Childhood Obesity PreventionMAGIC 2NCT06719102
Mothers and CareGivers Investing in Children Study 2.0
A study testing MAGIC-FEED and MAGIC-SAFE in people with Childhood Obesity Prevention and Parenting Behavior, run by University of Texas at Austin at 2 sites in United States.
Trial summary
The study will use a longitudinal, randomized control trial design to determine intervention impact on parent and child behaviors, and infant health. The two intervention groups include: 1) MAGIC-FEED+; and 2) MAGIC-SAFE. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 0 to 90 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Childhood Obesity Prevention, Parenting Behavior, Infant Growth
- What is being tested?
- MAGIC-FEED and MAGIC-SAFE
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- Yes, some participants may receive a placebo
- How many people
- 266 participants
- Where
- 2 sitesUnited States
- Study dates
- 13 Feb 2025to 31 Dec 2029
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 0 to 90 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- A singleton infant 3-9 weeks of age, born ≥37 weeks gestation.
- The mother and other caregiver must be at least 18 years of age.
- The infant must live with the mother.
- Lives within the Austin metropolitan area.
- English or Spanish speaking.
- The primary caregiver must identify as the mother.
Who cannot join
- Infant diagnosed with major physical disabilities and/or medical condition that affects feeding and growth, and/or born <37 weeks gestation.
- Infant experienced NICU stay >7 days.
- Twins, triplets, or other multiples.
- Mothers and/or other caregivers younger than 18 years old.
- Mothers that do not consent to being video recorded with their baby.
- Families that do not speak either English or Spanish will be excluded from this study. Families that only speak English or Spanish, or families that speak English or Spanish and another language, will be accepted.
- Do not plan to remain in Austin area for the next two years.
Trial locations and contacts
2 sites in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
Deborah Jacobvitz, PhD contact
United States2 sites, 2 recruiting
- Not yet recruiting
Sarah M. & Charles E. Seay Building
Austin, Texas, 78712
Deborah Jacobvitz
- Recruiting
Dell Pediatric Research Institute
Austin, Texas, 78723
Elizabeth Widen, widen.lab@austin.utexas.edu
About this study
Official title: Mothers and CareGivers Investing in Children: MAGIC 2.0
The study will use a longitudinal, randomized control trial design to determine intervention impact on parent and child behaviors, and infant health. The two intervention groups include: 1) MAGIC-FEED+; and 2) MAGIC-SAFE. This trial is an efficacy trial of the MAGIC-FEED and MAGIC-SAFE program that has been successfully implemented with families as part of the MAGIC 1.0 program trial (IRB#: 2015040017).
- The primary aim is to investigate each intervention's impact on infant BMIZ at 13 months.
- The investigators will also assess the effect of MAGIC-FEED on caregiver nutrition knowledge and feeding practices, responsive feeding, infant diet, and child self-regulatory abilities and assess how these factors impact child self-regulation of eating and adiposity.
- Finally, the investigators will determine if the interventions demonstrate the factors necessary to be a successful intervention as determined by the RE-AIM and PRISM frameworks.
Read the detailed description
Obesity is a significant public health problem and risk begins early in life. In the US, over 19% of children ages 2-19 have obesity with 6% of these children classified with severe obesity. Obesity prevalence is lower among 2- to 5-year-old children (13.4%); however, by age 6, one in 5 children has obesity. Rapid weight gain over the first year of life is associated with overweight or obesity in toddlers and young children, which then tracks across the life course. It is critical to intervene on modifiable factors early in life to support healthy growth and prevent obesity. This trial is implemented across the first year in this population to support child diet quality, self-regulatory skills related to eating and growth to prevent obesity.
Interventions during the first year of life have been implemented to prevent child obesity. Most focus on breast and bottle feeding during the first 6 months or feeding across infancy. Few have demonstrated lasting effects beyond infancy on a relative body size measure that accounts for height such as BMIZ, and none have reported effects on long-term adiposity measured with a sensitive assessment tool or have successfully impacted long-term relative body size or adiposity. Further, prior RCTs have predominately been conducted via home visits. MAGIC 2.0 uses a virtual platform which will allows us to leverage the well-established effectiveness of home visiting to be accessible to caregivers with young children.
