MY MEALS STUDY
ETHICS AND FUNDING
The MY Meals Study has been approved by The University of Sydney Human Research Ethics Committee (project number 2016/546).
If you are concerned about the way this study is being conducted or you wish to make a complaint to someone independent from the study, please contact the university using the details outlined below. Please quote the study title and protocol number.
The Manager, Ethics Administration, University of Sydney, on telephone: 02 8627 8176 or email: ro.humanethics@sydney.edu.au
The MY Meals Study is a partnership between The University of Sydney, Cancer Council NSW and The University of Auckland. The project is funded by an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant.
What's involved in the study?
You can be involved in this study if you are 18-30 years old, live in NSW, purchase and consume food or drink outside of home at least once per week and use a smartphone.
If you decide to participate, you will be asked to complete a questionnaire that asks you some basic details about you and your eating out behaviours and determines eligibility.
Participants will record everything they eat or drink for three days (two week days and one weekend day) into a custom-designed smartphone app, called Eat and Track, or EaT. After the three days of recording, participants will complete a second questionnaire to collect more detailed information on their health and social situation.
Some participants (about 20%) will also complete a 24-hour dietary recall at the end of each day via phone or Skype. These participants will wear a small camera while they are awake, that takes a photograph at regular intervals. This will give valuable data on the social aspects of food and eating by young adults.
If you complete the three days of recording your food and drink intake and the final questionnaire, you will receive a gift voucher as compensation for your time. People participating in the photography sub-study will receive an additional voucher on submission of their photographs.
This study is the first of its kind in Australia. Results from this study will be used by Cancer Council NSW to develop healthy eating messages for young people.
ABOUT THE MY MEALS STUDY
Why study young people’s eating habits?
Overweight and obesity is a cause of cancer. Among other things, our weight is affected by the foods that we eat. Young adults are the age group spending the highest proportion of their budget on fast food and eating out. However, we don’t know how often they are eating out, how much they are eating and where they are purchasing their food from. This study will answer some of these questions.