Recruiting

Time-Restricted Eating

Sponsor:

University of Georgia

Code:

NCT07520786

Conditions

Sleep Quality

Compliance

Physical Activity

Sedentary Behaviors

Sleep Duration

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: Female

Age: 18 - 26

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Interventions

Time Restricted Eating

Control

Study Details

Brief summary:

Time-restricted Eating (TRE) is a dietary approach that limits food intake to 4 - 12-hour windows without intentionally altering diet quality. TRE has several benefits including modest reductions in body weight and fat mass, improved glucose control, and reduced inflammatory markers. While research supports the metabolic and weight related benefits of TRE, there is limited evidence of its effects on physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior (SB) and sleep - the core components of 24-hour Activity Cycle (24-HAC), which is a holistic framework that integrates the three health-related activities. TRE research has largely focused on clinical populations, leaving its feasibility and adherence in healthy younger adults understudied. Within this group, college students' misaligned circadian rhythms and unpredictable schedules may make adherence to TRE challenging, highlighting the need for research on its practicality in this group. These outcomes are also particularly important to investigate in women, considering that SB is more prevalent among college-aged women (69%) compared to men (46%). To address these issues, we will conduct a three-week intervention to study the effects of TRE on the 24-HAC outcomes. College aged women will be screened and enrolled, then assigned to either a control or TRE group. Participants in the TRE group will self-select the timing of their 8-hour eating window which they will maintain throughout the study (with compliance on at least six days per week needed to be considered adherent). The control group will receive a basic nutrition education at the start of the study and will have no restriction on eating times. 24 HAC behaviors will be measured continuously for one-week of baseline measurement and throughout the intervention by wrist-worn ActiGraph GT9X monitors. Participants will also record the timing of their first and last meal each day and receive periodic reminders to report their hunger and satiety ratings using visual analog scales.

Conditions

Sleep Quality

Compliance

Physical Activity

Sedentary Behaviors

Sleep Duration

Study ID

NCT07520786

Start date

Feb 1, 2026

Status verified date

Feb, 2026

Completion date

Apr, 2027

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Nov, 2026

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: Female

Age: 18 - 26

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Female undergraduate and graduate students
  • Enrolled full-time at University of Georgia
  • Aged 18-26 years

Exclusion Criteria:

  • having one of the following chronic diseases that maybe impacted by the diet changes: type 1 and 2 diabetes mellitus, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, thyroid dysfunction, hepatic/renal impairment, inflammatory bowel disease and other gastrointestinal diseases,
  • report use of nicotine, thyroid medications, antidepressants, or anti-anxiety medications, melatonin
  • having clinically diagnosed sleep disorders
  • alcohol intake exceeds two drinks per day
  • clinically diagnosed or undiagnosed eating disorders
  • division-1 student athletes
  • pregnant or lactating or plan on getting pregnant within 6 months
  • report major ambulatory disorders,
  • recently (within the past two weeks) engaged in caloric restriction, timing-based dietary changes, weight loss regimens, or adhered to specialized diets such as ketogenic or paleo diets,
  • required to take medication with food, as these factors may interfere with sleep and physical activity outcomes or pose risks to participant health during restricted eating protocols. Students whose habitual eating time windows are <10 hours will also not be eligible.

Study Design

Enrollment

36 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Randomized

Intervention Model

Parallel Assignment

Primary purpose

Other

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: Time Restricted Eating (TRE)

8-hour (self-selcted) TRE

other: Control

Normal eating

Interventions

Time Restricted Eating

Participants randomized to the TRE group will self-select a consistent 8-hour daily eating window that aligns with their usual schedule. Participants will be instructed to consume all caloric intake within this 8-hour window and abstain from caloric intake outside of the window for 3 weeks.

Participants will be instructed not to intentionally modify diet quality or caloric intake during the intervention period, aside from restricting meal timing. Consumption of water and non-caloric beverages (e.g., black coffee, unsweetened tea) will be permitted outside the eating window to maintain hydration.

Control

The control group in this study will receive a basic nutrition education. This group will follow normal eating patterns for 3 weeks.

Primary outcome measure

  • 24-Hour Activity Cycle [ Time Frame: From enrollment to the end of study participation (4 weeks) ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Tejaswi Tamilmani Saraswathi, MS

19515362830tt34515@uga.edu

Locations

Physical Activity Measurement Lab

Recruiting

Athens, Georgia, United States, 30605

Contacts

Tejaswi Tamilmani Saraswathi, MS

9515362830tt34515@uga.edu

More Information

Sponsor

University of Georgia

Last update posted

Apr 9, 2026

Last verified

Feb, 2026

Keywords

  • Time restricted eating
  • Sleep quality
  • 24-Hour activity cycle

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-10. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by University of Georgia on 2026-04-09.