Those who are obese and try to shed weight are often unsuccessful according to a new study. Over a quarter of people living with obesity who had attempted to lose weight manages to lose a significant amount a year later.
The new study led by Dr Marc Evans and other researchers from the University Hospital Cardiff, looked at information on 1,850 obese adults with an average age of 52, whom 79% said they attempted to lose weight in the last year. The new study, being presented to the European Congress on Obesity in the Netherlands, examined adults from the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain.
People who had attempted diets (72%) had also started exercising, had weight loss surgery, tried medication or used digital apps. Researchers discovered among those who attempted to shed weight, 73.4% had not achieved 'clinically meaningful' weight loss.
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Despite this, Wales Online reported those who have had surgery are most likely to have lost weight - with half losing at least 5% of their body weight. People using digital health applications (32%) lost weight and three in 10 who attended a weight loss service- dropped the pounds.
Additionally 30% of people who had medication or took up exercises lost a clinically meaningful amount of weight and others who embarked on a calorie controlled or restricted diet lost a significant amount of weight.
However, researchers found that people who mixed methods of weight loss - for example exercise and a calorie controlled diet - were more likely to have achieved weight loss. 22% of people who attempted one weight loss strategy had shed a significant proportion of body weight, in comparison to 33% who used a combination of weight loss tools.
“Our survey results indicate that while the majority of adults with obesity are actively trying to reduce their weight, using a variety of strategies, most are unsuccessful,” said Dr Evans. “This underscores the need for increased support and solutions for weight management.
“And while obesity’s impact on health is well known, our finding that a sizeable proportion of adults with obesity appear at elevated risk of hospitalisation or surgery due to multiple underlying illnesses, undoubtedly adds a sense of urgency to tackling Europe’s growing obesity epidemic.”
A separate study published at the conference found the impact of losing or gaining weight on serious health problems among obese people depends of their body mass index (BMI). Professor Kamlesh Khunti, from the Diabetes Research Centre at the University of Leicester, examined data on 422,642 adults in the UK with obesity between 2001 and 2010and is also leading the study.
The researchers compared how the risk of developing 13 obesity-related complications which includes: sleep apnoea, high blood pressure, blood clots, heart attacks, asthma and depression and were affected by a change in weight. Participants were tracked for an average of seven years.
Weight loss appeared to affect patients with lower and higher BMI scores differently. For heart attack, irregular heart rhythm and heart failure, those with the highest initial BMI (of 50) got the greatest benefit from weight loss.
But those with a BMI of 30, losing weight appeared to reap more benefits. For example, people with a BMI of 30 who lost around fifth of their total body weight had a 56% lower risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, however the risk only fell by 39% for those with a BMI of 50.
Professor Khunti said: “If intentional weight loss in people with obesity with a lower BMI of around 30 is particularly beneficial to health, and weight gain potentially harmful, we should focus on treating obesity earlier in the course of the disease."
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