We know that people trying to lose weight benefit from having a plan and a support network. Conventional lifestyle interventions that encourage people to eat healthier and get more exercise are built around in-person meetings with physicians or dietitians. These methods require self-monitoring and extensive personalized feedback to be successful. Personalized feedback from a trained health professional improves health outcomes but can get expensive and time-consuming. You may be thinking how much easier it would be to make healthier choices if you had a dietitian checking in with you daily and a group of friends cheering you on. Sounds nice, right? Well, mobile health (mHealth) technology makes that possible through your smartphone.
A 2021 study tested a user-friendly, interactive smartphone app-based lifestyle intervention for weight loss. Researchers assigned participants to two groups. The control group received conventional outpatient weight-management visits every three months. The intervention group attended the weight-management visits and participated in an electronically delivered weight loss program. They engaged with a trained health coach and other participants via the Fitbit app and a messaging and photo-sharing app. After six months, the intervention group lost almost twice as much weight as the control group.
The intervention group participants received a Fitbit Charge Heart Rate activity tracker and a Fitbit Aria smartscale. They were instructed to wear their Fitbit activity trackers for as close to 24 hours a day as possible and asked to weigh themselves when they woke up each morning. The activity tracker and smartscale sync with the Fitbit app. Physical activity levels were shared with the group and daily weights only shared with the coach.
Participants could choose from a low glycemic index, low fat, low carbohydrate, or Mediterranean style diet plan. They received individualized daily calorie targets based on their age, gender, height, and starting weight that factored in their projected increase in physical activity. Participants were given the goal to lose 5% of their weight in the next 3 months. You may be familiar with food diary apps, such as MyFitnessPal and Cronometer. While many people love these apps, other people are put off by the idea of having to weigh and log everything they eat. Instead of manually tracking foods, participants took photos of what they ate and shared the photos with their coach and peers using a photo-sharing app. The coach provided positive reinforcement by giving virtual stars on healthier meals.
The participants who regularly shared food photographs and sent in-app text messages to the group had the greatest percent of weight change. Their level of engagement with the app-based intervention was associated with improved weight loss success. Other weight loss studies have also shown that greater engagement with an intervention is associated with greater weight loss.
In 2021, 85% percent of United States adults own a smartphone. Electronically-delivered lifestyle intervention can be effective tools for weight loss and have the potential to help the 42% of US adults living with obesity achieve healthier body weights. The core aspects of a comprehensive lifestyle intervention combine diet, physical activity, and behavioral components. If you are seeking to lose weight, you may consider participating in weight loss and physical activity programs offered by trained interventionists such as dietitians or health coaches who can offer professional guidance as well as community support. Engaging with supportive peers striving to reach their goals may help you achieve yours. mHealth technology allows you to integrate your plan and support network as automatically and seamlessly as possible.
Alessandra Echeverria
NUTR6104 Advanced Normal Nutrition
Dr. Desiree Wanders
Nutrition for a General Audience: Article Summary