A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Commercial Internet Weight Loss Program

Abstract

EWING. A randomized controlled trial of a commercial Internet weight loss program. Obes Res. 2004;12: 1011-1018. Objective: To assess, in a 1-year randomized controlled trial, the efficacy of eDiets.com (a commercial Internet weight loss program) in improving weight, cardiovascular health, and quality of life. Research Methods and Procedures: Participants were 47 women with a mean age of 43.7 Ϯ 10.2 (SD) years and a mean BMI of 33.5 Ϯ 3.1 kg/m 2 . They were randomly assigned to either: 1) eDiets.com, a commercial Internetbased program available to the public; or 2) a weight loss manual (i.e., LEARN Program for Weight Control 2000). At baseline, participants in both groups met briefly with a psychologist who instructed them to follow the components of their program as closely as possible. Additional brief visits were provided at weeks 8, 16, 26, and 52 to review their progress. Change in weight was the main outcome measure. Results: At week 16, participants in eDiets.com lost 0.9 Ϯ 3.2% of initial weight compared with 3.6 Ϯ 4.0% for women assigned to the weight loss manual. At week 52, losses increased to 1.1 Ϯ 4.0% and 4.0 Ϯ 5.1%, respectively. Results of a last-observation-carried-forward analysis found that women in the manual group lost significantly (p Ͻ 0.05) more weight (at both times) than those treated by eDiets.com. (Results, however, of baseline-carried-forward and completers analyses did not reach statistical significance.) There were no significant differences between groups in changes in cardiovascular risk factors or quality of life. Discussion: This study provides consumers with important information about the probable benefits they can expect from participating in a popular Internet-based weight loss program.

The use of motivational interviewing techniques to enhance the efficacy of guided self-help behavioral weight loss treatment

“…This is in keeping with earlier studies (with larger samples) suggesting that individuals in weight loss treatments enhanced with MI lose more weight than those in treatments without MI (e.g., . Although it is difficult to compare across studies due to differences in samples and methodology, the weight losses experienced by women in the GSH/MI group over 3 months were comparable to those reported in Womble et al's (2004) This suggests that the LEARN manual might be most effective in a shorter-term, MIenhanced format.…”

“…Both Womble et al (2004) and Gardner et al (2007) reported mean weight losses at a one-year follow-up. In the Womble et al (2004) study, the LEARN group lost 4 kg (8.82 lbs.).…”

“…In the Womble et al (2004) study, the LEARN group lost 4 kg (8.82 lbs.). Individuals in Gardner et al's (2007) study were less successful; they reportedly lost 2.2 kg (4.85 lbs.)…”

“…The LEARN Program for Weight Management, 10 th Edition (Brownell, 2004) is popular with both clinicians and participants and is often employed in university-based clinics (Andersen et al, 1999;Foster et al, 2003;Womble et al, 2004). LEARN stands for lifestyle, exercise, attitudes, relationships, and nutrition.…”

Interest in a Twitter-delivered weight loss program among women of childbearing age

“…Studies have examined the use of online social networks, including online group chats and message board, primarily to connect participants outside of in-person meetings [16,17]. Two recent systematic reviews indicated that online social networks have been primarily used as an adjunct to in-person or web-based weight loss interventions, rather than as the primary treatment modality [18,19].…”