Browse the evidence

Telehealth dietitian-led lifestyle counseling combined with web-based tools lowers 24-hour systolic blood pressure more effectively than self-directed web-based tools alone in patients with elevated blood pressure and overweight/obesity.

If you have high blood pressure and are overweight, using a smartphone app alone might not be enough. Adding weekly phone calls with a dietitian who helps you set small, achievable goals and tracks your progress significantly improves your chances of lowering your blood pressure. The program uses free or low-cost apps to track food and weight, and the dietitian uses these insights to guide your weekly plan.

A multidisciplinary group intervention combining nutritional education, physical activity, and emotional management promotes sustainable weight loss (5-10%) and improves quality of life in adults with obesity.

To manage obesity effectively, consider joining a structured group program that combines nutrition education, physical activity, and emotional support. Look for programs that meet weekly for about two months and include follow-up visits. The social aspect and focus on emotional well-being can help you stick to healthy habits long-term.

A 6-month telephone-based lifestyle behavioral intervention significantly reduces pain intensity and disability in overweight or obese patients with chronic low back pain compared to usual care.

If you have chronic back pain and are overweight, a structured phone coaching program focusing on diet, activity, and behavior change may help reduce your pain. This approach removes the barrier of traveling to clinics by delivering support directly to your phone over six months.

Once-weekly subcutaneous semaglutide 2.4 mg produces significant, sustained weight loss (mean 11.80% body weight reduction) and improves cardiometabolic markers in non-diabetic overweight or obese adults compared to placebo.

For non-diabetic adults with obesity, once-weekly 2.4 mg subcutaneous semaglutide is a highly effective intervention for significant weight loss (approx. 12% body weight) and metabolic improvement. While gastrointestinal side effects are common, they are generally manageable and transient.

An intensive weight loss intervention combining total diet replacement (800-850 kcal/day), behavioral support, and weight loss medication achieves and maintains >20% weight loss and improves cardiometabolic risk in adults with severe obesity (BMI ≥35 kg/m²) over 2 years.

For severe obesity, standard 'eat less, move more' advice often fails. This protocol uses a 2-year structured approach: start with a very low-calorie formula diet (800-850 kcal) for 12 weeks with weekly support. If you don't lose enough weight, add a GLP-1 medication. Then, gradually transition to a healthy, low-calorie diet while maintaining exercise. The key is the intensive support and the ability to 'rescue' the plan with formula meals or medication if you regain weight.

Consuming 1-2 servings of fish per week (providing ~250 mg/d EPA+DHA) reduces the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) death by 36% and total mortality by 17% in adults, with benefits outweighing risks from contaminants.

Eat 1-2 servings of fish per week, focusing on oily fish like salmon, sardines, or herring. This provides about 250mg of EPA+DHA daily, which is sufficient to significantly lower your risk of heart disease death and total mortality. You do not need to avoid fish due to contaminant fears if you vary your seafood choices.

Implementing evidence-based lifestyle interventions can successfully improve dietary and physical activity habits in the population, similar to the success seen in tobacco cessation.

While individual change is hard, population-level success is possible. Support and participate in community and policy-level initiatives that promote healthy eating and physical activity, as these have been shown to work.

A tailored behavioral weight-loss intervention incorporating group/individual counseling and moderate-intensity aerobic exercise significantly reduces body weight in adults with serious mental illness over 18 months.

If you have a serious mental illness and are overweight, a structured program combining diet counseling, exercise, and support can help you lose weight over 18 months. The program is tailored to your needs, using simple steps and repeated practice to help you succeed despite cognitive challenges or medication side effects.

A comprehensive lifestyle intervention (diet, physical activity, behavioral counseling) induces clinically significant weight loss (≥5%) and maintains it in over 45% of overweight/obese individuals with type 2 diabetes at 4 years.

