An intervention of sustainable weight change: Influence of self-help group and expectations
2021 (English)In: Health Expectations, ISSN 1369-6513, E-ISSN 1369-7625, Vol. 24, no 4, p. 1498-1503Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
BACKGROUND: Obesity is one of the most challenging public health problems in Western societies. Group activities are a way to empower individuals to make sustainable lifestyle changes. Self-help groups enable individuals to share expectations and experiences on an equal basis.
OBJECTIVE: The aim was to find a model for sustainable weight reduction for people with obesity and to evaluate the importance of expectations before entering the weight reduction programme.
METHODS: Persons with a BMI >30 and aged over 30 years were recruited. Weekly seminars for 6 months with discussions concerning physical activity, eating habits and how to change one's lifestyle occurred. After the seminars, a self-help group was initiated. The participants were encouraged to express their expectations before each step in the study.
RESULTS: Our findings showed that those who had joined a self-help group had reduced their weight significantly (-6.0 kg) compared with those who had not (-1.4 kg). Further, those who expressed a more mature expectation of the coming change in behaviour towards a healthy lifestyle showed slightly larger weight reduction (-6.1 kg) than those who expressed low expectations (-3.7 kg).
PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: Participants expressed their thoughts and views, which were considered and included in the programme.
CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that the self-help group can be an essential part of a weight reduction programme. The self-help group is a novel strategy to strengthen sustainability in reducing weight. The study also highlights the importance of identifying behaviour change expectations before participating in a programme.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
John Wiley & Sons, 2021. Vol. 24, no 4, p. 1498-1503
Keywords [en]
behavioural change, expectation, obesity, physical activity, self-help group, weight change
National Category
Public Health, Global Health, Social Medicine and Epidemiology Health Sciences
Research subject
Family-Centred Health
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:his:diva-19859DOI: 10.1111/hex.13290ISI: 000658037400001PubMedID: 34089622Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85107229412OAI: oai:DiVA.org:his-19859DiVA, id: diva2:1568327
Note
CC BY 4.0
Corresponcence: Kristina Carlén, School of Health Sciences, University of Skövde, Sweden. Email: kristina.carlen@his.se
This research was supported by grants from The Skaraborg Institute for Research and Development, Skövde, Sweden
2021-06-172021-06-172021-09-22Bibliographically approved