Development of an Internet/Population-Based Weight Management Program for the U.S. Army

Abstract

A significant number of Army soldiers are sufficiently overweight to exceed the maximum weight allowances defined by the Army weight control program (AR600-9). Also, the body weights of a substantial number of soldiers approach the maximum weight allowances. These soldiers should not gain additional weight if they are to meet Army weight allowances. The conventional approach to this overweight problem is assigning soldiers to remedial physical training and mandatory referral for nutrition counseling by a health care provider. An alternative to this conventional approach is to target the entire population of soldiers (population-based intervention) to promote weight loss in overweight soldiers and weight gain prevention in soldiers who are approaching overweight status. To accomplish this objective, the Healthy Eating, Activity, and Lifestyle Training Headquarters (H.E.A.L.T.H.) program was developed. This article describes the rationale for developing the program, the components of the program, and the utilization promotion strategies of the program. The H.E.A.L.T.H. program includes two primary components: (1) a Web site tailored to the standards established in Field Manual 21-20, Physical Fitness Training, Army physical fitness test, and AR600-9, the army weight control program, and (2) a health promotion program designed to promote awareness of the H.E.A.L.T.H. Web site and to facilitate use of the Web site by soldiers and their family members. The Web site is equipped with personalized planning tools and progress tracking over time related to fitness, caloric intake, and lifestyle behavior change goals. The health promotion program includes media advertisements and "ground roots" efforts to facilitate use by soldiers.

Efficacy of SmartLossSM , a smartphone-based weight loss intervention: Results from a randomized controlled trial

“…Topics included suggestions for stress management, healthy eating, exercise, and sleep hygiene. The topics and content of these health promotion messages were obtained from similar health information control groups from our earlier Internet‐based intervention studies . To control for attention effects between the SmartLoss and Health Education groups, the number of text messages or e‐mails that participants in the Health Education group received was similar to the number of contacts that participants in the SmartLoss group received from their counselor.…”

Examination of mechanisms (E-MECHANIC) of exercise-induced weight compensation: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

“…The health information covers a variety of topics, including stress management and the benefits of eating fruits and vegetables [16-19]. Monthly seminars will be available for control group participants and will cover topics related to a healthy lifestyle.…”

Selected weight management interventions for military populations in the United States: a narrative report

“…The military has unique challenges to consider when creating interventions for overweight and obese military members. One such challenge is the temporary or permanent mobilization of service members from one geographic area to another, whether temporarily or permanently (Krukowski et al, 2015;Sanderson et al, 2011;Spieker et al, 2015;Stewart et al, 2008Stewart et al, , 2011. Understanding the complex health behaviors of obesity in a military population, and thus the correlates of outcomes, is lacking as such studies have largely been conducted on the general population.…”

“…Although all military departments include ongoing programming to address these concerns, there is a significant gap between health promotion programming and subsequent evaluation (Tanofsky-Kraff et al, 2013). Additionally, empirical evidence on the efficacy and effectiveness of weight management programs provided by the DoD is lacking ( Krukowski et al, 2015;Sanderson et al, 2011;Spieker et al, 2015;Stewart et al, 2008Stewart et al, , 2011. It is also important to note that weight management programs are not standardized across all military treatment facilities and clinics.…”

“…In 2003, the Committee on Military Nutrition Research of the Health and Medicine Division of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine recommended a "portable" program be developed to promote weight loss and weight maintenance (Stewart et al, 2008(Stewart et al, , 2011. In response to this recommendation the US Army created the Healthy Eating, Activity, and Lifestyle Training Headquarters (H.E.A.L.T.H.)…”