A Digital Health Weight Loss Program in 250,000 Individuals

Importance. Obesity is a worsening epidemic worldwide. Effective and accessible weight loss programs to combat obesity on a large scale are warranted, but a need for frequent face-to-face care might impose a limitation. Objective. To evaluate whether individuals following a weight loss program based...

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Main Authors: Conor Senecal, Robert Jay Widmer, Beth R. Larrabee, Mariza de Andrade, Lilach O. Lerman, Amir Lerman, Francisco Lopez-Jimenez
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2020-01-01
Series:Journal of Obesity
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2020/9497164
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author Conor Senecal
Robert Jay Widmer
Beth R. Larrabee
Mariza de Andrade
Lilach O. Lerman
Amir Lerman
Francisco Lopez-Jimenez
author_facet Conor Senecal
Robert Jay Widmer
Beth R. Larrabee
Mariza de Andrade
Lilach O. Lerman
Amir Lerman
Francisco Lopez-Jimenez
author_sort Conor Senecal
collection DOAJ
description Importance. Obesity is a worsening epidemic worldwide. Effective and accessible weight loss programs to combat obesity on a large scale are warranted, but a need for frequent face-to-face care might impose a limitation. Objective. To evaluate whether individuals following a weight loss program based on a mobile application, wireless scale, and nutritional program but no face-to-face care can achieve clinically significant weight loss in a large cohort. Design. Retrospective observational analysis. Setting. China from October 2016 to December 2017. Participants. Mobile application users with a minimum of 2 weights (baseline and ≥35 days). Intervention. A commercial (Weijian Technologies) weight loss program consisting of a dietary replacement, self-monitoring using a wireless home scale, and frequent guidance via mobile application. Main Outcome. Mean weight change around 42, 60, 90, and 120 days after program initiation with subgroup analysis by gender, age, and frequency of use. Results. 251,718 individuals, with a mean age of 37.3 years (SD: 9.86) (79% female), were included with a mean weight loss of 4.3 kg (CI: ±0.02) and a mean follow-up of 120 days (SD: 76.8 days). Mean weight loss at 42, 60, 90, and 120 d was 4.1 kg (CI: ±0.02), 4.9 kg (CI: ±0.02), 5.6 kg (CI: ±0.03), and 5.4 kg (CI: ±0.04), respectively. At 120 d, 62.7% of participants had lost at least 5% of their initial weight. Both genders and all usage frequency tertiles showed statistically significant weight loss from baseline at each interval (P<0.001), and this loss was greater in men than in women (120 d: 6.5 vs. 5.2 kg; P<0.001). The frequency of recording (categorized as high-, medium-, or low-frequency users) was associated with greater weight loss when comparing high, medium, and low tertile use groups at all time intervals investigated (e.g., 120 d: −8.6, −5.6, and −2.2 kg, respectively; P<0.001). Conclusions. People following a commercially available hybrid weight loss program using a mobile application, wireless scale, and nutritional program without face-to-face interaction on average achieved clinically significant short- and midterm weight loss. These results support the implementation of comparable technologies for weight control in a large population.
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spelling doaj-art-8517009dfcb8493a8dcee5b9d3e833482025-08-20T02:08:40ZengWileyJournal of Obesity2090-07082090-07162020-01-01202010.1155/2020/94971649497164A Digital Health Weight Loss Program in 250,000 IndividualsConor Senecal0Robert Jay Widmer1Beth R. Larrabee2Mariza de Andrade3Lilach O. Lerman4Amir Lerman5Francisco Lopez-Jimenez6Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USADepartment of Cardiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USADivision of Biostatistics, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, MN, USADivision of Biostatistics, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, MN, USADivision of Nephrology and Hypertension, Department of Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USADepartment of Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USADepartment of Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USAImportance. Obesity is a worsening epidemic worldwide. Effective and accessible weight loss programs to combat obesity on a large scale are warranted, but a need for frequent face-to-face care might impose a limitation. Objective. To evaluate whether individuals following a weight loss program based on a mobile application, wireless scale, and nutritional program but no face-to-face care can achieve clinically significant weight loss in a large cohort. Design. Retrospective observational analysis. Setting. China from October 2016 to December 2017. Participants. Mobile application users with a minimum of 2 weights (baseline and ≥35 days). Intervention. A commercial (Weijian Technologies) weight loss program consisting of a dietary replacement, self-monitoring using a wireless home scale, and frequent guidance via mobile application. Main Outcome. Mean weight change around 42, 60, 90, and 120 days after program initiation with subgroup analysis by gender, age, and frequency of use. Results. 251,718 individuals, with a mean age of 37.3 years (SD: 9.86) (79% female), were included with a mean weight loss of 4.3 kg (CI: ±0.02) and a mean follow-up of 120 days (SD: 76.8 days). Mean weight loss at 42, 60, 90, and 120 d was 4.1 kg (CI: ±0.02), 4.9 kg (CI: ±0.02), 5.6 kg (CI: ±0.03), and 5.4 kg (CI: ±0.04), respectively. At 120 d, 62.7% of participants had lost at least 5% of their initial weight. Both genders and all usage frequency tertiles showed statistically significant weight loss from baseline at each interval (P<0.001), and this loss was greater in men than in women (120 d: 6.5 vs. 5.2 kg; P<0.001). The frequency of recording (categorized as high-, medium-, or low-frequency users) was associated with greater weight loss when comparing high, medium, and low tertile use groups at all time intervals investigated (e.g., 120 d: −8.6, −5.6, and −2.2 kg, respectively; P<0.001). Conclusions. People following a commercially available hybrid weight loss program using a mobile application, wireless scale, and nutritional program without face-to-face interaction on average achieved clinically significant short- and midterm weight loss. These results support the implementation of comparable technologies for weight control in a large population.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2020/9497164
spellingShingle Conor Senecal
Robert Jay Widmer
Beth R. Larrabee
Mariza de Andrade
Lilach O. Lerman
Amir Lerman
Francisco Lopez-Jimenez
A Digital Health Weight Loss Program in 250,000 Individuals
Journal of Obesity
title A Digital Health Weight Loss Program in 250,000 Individuals
title_full A Digital Health Weight Loss Program in 250,000 Individuals
title_fullStr A Digital Health Weight Loss Program in 250,000 Individuals
title_full_unstemmed A Digital Health Weight Loss Program in 250,000 Individuals
title_short A Digital Health Weight Loss Program in 250,000 Individuals
title_sort digital health weight loss program in 250 000 individuals
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2020/9497164
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