- Being tested
- MAGIC-FEED, MAGIC-SAFE
- Keywords
- Parenting, Infant Feeding, Infant Nutrition, Prevention, Trial
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
MAGIC-FEEDBehavioural
Parents will be provided with responsive feeding coaching to help them recognize hunger and satiety cues and nutrition coaching that includes bottle-/breast-feeding and complementary feeding in alignment with the Dietary Guidelines. The intervention is delivered via virtual visits, binder, website and newsletters.
MAGIC-SAFEBehavioural
Parents will be provided with information about age-appropriate safety topics, including safe sleeping, car seats, baby-proofing, etc. The intervention is delivered via virtual visits, binder, website and newsletters.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| MAGIC-SAFE | Placebo comparator | Parents will be provided with information about age-appropriate safety topics, including safe sleeping, car seats, baby-proofing, etc. The intervention is delivered via virtual visits, binder, website and newsletters. Receives: Behavioral: MAGIC-SAFE |
| MAGIC-FEED | Experimental | Parents will be provided with responsive feeding coaching to help them recognize hunger and satiety cues and nutrition coaching that includes bottle-/breast-feeding and complementary feeding in alignment with the Dietary Guidelines. The intervention is delivered via virtual visits, binder, website and newsletters. Receives: Behavioral: MAGIC-FEED |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Infant Body Mass Index Z-score (BMIZ) at 13 and 24 months
Assessed via anthropometrics and WHO Child Growth Standards.
Measured: 13 & 24 months
Infant dietary quality index
Infant dietary quality index (IDQI) score with higher scores indicating higher dietary quality (Au et al. J Nutr 2023, 153(3): 741-748). Calculated with questionnaire data from an adapted Infant Feeding Practices III Food Frequency Questionnaire.
Measured: 0-13 months
Infant self-regulation during feeding
Infant self-regulation during feeding coded from video observation via the Nursing Child Assessment Feeding Scale.
Measured: 0-13 months
Eating self-regulation
Assessed via 'Eating in the Absence of Hunger' experiment using standard protocols (Asta et al. Pediatrics 2016;137(5):e20153786).
Measured: 24 months
Secondary outcomes (13)
Caregiver nutrition knowledge
Caregiver nutrition knowledge assessed by the Infant Feeding Education Questionnaire.
Measured: 0-24 months
Caregiver sensitivity
Caregiver responsive feeding/sensitivity with higher scores indicating greater sensitivity. Assessed by Chatoor's Feeding Scale, Hazen Sensitivity Scale and Nursing Child Assessment Feeding Scale.
Measured: 0-24 months
Solid food introduction timing
Timing of solid food introduction (<6 mo, >=6 mo). Assessed by the adapted Infant Feeding Practices III Questionnaire.
Measured: 0-8 months
Percentage body fat
Percentage body fat assessed via DXA.
Measured: 13 & 24 months
Proportion with BMIZ >=95%ile
High BMI at 13 \& 24 months
Measured: 13 & 24 months
BMIZ change from 3 wk to 24 months
BMIZ change from 3 wk to 24 months assessed via anthropometrics and WHO Child Growth Standard.
Measured: 0-24 months
Child self-regulation
Inhibitory control assessed via behavioral rating from the Barrier Box Tax with higher scores indicating greater regulation.
Measured: 24 months
Caregiver infant feeding practices
Assessed by the Feeding Practices and Structure Questionnaire.
Measured: 0-24 months
Baby Eating Behavior
Infant eating behaviors assessed via the Baby Eating Behavior Questionnaire.
Measured: ~ 8 months
Child Eating Behavior
Child eating behaviors assessed via the Children's Eating Behavior Questionnaire.
Measured: 24 months
Duration of exclusive breastfeeding
Duration of exclusive breastfeeding assessed via the adapted Infant Feeding Practices III Questionnaire.
