Weight reduction at the work site: a promise partially fulfilled

Area of Science:

• Behavioral science
• Public health
• Occupational health

Background:

• Worksite weight reduction programs are crucial for employee health.
• Previous programs have varying success rates and high attrition.
• Cost-effectiveness of different program structures needs investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness and attrition rates of worksite behavioral weight reduction programs.
• To compare the impact of meeting frequency on program outcomes.
• To assess the efficacy of lay leaders versus professional therapists.

Main Methods:

• Three consecutive 16-week behavioral group programs involving 172 female union members.
• Data collection on weight loss, attrition rates, and maintenance.
• Comparison of groups with different meeting frequencies (once vs. 3-4 times weekly).
• Analysis of outcomes based on program leaders (lay vs. professional).

Main Results:

• No significant difference in overall weight loss across the three studies.
• Attrition decreased significantly from 57.5% to 33.8% over the studies.
• Groups meeting 3-4 times weekly had lower attrition than those meeting once weekly.
• Weight loss maintenance showed improvement.
• Lay leaders achieved results comparable to professional therapists at a lower cost.

Conclusions:

• Worksite behavioral weight reduction programs can be effective in reducing attrition and improving weight loss maintenance.
• Increased meeting frequency can decrease dropout rates without compromising weight loss.
• Lay leaders offer a cost-effective alternative to professional therapists for delivering these programs.