Lifestyle intervention reduces body weight and improves cardiometabolic risk factors in worksites

• Published in: The American journal of clinical nutrition Vol. 97; no. 4; pp. 667 - 676
• Main Authors: Salinardi, Taylor C, Batra, Payal, Roberts, Susan B, Urban, Lorien E, Robinson, Lisa M, Pittas, Anastassios G, Lichtenstein, Alice H, Deckersbach, Thilo, Saltzman, Edward, Das, Sai Krupa
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bethesda, MD American Society for Clinical Nutrition 01.04.2013; American Society for Nutrition; American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Inc
• Subjects: Adult; behavior change; Biological and medical sciences; Blood Glucose - metabolism; Blood Pressure; body weight changes; Cardiovascular disease; Cardiovascular Diseases - blood; Cardiovascular Diseases - etiology; Cardiovascular Diseases - prevention & control; cholesterol; Cholesterol - blood; clinical nutrition; diastolic blood pressure; Diet, Reducing; Dietary Fiber - administration & dosage; education; fasting; Feeding. Feeding behavior; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; glucose; Glycemic Index; Health Behavior; Health Education; Health Promotion - methods; high fiber diet; human resources; Humans; Intervention; Life Style; lifestyle; Lifestyles; Male; Middle Aged; obesity; Obesity - blood; Obesity - diet therapy; Obesity - therapy; Occupational Health Services; Outcome Assessment, Health Care; Pilot Projects; risk; Risk Factors; Social support; statistical models; systolic blood pressure; Vertebrates: anatomy and physiology, studies on body, several organs or systems; Weight control; Weight Gain; Weight Loss; Workplace; Human; Body weight; Risk factor
• ISSN: 0002-9165; 1938-3207
• DOI: 10.3945/ajcn.112.046995

Background: Worksites are potentially effective locations for obesity control because they provide opportunities for group intervention and social support. Studies are needed to identify effective interventions in these settings.Objective: We examined the effects of a multicomponent lifestyle intervention on weight loss and prevention of regain in 4 worksites (2 intervention and 2 control sites).Design: Overweight and obese employees (n = 133) enrolled in this pilot worksite-randomized controlled trial with a 0–6-mo weight-loss phase and a 6–12-mo structured weight-maintenance phase. The intervention combined recommendations to consume a reduced-energy, low–glycemic load, high-fiber diet with behavioral change education. Outcome measurements included changes in body weight and cardiometabolic risk factors.Results: The mean ± SEM weight loss was substantial in intervention participants, whereas control subjects gained weight (−8.0 ± 0.7 compared with +0.9 ± 0.5 kg, respectively; P < 0.001), and 89% of participants completed the weight-loss phase. Intervention effects were not significant at the 0.05 level but would have been at the 0.10 level (P = 0.08) in a mixed model in which the worksite nested within group was a random factor. There were also significant improvements in cardiometabolic risk factors in intervention compared with control subjects regarding fasting total cholesterol, glucose, systolic blood pressure, and diastolic blood pressure (P ≤ 0.02 for each). No significant weight regain was observed in participants who enrolled in the structured weight-maintenance program (0.5 ± 0.7 kg; P = 0.65), and overweight and obese employees in intervention worksites who were not enrolled in the weight-loss program lost weight compared with subjects in control worksites (−1.3 ± 0.5 compared with +0.7 ± 0.2 kg, respectively; P = 0.02).Conclusion: Worksites can be effective for achieving clinically important reductions in body weight and improved cardiometabolic risk factors. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01470222.