Effect of plant-based foods and (poly)phenol supplementation on gut-microbiota metabolism in participants with overweight or obesity and cardiometabolic risk: a study protocol for a single-blind, parallel and randomised controlled trial
Sep 17, 2025BMJ open
Plant-based foods and polyphenol supplements and their effects on gut bacteria metabolism in overweight or obese people with heart and metabolism risks
A total of 99 adults aged 25-45 years with overweight or obesity will participate in a 12-week trial assessing the effects of dietary (poly)phenols on body weight.
The trial will compare three groups: a healthy rich in (poly)phenols, a hypocaloric diet with (poly)phenol supplementation, and a control group receiving a placebo.
Primary outcomes include changes in body weight, while secondary outcomes will focus on cardiometabolic risk factors.
Participants will undergo various assessments, including dietary recalls, anthropometric measurements, and blood sample analyses.
The study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of dietary (poly)phenols in potentially managing overweight and cardiovascular risk factors.
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INTRODUCTION: Dietary (poly)phenols have beneficial properties that may play a relevant role in the management of overweight/obesity and cardiometabolic risk factors, modulating physiological and molecular pathways involved in energy metabolism, adiposity and gut microbiota-derived metabolites.
METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The Prevention/Precision Diet in Araucanía (PREDIET-ARAC) trial is a randomised, single-blind, parallel arm, placebo-controlled, clinical trial designed to assess the potential health benefits of (poly)phenol intake through either diet or supplementation. The study will evaluate the effectiveness of a healthy (PBD) rich in (poly)phenols compared with (poly)phenol supplementation during a caloric restriction intervention.A total of 99 adults (aged 25-45 years) with overweight or obesity (body mass index: 25-35 kg/m²) and cardiovascular risk factors will be recruited from primary health centres in Temuco, Araucanía Region, Chile. Participants will be randomised (stratified by age: <35 vs ≥35 years, and sex) in a 1:1:1 ratio into one of three 12-week intervention groups, all undergoing a caloric deficit: (i) the PBD group follows a healthy hypocaloric PBD rich in (poly)phenols, (ii) supplementation group follows a healthy hypocaloric diet and receives polyphenol supplementation (≈26 g/day from maqui, green tea, olive oil leaf, cranberry and grape extracts, corresponding to ~800 mg/day of (poly)phenols) and (iii) control group that will receive a healthy hypocaloric diet with placebo supplementation. The primary outcome is body weight, while cardiometabolic risk factors serve as secondary outcomes.Dietary data will be collected using dedicated software through three 24-hour dietary recalls at baseline and post-intervention. (Poly)phenol intake will be estimated using the Phenol-Explorer database. The main data collection will include general and lifestyle questionnaires, anthropometric and bioimpedance measurements, blood pressure assessments using sphygmomanometers, physical activity monitoring through accelerometers and strength evaluations via dynamometry. Blood samples will be collected at both baseline and after 12 weeks. For the analysis of plasma metabolites, a large-scale targeted metabolomics approach will be employed, specifically utilising ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry. The healthy PBD will be primarily supplied by the food industry, encompassing a selection of regional and Latin American foods: blueberries, apple, nuts, olive oil and coffee. A descriptive and inferential statistical plan will be conducted, based on comparison tests, regression models and machine-learning algorithms.
ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This trial adheres to the Declaration of Helsinki and the CONSORT statement. Signed informed consent will be obtained from all participants. Ethical approval has been granted by the Ethical-Scientific Committee of the Health Service of Araucanía Sur, Chile (Approval No 11250095-58) and the Biosafety Committee of the Catholic University of Temuco. Findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations and engagement with healthcare professionals and policymakers.
TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT06911346.
Key numbers
99
Participants
Total number of adults recruited for the trial.
12 weeks
Intervention duration
Length of the dietary intervention for all groups.
25–45 years
Age range
Age range of participants eligible for the study.
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