Innovative Research to Improve Maintenance of Weight Loss

Recently published, the National Institutes of Health, led by the National Heart, Lung & Blood Institute, organized a working group of experts to discuss the problem of weight regain after weight loss.
Experts included integrative physiologists and behavioral psychologists, all with the goal of merging their perspectives regarding the barriers to scientific progress and the development of novel ways to improve long-term outcomes in obesity therapeutics. The ultimate goals of this panel were to:
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1. Identify the challenges that make maintaining a reduced weight so difficult
2. Review strategies that have been used to improve success in previous studies
3. Recommend novel solutions that could be examined in future studies of long-term weight control

The major limitation to this type of research is an attempt to avoid extensive discussions delving into policy changes and the built environment.

One resounding recommendation from the group was that to produce more effective weight loss maintenance therapies, we must improve our understanding of the mechanistic interactions between these pressures (biology, environment, behavior) resulting from weight loss.

Suggestions From Panel For Advancing Science to Develop More Effective Weight Loss Therapies:

• Countering biology to reduce the gap between appetite and expenditure
• Deeping our understanding of exercise
• Innovations with diet
• Innovations in behavioral strategies
• Innovations in pharmacotherapy
• Mechanisms of weight loss and weight regain following bariatric surgery
• Advances in technology, constructs and definitions
• Measuring components of energy balance and related parameters
• Individualized and targeted strategies to maximize effectiveness
• Constructs and mechanisms underlying “motivation”
• Information technology and social networking
• Novel research designs

The overwhelming conclusion from this discussion was that greater collaboration and cross-talk between physiological and behavioral researchers is needed. Training in both areas for early-stage obesity researchers may lead to a more sophisticated understanding of factors that influence relapse and development of methods to enhance long-term maintenance.

How Can You Apply This Research To Your Weight Loss Goals?
At Medical Metabolic Specialists, teaching patients about weight loss is our primary goal. We firmly believe that lifestyle, psychological and medical interventions all work together to help our patients learn about weight loss in the healthiest way possible. A commitment to lifestyle change, rather than a flash diet, teaches our patients how to lose weight & keep it off.

Visit our Why MMS page or give us a call to learn more!
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Source: NIH & PubMed