Unless you re living under a rock, you must be aware that overweight and obesity are rampant among the American population, and that these conditions (especially obesity) are linked to a myriad of chronic ills such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease. So weight loss becomes an important means of fending off such problems but sustained weight loss is not easy to attain or maintain. Thus we have a plethora of questionable dietary supplements rushing to help . However, some, but not all, commercial weight loss programs have actually acquired a reasonable record of achieving and sustaining weight loss, as determined by a recent study in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
Dr. Kimberly A. Gudzune from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and colleagues assessed the efficacy of several currently available commercial weight loss programs by evaluating the results of 45 studies 39 were random controlled trials. The programs examined included Weight Watchers, (WW) Jenny Craig (JC), Nutrisystem, Medifast, OPTIFAST, Atkins and SlimFast.
The investigators examined both the weight lost and the maintenance of the loss 12 months into each program when such data were available. At 12 months, both WW and JC users maintained more weight loss compared to controls. For WW, the loss was about 3 percent greater than controls, and for JC it was nearly 5 percent greater than controls. Medifast and OPTIFAST had good results short-term, but the results weren t maintained for a full 12 months. Use of the Atkins plan resulted in anywhere from 0.1 to 2.9 percent loss at 12 months compared to controls who received only counseling. The authors noted that many trials lasted less than one year, had high attrition rates, or lacked blinding.
The authors concluded Clinicians could consider referring overweight or obese patients to Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig. Other popular programs, such as Nutrisystem, show promising weight-loss results; however, additional studies evaluating long-term outcomes are needed.
ACSH s Dr. Ruth Kava concurred Given the vast number of questionable cures for obesity that are touted on the Internet and other media, it s important for consumers to know what really works and what doesn t. Probably the most important aspect of the WW and JC programs is that they include some degree of education about how to best achieve a healthy weight and maintain it.