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Healthy, Well-Nourished Population
"Healthy Weight 4 Life"
Issue
Obesity affects more than 50 percent of the U.S. population, according
to recent figures from the Centers for Disease Control. There is a critical
need for effective weight management programs that integrate all the
factors that contribute to obesity. A university environment can facilitate
multi-disciplinary, collaborative approaches combining research and
community outreach. At the University of Arizona, researchers in the
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and the College of Medicine,
are working together to develop and test a sound, scientifically-based
weight loss program.
What has been done?
Faculty from the Department of Nutritional Sciences in the UA College
of Agriculture and Life Sciences and the Department of Physiology in
the UA College of Medicine developed a comprehensive weight loss program
called "Healthy Weight 4 Life." One hundred twenty women enrolled.
Phase One includes a weight loss curriculum emphasizing four elements:
increased physical activity, healthy eating, developing healthy interpersonal
relationships, and dealing with psychological and emotional barriers
to weight loss. Phase Two features 18 months of subsequent online support
that offers encouragement for participants in maintaining their weight
loss. The Web-based format is more cost-effective than weekly face-to-face
follow-up meetings. The UA researchers are testing this method for its
efficacy and usefulness in promoting and maintaining long-term weight
loss.
Impact
Of the 120 women who participated, the average weight loss during the
first 16 weeks was 11 pounds. Some women lost 37 pounds. More than 75
percent of the women enrolled in Phase Two, the online support phase,
have maintained their weight or continued to lose more weight. (They
had completed eight weeks of this support by early 2001). Some of the
women in the program bordered on class II obesity when they started.
“I lost 44 pounds and now I am able to wear clothes I haven’t
worn in years. How is this program different from others I have tried?
It has all the elements to succeed. The nutrition, the hydration, the
physical activity, mind and body, and the support groups. My physical
activity grew from none to 500 to 600 minutes of activity a week or
sometimes more. Thanks to this program, I started the New Year with
a size 8, [down] from a size 16 or sometimes 18. Believe me, I do not
miss my previous size.”
—participant
“The program was a lot of things to me...fun, new friends, professional
people to learn from, informational in terms of exercise and nutrition,
but most of all it took me from feelings of isolation, despair and depression
over my weight and physical health to feelings that I am not alone with
my struggles and I can control my weight and to some extent my physical
health.”
—participant
Funding
National Institute for Diabetes, Degenerative and Kidney Diseases
Contact
Scott Going, associate research scientist
Department of Nutritional Sciences
The University of Arizona
238 Shantz Bldg.
Tucson, AZ 85721
Tel.: (520) 621-4705, FAX: (520) 621-8170
Email: going@u.arizona.edu
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