Measured: 0-24 months
Sugary beverages before 12 months
Introduction of sugary beverages prior to 12 months. Assessed via the adapted Infant Feeding Practices III questionnaire.
Measured: 0-12 months
Child self-regulation
Assessed by the Brief Infant Toddler Social Emotional Assessment (BITSEA) with higher scores indicating greater self-regulation.
Measured: 13 months
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted5 Dec 2024
- Study start13 Feb 2025
- Primary completion31 Dec 2028 (estimated)
- Study completion31 Dec 2029 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Childhood Obesity PreventionStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by University of Texas at AustinThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Outcomes assessor
- Enrolment
- 266 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University of Texas at Austin
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- National Institutes of Health (NIH)
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Elizabeth Widen, University of Texas at Austin
- Investigators
- Elizabeth Widen, PhD, RD, Principal investigator, UT AustinDeborah Jacobvitz, PhD, Principal investigator, UT Austin
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06719102
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- UT Austin IRB#STUDY00005620
- Acronym
- MAGIC 2
- Status last verified
- Jun 2026
- First submitted
- 23 Oct 2024
- Last updated
- 10 Jun 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- Yes
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- Undecided
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 10 Jun 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Mothers and CareGivers Investing in Children: MAGIC 2.0
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06719102
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- MAGIC 2 / UT Austin IRB#STUDY00005620
- Keywords
- Parenting, Infant Feeding, Infant Nutrition, Prevention, Trial
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Enrolment
- 266 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- University of Texas at AustinUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- National Institutes of Health (NIH)
- Study start
- 13 Feb 2025 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 31 Dec 2028 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 31 Dec 2029 (estimated)
- First posted
- 5 Dec 2024 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The study will use a longitudinal, randomized control trial design to determine intervention impact on parent and child behaviors, and infant health. The two intervention groups include: 1) MAGIC-FEED+; and 2) MAGIC-SAFE. This trial is an efficacy trial of the MAGIC-FEED and MAGIC-SAFE program that has been successfully implemented with families as part of the MAGIC 1.0 program trial (IRB#: 2015040017).
- The primary aim is to investigate each intervention's impact on infant BMIZ at 13 months.
- The investigators will also assess the effect of MAGIC-FEED on caregiver nutrition knowledge and feeding practices, responsive feeding, infant diet, and child self-regulatory abilities and assess how these factors impact child self-regulation of eating and adiposity.
- Finally, the investigators will determine if the interventions demonstrate the factors necessary to be a successful intervention as determined by the RE-AIM and PRISM frameworks.
Detailed description
Obesity is a significant public health problem and risk begins early in life. In the US, over 19% of children ages 2-19 have obesity with 6% of these children classified with severe obesity. Obesity prevalence is lower among 2- to 5-year-old children (13.4%); however, by age 6, one in 5 children has obesity. Rapid weight gain over the first year of life is associated with overweight or obesity in toddlers and young children, which then tracks across the life course. It is critical to intervene on modifiable factors early in life to support healthy growth and prevent obesity. This trial is implemented across the first year in this population to support child diet quality, self-regulatory skills related to eating and growth to prevent obesity.
Interventions during the first year of life have been implemented to prevent child obesity. Most focus on breast and bottle feeding during the first 6 months or feeding across infancy. Few have demonstrated lasting effects beyond infancy on a relative body size measure that accounts for height such as BMIZ, and none have reported effects on long-term adiposity measured with a sensitive assessment tool or have successfully impacted long-term relative body size or adiposity. Further, prior RCTs have predominately been conducted via home visits. MAGIC 2.0 uses a virtual platform which will allows us to leverage the well-established effectiveness of home visiting to be accessible to caregivers with young children.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind (outcomes assessor)
- Number of arms
- 2
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| MAGIC-SAFE | Placebo comparator | Behavioral: MAGIC-SAFEParents will be provided with information about age-appropriate safety topics, including safe sleeping, car seats, baby-proofing, etc. The intervention is delivered via virtual visits, binder, website and newsletters. |
| MAGIC-FEED | Experimental | Behavioral: MAGIC-FEEDParents will be provided with responsive feeding coaching to help them recognize hunger and satiety cues and nutrition coaching that includes bottle-/breast-feeding and complementary feeding in alignment with the Dietary Guidelines. The intervention is delivered via virtual visits, binder, website and newsletters. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 0 to 90 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (6 listed)
- A singleton infant 3-9 weeks of age, born ≥37 weeks gestation.
