Commercial weight loss programme evaluated

Anyone who wants to lose weight has a wide variety of diets to choose from, but knowledge of what works is often poor. Researchers at Karolinska Institutet and Uppsala University have now evaluated a Swedish commercial weight loss programme called Itrim, and found it to be effective. After one year, participants had lost 11 kg on average. "Most of the participants lost a lot of weight in the first three months and then showed very good weight stability after one year," says Erik Hemmingsson, researcher at Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital's Obesity Centre. "However, we still don't know what happens in the longer term. Maintaining the lower weight is without a doubt the greatest challenge for dieters." Itrim is based on available research on sustained weight loss through diet and exercise. Each participant selects one of three diets at the start of the at a minimum one-year programme: a very low calorie diet (VLCD, 500 kcal/day consisting solely of meal replacements for 6-10 weeks); a low calorie diet (LCD, 1200-1500 kcal/day consisting of a mix of normal food and meal replacements); or a calorie-restricted normal food diet (1500-1800 kcal/day).