In that little is known about weight control strategies associated with successful weight loss among obese American adults, a team from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (Massachusetts, USA) studied data collected in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2001-2006, involving 4,021 obese adults. Jacinda Nicklas and colleagues found that of the 63% of study participants who reported trying to lose weight the previous year, 40% lost at least 5% of their body weight, and 20% loss at least 10%. significantly associated with losing at least 10% of body weight, were: eating less fat, exercising more, and joining a commercial weight-loss program. Using prescription weight-loss drugs, as well as liquid diets, over-the-counter diet pills, and fad diets resulted in nominal weight loss.
