Let's face it: weight loss is not only an enormous
preoccupation in American minds, but an enormous investment
of American time and money. With about half of American
adults trying to lose weight and an estimated 65 billion
dollars being spent each year by Americans on weight
loss-related products and services, there simply has
to be a better way. And, studies suggest, there is.
In a pioneering study published in Computers, Informatics,
and Nursing in 2013, text messaging was isolated
and tested as a weight loss tool: the small study divided
28 overweight and obese adults in a community-based
weight loss program in the Richmond area into control
and experimental groups. The experimental group received
text messages tailored to aid in the weight loss process
twice per week throughout the 12 week duration of the
study.
The text messages that the experimental condition received
included reminders to continue habits like eating well
and exercising as well as motivational words. Many texts
offered tips to help participants make these goals a
reality, such as suggestions for healthy snacks. The
texts were also interactive, allowing participants to
respond with a simple 'yes' or 'no' indicating whether
or not they used the advice they received. And they
worked.
By the end of the study's 12 week run, the experimental
group lost an average of 4.5 more pounds than the control
group that did not receive the texts. Additionally,
79% of the participants indicated that they found the
texts helpful, though rates of reply declined from 66%
to 52% between the beginning and end of the study. Although
most participants reported finding the texts helpful,
several mentioned that some texts were ill-timed, arriving
during busy work days or when participants were driving.
Another study, published online in the Journal of Medical
Internet Research in 2013, tested the use of text messaging
to track daily diet and exercise habits, in lieu of
keeping a diet and exercise diary. Tracking one's own
diet and exercise habits can be a great boon to weight
loss efforts, and is a strong predictor of the success
of these efforts. However, keeping a diary of these
habits can be daunting, tedious, and uncomfortable,
making the recording itself an easy habit to drop, or
a factor that may discourage people from weight loss
plans. Introducing texting as a similar mode of tracking
affords participants in weight management programs a
more convenient and casual mode of keeping track of
their wellness habits and, researchers hoped, might
increase the efficacy of weight loss programs.
During a six month research period, researchers divided
50 obese women into an experimental condition that received
daily texts that encouraged self-monitoring of tailored
goals, and a control condition. Though rates of response
to the texts were not perfect, with an average of 49%
of the women in the experimental group responding to
the interactive texts per day, 85% of the women did
text self-monitored goals at least twice weekly; additionally,
70% strongly agreed that the texts were easy and helpful,
and 76% felt that they received texts at an appropriate
frequency. In short, the design was quite popular with
the texting participants.
The success of the study shines even more when its
participants' weight was objectively measured at the
conclusion of the study's six month run. The experimental
condition on average lost about 2.80 pounds, whereas
the control condition in fact gained about 2.51 pounds
over the course of the study. While these are small
averages for a study lasting six months, these results
point to texting as a promising beginning to a new way
to bolster weight loss attempts and programs. As we
further fine-tune and expand the reach of text messaging
in weight loss initiatives, who knows what we can accomplish?
About the Author -
Sharon Housley is the VP of Marketing for NotePage,
Inc. a software company for communication software solutions.
http://www.notepage.net
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