- The mother and other caregiver must be at least 18 years of age.
- The infant must live with the mother.
- Lives within the Austin metropolitan area.
- English or Spanish speaking.
Key exclusion criteria (7 listed)
- Infant diagnosed with major physical disabilities and/or medical condition that affects feeding and growth, and/or born <37 weeks gestation.
- Infant experienced NICU stay >7 days.
- Twins, triplets, or other multiples.
- Mothers and/or other caregivers younger than 18 years old.
- Mothers that do not consent to being video recorded with their baby.
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| MAGIC-FEEDParents will be provided with responsive feeding coaching to help them recognize hunger and satiety cues and nutrition coaching that includes bottle-/breast-feeding and complementary feeding in alignment with the Dietary Guidelines. The intervention is delivered via virtual visits, binder, website and newsletters. | Behavioural | MAGIC-FEED |
| MAGIC-SAFEParents will be provided with information about age-appropriate safety topics, including safe sleeping, car seats, baby-proofing, etc. The intervention is delivered via virtual visits, binder, website and newsletters. | Behavioural | MAGIC-SAFE |
Primary outcome
Infant Body Mass Index Z-score (BMIZ) at 13 and 24 months
Time frame: 13 & 24 months
Assessed via anthropometrics and WHO Child Growth Standards.
Infant dietary quality index
Time frame: 0-13 months
Infant dietary quality index (IDQI) score with higher scores indicating higher dietary quality (Au et al. J Nutr 2023, 153(3): 741-748). Calculated with questionnaire data from an adapted Infant Feeding Practices III Food Frequency Questionnaire.
Infant self-regulation during feeding
Time frame: 0-13 months
Infant self-regulation during feeding coded from video observation via the Nursing Child Assessment Feeding Scale.
Eating self-regulation
Time frame: 24 months
Assessed via 'Eating in the Absence of Hunger' experiment using standard protocols (Asta et al. Pediatrics 2016;137(5):e20153786).
13 secondary outcomes
Caregiver nutrition knowledge
Time frame: 0-24 months
Caregiver sensitivity
Time frame: 0-24 months
Solid food introduction timing
Time frame: 0-8 months
Percentage body fat
Time frame: 13 & 24 months
Proportion with BMIZ >=95%ile
Time frame: 13 & 24 months
BMIZ change from 3 wk to 24 months
Time frame: 0-24 months
Child self-regulation
Time frame: 24 months
Caregiver infant feeding practices
Time frame: 0-24 months
Baby Eating Behavior
Time frame: ~ 8 months
Child Eating Behavior
Time frame: 24 months
Duration of exclusive breastfeeding
Time frame: 0-24 months
Sugary beverages before 12 months
Time frame: 0-12 months
Child self-regulation
Time frame: 13 months
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 10 Jun 2026.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: Undecided
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Deborah Jacobvitz, PhD contact
Elizabeth Widen, PhD, RD principal investigator
UT Austin
Deborah Jacobvitz, PhD principal investigator
UT Austin
2 sites in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing MAGIC-FEED and MAGIC-SAFE in people with Childhood Obesity Prevention and Parenting Behavior, run by University of Texas at Austin at 2 sites in United States.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 6 inclusion and 7 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 10 Jun 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 2 sites in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. Some participants in this study may receive a placebo. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Elizabeth Widen, PhD, RD (512-471-0941, widen.lab@austin.utexas.edu), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Infant Body Mass Index Z-score (BMIZ) at 13 and 24 months (time frame: 13 & 24 months). The study lists 4 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 10 Jun 2026.