Scientists say Weight Watchers Really Works
The Medical Research Council (MRC) has revealed that offering Weight Watchers courses on the National Health Services (NHS) program may help to deal with the obesity problem in Britain. New studies are showing that these courses would be an effective, yet inexpensive, way to cut the burden on the NHS.
The Weight Watchers program focuses on changing the eating and exercising behaviors of people instead of just their diet. In the studies by the MRC, the program produced better results than normal advice and care provided by general physicians. As part of Weight Watchers, people attend weekly classes and are given advice on how to measure the amount of food they consume based on a point system that ensures they don’t eat too much of certain food types.
In the new research, which was carried out by the MRC and paid for by Weight Watchers, an assessment was conducted of how much weight 30,000 people lost during a 12-session course. the patients lost an average 2.8kg, while 12% cut their weight by over one-tenth.
They also compared 800 patients who, over a 1-year period, were either sent to Weight Watchers or a local health care provider. The results showed that, after a year, those who participated in the program lost 7kg on average in comparison to the 3.9kg lost by those who didn’t.
MRC head of nutrition and health research Dr. Susan Jebb led the study. She says that the data is very encouraging and tells them that Weight Watchers is an effective way to help people lose weight. Weight Watchers dietitian Zoe Hellman said that one of the keys is having motivation and support, which they offer.