To lose and keep off weight with type 2 diabetes, you need a structured plan that includes a calorie-controlled diet (using meal replacements can help initially), at least 175 minutes of moderate exercise per week, and regular check-ins with a counselor or healthcare provider. Consistency in attending these sessions and tracking your food and activity is the strongest predictor of long-term success.

Orlistat (120 mg three times daily) combined with a reduced-calorie diet produces significantly greater weight loss and improvements in glycemic control (HbA1c) and cardiovascular risk factors compared to diet and placebo alone in overweight or obese patients with insulin-treated type 2 diabetes.

If you have type 2 diabetes and take insulin, adding Orlistat (120mg with meals) to a calorie-controlled diet can help you lose more weight and improve your blood sugar control compared to diet alone. This often allows for a reduction in your insulin dose. Be prepared for potential gastrointestinal side effects, which are usually mild, and ensure you follow the low-fat diet guidelines to minimize them.

Internet-based interventions significantly improve diet, physical activity, adiposity, tobacco cessation, and reduce excess alcohol use in healthy adults.

Use internet or mobile apps to track your diet, exercise, or smoking habits. Look for programs that offer personalized feedback and goal-setting. These digital tools are proven to help improve health behaviors, often matching or beating traditional counseling.

Comprehensive lifestyle interventions producing modest sustained weight loss (3%-10%) yield clinically meaningful health benefits, including reduced risk of type 2 diabetes and improved cardiovascular risk factors, without requiring attainment of a normal BMI.

Focus on losing 5-10% of your body weight through a calorie-reduced diet and increased physical activity. You do not need to reach a 'normal' BMI to see major improvements in your blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol. Consistency with lifestyle changes is more important than hitting a specific number on the scale.

Creatine monohydrate supplementation combined with resistance training significantly increases lean tissue mass and muscular strength (upper and lower body) in older adults compared to resistance training alone.

If you are over 50 and doing resistance training, adding creatine monohydrate (3-5g daily, optionally with a short loading phase) will help you gain more muscle and strength than training alone. It is safe for your kidneys and liver based on current research.

Intensive lifestyle intervention (ILI) designed to induce weight loss significantly reduces the incidence of mild or greater depression symptoms in overweight/obese individuals with type 2 diabetes compared to diabetes support and education (DSE).

For individuals with type 2 diabetes, a structured lifestyle program focusing on modest weight loss (7%+) and regular moderate exercise, supported by behavioral counseling, can significantly lower the risk of developing depression compared to standard diabetes education alone. This suggests that the psychological benefits of structured health management may outweigh the stress of dietary restriction.

Ad libitum consumption of an ultra-processed food (UPF) diet, even when compliant with standard macronutrient dietary guidelines, leads to weight gain and adverse metabolic outcomes, whereas a minimally processed food (MPF) diet leads to weight loss and favorable metabolic changes.

This study protocol investigates whether simply following standard dietary guidelines (like the UK Eatwell Guide) is enough to maintain health if the food is ultra-processed. The hypothesis is that even if you eat the 'right' amounts of fat, sugar, and protein, ultra-processed foods may lead to weight gain, while minimally processed foods lead to weight loss, regardless of macronutrient matching. Until results are published, the implication is that food quality (processing level) matters independently of quantity.

A telemedical lifestyle intervention combining individualized endurance/strength exercise and energy-density-based nutritional counseling improves HbA1c, physical activity, and health literacy in patients with chronic ischaemic heart disease and type 2 diabetes compared to usual care.

For patients with both heart disease and diabetes, standard care may not be enough. This protocol suggests using a structured app-based program that combines personalized exercise (both cardio and strength) with dietary advice focused on food density (choosing foods that fill you up with fewer calories). Regular check-ins via phone and app help keep patients motivated and on track for at least 6 months.

A multi-component digital health intervention (phone consultations, pedometers, and a smart app) combined with behavior change techniques effectively promotes physical activity and healthy diet in overweight/obese adults with type 2 diabetes compared to usual care.

