In a meta-analysis that was published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 3 researchers reviewed long-term studies that investigated eight types of weight-loss programs. This included advice alone, diet alone, exercise alone, diet and exercise, meal replacements, diets that were very low in calories (800 or less per day) and two weight-loss medications (orlistat and sibutramine).The researchers found 80 studies (with a total of 26,455 subjects) that met their inclusion criteria. Among their findings was that, after six months, the loss of weight by subjects in all eight programs reached a plateau. The subjects who received advice alone or exercise alone experienced a minimal loss of weight. In fact, the least effective treatment was exercise alone, with a loss of 5.3 pounds at six months and a regain of 3.1 of those pounds at two years. Those who were on the low-calorie diets lost 39.4 pounds at six months, but gained back 27.1 of those pounds at three years.
According to this review, the top treatments were diet alone, diet and exercise, and meal replacements. Subjects who used these three treatments lost about 11.0 to 18.7 pounds during the first six months. In studies that lasted 48 months, the subjects maintained a loss of 6.6 to 13.2 pounds.
feature by Fitness Magz
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