Clinical Research Directory

Beef Versus Whey Protein: The Gut Showdown Self-Experiment

Test whether a doctor-formulated protein made from real beef is more digestible than standard whey protein powder. For the first 30 days, participants receive either standard whey protein powder or Equip Protein and track how the gut responds weekly. At the 30 day mark, all participants receive the standard Equip protein to track differences in digestability.

Pilot Haskap Metabolite Timing Project

Diet is a key factor in managing health and individuals at risk of developing metabolic syndrome or other chronic diseases have the opportunity to use diet as a tool to improve their health. This can be complicated when considering the numerous variables that impact digestion and absorption of key health-promoting compounds in foods. One of these variables is the gut microbiome, a microbial community in the digestive tract that interacts with the foods we consume. The mechanisms the microbiome uses to interact with bioactive compounds in foods, like polyphenols, can modulate the health-promoting benefits of polyphenols. Polyphenols are secondary plant metabolites, commonly found in fruit, legumes, chocolate, coffee, and nuts among other foods that have been shown to improve cardiovascular and metabolic health, as well as reduce inflammation and oxidative stress.

Identifying Wearable Biomarkers to Monitor Dietary Intake

Background: Measuring what people eat is a challenge in nutrition research. Traditional methods, like food diaries, rely on self-reporting of individuals, and suffer from poor accuracy and recall bias. Aims: This project aims to identify physiological biomarkers related to food and energy intake, which may be used to develop an objective tool to estimate individuals' food intake in future. Eating behaviours are accompanied by significant physiological changes such as skin temperature, blood oxygen saturation, pulse rate etc. The investigators intend to investigate whether monitoring these physiological changes can help us estimate eating behaviour, such as meal size, eating speed, and duration of meals. Study design: Ten healthy adults will be invited for two study visits at NIHR Imperial Clinical Research Facility. Each visit will last for approximately 2 hr. They will consume a high- and low-calorie meal designed by nutritional researchers in a randomised order. During eating events, the investigators will track their physiological changes via a bedside monitor and wearable sensors. Blood samples will be taken from participants to measure their glycaemic response. Associations between energy load, glycaemic response, and physiological changes will be investigated. Our findings may promote an accelerated development of a wearable tool for dietary assessment in future.