calorie and fat reduction
approaches but does not rigorously assess and report the impact of interventions on diet quality.
 The proposed research project will assess diet quality change based on 24-hour dietary recall data
collected as part of the SMARTER randomized control trial (R01 HL131583). The SMARTER trial evaluates
the effect on weight loss of providing real-time tailored feedback messages on self-monitored diet, physical
activity, and weight compared to self-monitoring with no feedback. The Healthy Eating Index, which aligns with
the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans, can be calculated from 24-hour dietary recalls which are
collected at baseline, 6-, and 12-months. Lab-based measurements of weight, blood pressure, and waist
circumference are collected at baseline, 6, and 12 months. Leveraging data from a large single-site trial
(N=530) has the potential to inform the public health community by quantifying how much a weight loss
intervention with tailored feedback improves diet quality. This work is vital to developing interventions which
can achieve Healthy People 2020 objectives related to increasing the contributions of fruits, vegetables, and
whole grains to the total diet as well as decreasing the consumption of added sugars and saturated fats.
 Aim 1 will assess how a weight loss intervention performs in producing changes in diet quality from
baseline to 6-months and 6- to 12-months. In Aim 2, the relationship between change in diet quality and
change in cardiometabolic risk factors (i.e. weight status, blood pressure, and waist circumference) from
baseline to 6 months and from 6- to 12-months will be quantified among all participants. A sub-aim is to
explore the components of diet quality change adopted by individuals and which components result in greater
decreases in risk factors. Exploratory Aim 3 will examine the relationship between calculated diet quality
scores and participants’ perceived diet quality as well as the relationship between calculated changes in diet
quality score and how participants perceived their diet quality changed over time.
 Fellowship training will enable me to increase my nutritional epidemiology knowledge and knowledge of
factors related to the development of obesity and chronic disease. I will also learn how to support behavior
change addressing those factors and increase the sophistication and rigor of my critical thinking and analytic
skills. This training will provide valuable opportunities for the presentation of research at conferences and
submission to peer-reviewed journals and allow me to gain experience working with a multidisciplinary team.
This research will serve as a steppingstone to pr...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10135367
- **Project number:** 1F31HL156278-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH
- **Principal Investigator:** Jessica Cheng
- **Activity code:** F31 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $46,036
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-05-01 → 2024-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10135367

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10135367, Do Changes in Diet Quality in a Weight Loss Trial Affect Cardiometabolic Risk? (1F31HL156278-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10135367. Licensed CC0.

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