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Study: Which weight loss methods are most effective?
HealthPartners is first to study all types of weight loss intervention
Oct. 25, 2007
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – The HealthPartners Health Behavior Group recently conducted the first study to examine all types of weight loss intervention. Published in the October issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, this study was conducted to provide professionals with information on how best to treat overweight and obese individuals. Measuring weight loss at six to 48 months, this study comes at a time when approximately half of adults are trying to control or lose weight, spending $50 billion per year on weight loss methods.
"The purpose of this study was to determine which weight loss interventions were most successful initially and in the long run," said Nico Pronk, M.D., executive director of the HealthPartners Health Behavior Group. "It is important for patients to not only lose weight, but to keep it off as well."
The study measured eight weight loss interventions including diet alone, diet and exercise, exercise alone, meal replacements, low energy diets, weight-loss medications (orlistat and sibutramine) and advice to lose weight alone. Diet and exercise combined, the use of meal replacements, and taking weight loss medications were highly successful methods for weight loss that also showed good maintenance of weight loss. The method that exhibited the most significant initial weight loss was the use of a very low energy diet, however, most people regained weight quickly using this method. Additionally, the study found that participants who used diet alone and exercise alone did not lose significant amounts of weight. In all interventions, the weight loss began to plateau after six months.
According to the National Institutes of Health, people with a body mass index of 30 or more need to lose weight. "The problem with many people who are looking to lose weight is that they have unrealistic expectations of success. They want to lose weight faster and more rapidly than is actually possible," commented Pronk. "Hopefully the information obtained in this study will give health professionals a more systematic way of treating overweight and obese patients."
About HealthPartners
Founded in 1957, the HealthPartners (www.healthpartners.com) family of healthcare companies serve more than one million medical and dental health plan members nationwide. It is the largest consumer-governed, nonprofit health care organization in the nation, providing care, coverage, research and education to improve the health of members, patients and the community. For the third year in a row, HealthPartners is rated one of the best commercial health plans in the nation by U.S. News & World Report, NCQA's "America's Best Health Plans 2007" and is ranked "Highest in Member Satisfaction among Commercial Health Plans in the Minnesota-Wisconsin Region" by J.D. Power and Associates.
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