28th June 2018
Group-based diet and exercise programmes can lead to weight loss
#GPPharmacists, when conducting your LTC clinics are you giving adequate exercise advice and are you supporting your patients to lose weight to tackle obesity?
The evidence is growing that group-based weight loss programmes can offer effective and acceptable options for overweight people, particularly men. On average, people in group dietary advice and exercise programmes lose 3.5kg more than non-participants by six months – a modest 4% weight loss overall but less than the 5% that is often regarded as clinically important.
In this systematic review on the group weight loss approach, participants in the 47 trials were adults from the general population, taking part in groups of at least three people, led by a facilitator. The interventions varied considerably in setting, contact time, group size, facilitators’ background and intervention content.
This wide variation and reporting limitations mean that it is difficult to determine exactly what works and how. The group approach seems generally effective, more so for men than women, and is more effective in those programmes that target weight loss rather than maintenance.
To read about this study further click on the link below:
