Trial reportPloS one2021
The effects of the form of sugar (solid vs. beverage) on body weight and fMRI activation: A randomized controlled pilot study.
Trial report in PloS one, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 10 citations in OpenAlex.
- A randomized trial to evaluate the impact of Singapore's forthcoming Nutri-grade front-of-pack beverage label on food and beverage purchases.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2023Trial
- Predicting sugar-sweetened beverage intake from the brain and known risk factors in adolescents.Physiology & behavior · 2025Article
- Parent-Child Mutual Influences on Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption Behaviors: Actor-Partner Analysis.JMIR pediatrics and parenting · 2025Article
- Multimodal Neuroimaging of Obesity: From Structural-Functional Mechanisms to Precision Interventions.Brain sciences · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo test if sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) and sugar sweetened solids (SSSs) have differential effects on body weight and reward processing in the brain.
methodsIn a single blind randomized controlled pilot trial (RCT), twenty participants with BMI between 20 and 40 kg/m2 were randomized to consume a 20 fluid ounce soda (SSB, 248 kcal) or the equivalent in solid form (SSS; similar to thick gelatin or gummy candy) daily. At baseline and day 28, fasting body weight and fed-state BOLD fMRI of the brain were assessed. Differences in fMRI signals between views of low-fat (LF (<30%)) high sugar (HS (>30%)) food, and non-food images were calculated in brain regions implicated in energy homeostasis, taste, and reward.
resultsAll participants in the SSB (6F 4M; 8 Caucasian; 36±14 y, 28.2±5.5 kg/m2; Mean±SD) and SSS (3F 7M; 6 Caucasian; 39±12; 26.3±4.4) groups completed the study. Weight change was 0.27±0.78 kg between SSB and SSS participants. Changes in the fMRI response to LF/HS foods in reward, homeostatic and taste regions tended to not be different between the groups over the four weeks. However, activation of the right substantia nigra increased following the SSB but decreased activation following the SSS in response to LF/HS foods over 28 days (-0.32±0.12). Ratings of wanting for LF/HS foods were correlated with activation in several brain regions, including the OFC.
conclusionsChange in weight was modest between the groups in this study. Daily consumption of a SSB over 28 days led to mixed responses to LF/HS foods in areas of the brain associated with reward. Ratings of wanting are correlated with fMRI activation inside an MRI scanner.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.