Mega Doctor News
By Wake Forest University School of Medicine
Newswise – People who receive regular phone support after losing weight are more likely to keep the pounds off — but getting extra calls when at risk for regaining weight doesn’t provide additional benefit, according to a new study led by Kathryn M. Ross, Ph.D., M.P.H., senior research scientist at Advocate Aurora Research Institute and associate professor in the Department of Social Sciences and Health Policy at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.
The study was published on September 22 in JAMA Network Open and followed 255 adults with obesity who had lost at least 5% of their initial weight during a 16-week weight-loss program. All participants received monthly phone support calls. Participants were randomly assigned to receive these calls either once each month or when triggered by an algorithm that determined they were at high risk for regaining weight. After 20 months, both groups maintained an average of 8% weight loss from their starting weight, and about 60% of participants kept off at least 5% of their initial weight.
“This study is important because it shows that ongoing support really does help people maintain their weight loss over time. Outcomes in both groups were better than we expected,” said Ross.
The research team designed the study to test whether a more personalized approach — giving extra help when someone’s risk of regaining weight was highest — would outperform the standard monthly check-ins. The results showed that while both approaches were effective, the adaptive schedule did not lead to greater weight maintenance.
“We have a couple of ideas of why this may be and are excited to get started on new studies to improve our algorithm for predicting weight regain,” said Ross. “Our findings support the provision of long-term care for obesity, under a chronic disease model, just like we do for other long-term health issues,” Ross said. “We hope this research encourages more clinics and health programs to offer ongoing support to help people keep the weight off.”
The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health. All participants used smartphone apps and digital scales to track their progress and received support from trained health coaches.