If you have type 2 diabetes and are overweight, standard advice might not be enough. This study tests a program that uses phone calls, a pedometer, and a smartphone app to help you move more and eat better. It works by setting specific goals, identifying barriers, and getting support from health coaches and peers. To try this, you need to be willing to use a smartphone and commit to regular check-ins.

Injectable semaglutide 2.4 mg once weekly produces significant weight loss (mean 15.2% over 104 weeks) and improves cardiometabolic risk factors in adults with obesity.

If you have obesity and struggle to lose weight through diet and exercise alone, ask your doctor about injectable semaglutide (2.4 mg once weekly). It is clinically proven to help you lose an average of 15% of your body weight over two years and improves heart health markers. Be prepared for a slow start to minimize stomach upset, and stick with it as the benefits are significant.

Reducing total fat intake as a proportion of energy leads to small but statistically significant and clinically meaningful reductions in body weight, BMI, and waist circumference in adults, with a dose-response relationship where each 1% decrease in energy from fat reduces weight by 0.2 kg.

To lose a small amount of weight, try reducing the percentage of your daily calories that come from fat. For every 1% you reduce fat intake, you can expect to lose about 0.2 kg over time, provided you maintain your usual activity level and don't replace that fat with significantly more carbohydrates or protein. This effect is consistent in adults with moderate baseline fat intake.

A high-intensity, lifestyle-based obesity treatment program delivered in primary care clinics by embedded health coaches results in clinically significant weight loss (approx. 5%) over 24 months in underserved, low-income populations.

To lose weight effectively, especially if you are in a low-income or underserved area, you need more than just advice from your doctor. This program works by providing you with a dedicated health coach who meets with you weekly for the first six months and then monthly for the next 18 months. They help you set personal goals, provide you with meal-replacement shakes and portion-controlled foods for the first month, and teach you how to manage your diet and physical activity (aiming for 175 minutes of activity per week). You also get an electronic scale to track your weight daily, which helps your coach adjust your plan. This high-intensity support leads to significant, sustained weight loss over two years.

Ad libitum low-fat diets (<30% energy from fat) produce significant weight loss (3-4 kg) in overweight individuals through spontaneous reduction in energy intake, with efficacy positively correlated with the magnitude of fat reduction and initial body weight.

To lose weight without counting calories, reduce the percentage of energy from fat to below 30%. Focus on volume and lower energy density. The more you reduce fat, the more weight you tend to lose, especially if you are overweight. Be aware that sticking to this is hard in a high-fat food environment, but those who succeed lose significantly more weight.

Referral to a commercial weight loss program (Weight Watchers) for 12 months yields significantly greater weight loss than a 12-week referral, with the difference attributed to the extended duration of intervention rather than intensity.

If you are overweight, a one-year commercial weight loss program (like Weight Watchers) is likely to help you lose more weight than a three-month program, because the extended support helps you maintain the changes. The key is sticking with the weekly meetings for the full year.

Intermittent Fasting (IMF) produces weight loss equivalent to Daily Caloric Restriction (DCR) when both interventions are delivered with comprehensive behavioral support and equal energy deficits, though IMF may offer better long-term fat mass maintenance.

This paper does not provide results, only a plan. However, it suggests that for weight loss, the specific timing of eating (fasting vs. daily restriction) matters less than sticking to the plan. If you struggle with daily calorie counting, trying fasting might work, but you need strong behavioral support (coaching, tracking) to succeed, just as you would with daily restriction.

Long-term moderate exercise training (60% peak VO2, 2-3 sessions/week for 14 months) significantly improves functional capacity (peak VO2) and quality of life in patients with stable chronic heart failure, leading to reduced cardiac mortality and hospital readmissions.

For stable heart failure patients, a supervised moderate exercise program (cycling at 60% of max capacity) performed 2-3 times weekly for over a year significantly improves exercise capacity and quality of life while reducing death and hospitalization rates. This should be done under medical supervision with stable medication.