An obesity program that shuns diets and drugs can lead to continued weight loss two years after starting treatment, according to to a new UCSF study published today.

The study, in the October issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, reports that participants continued to lose weight and gain positive side-effects two years after starting the 18-week program implemented by UCSF weight management specialists.

"Until now there has been no weight-loss method that has resulted in sustained weight reduction long after treatment ends," said principal investigator Laurel Mellin, MA, RD, UCSF associate clinical professor of family and community medicine and pediatrics.

Mellin has pioneered a weight management program called “The Solution” that followed 18 years of research at UCSF. Originally focusing on pediatric obesity, Mellin studied methods that would naturally decrease the desire to overeat so children would lose weight without restrictive dieting. Research revealed that children using the program lost weight and kept it off. When the same method was applied to adults, results appeared equally encouraging.

The participants in the JADA study met weekly for two-hour group meetings over an 18-week period. Researchers found that the 22 participants who completed the program lost an average of 12 pounds during treatment, without dieting or taking weight-loss drugs. Two years after the beginning of treatment, weight loss continued with individuals weighing an average of 17 pounds less than their starting weight. In contrast, studies of other weight loss methods show weight regain after treatment ends, says Mellin.

Significant improvements in participants' well-being were noted at three months after the beginning of the program and at two years. At two years, 91 per cent felt happier, 86 per cent had improved relationships, 86 per cent coped better with work, 77 per cent improved their health and vitality and 67 per cent decreased their blood pressure. Five individuals who had been moderately depressed were now classified as not being depressed. The study also showed a continued increase in time spent exercising and a significant drop in substance abuse.

The program works by training participants in developing the internal skills that are at the root of many human behaviors, according to Mellin. "These skills included nurturing ourselves so our needs are better met, and setting effective limits to increase our sense of safety and control. Once these skills are integrated into a person's internal functioning, many excesses including overeating appear to spontaneously decrease."

Mellin states that weight loss methods have traditionally provided external sources of nurturing such as support groups, and external sources of limits such as rigid diets and personal trainers. Although initial weight losses are observed, when the external sources and factors are removed, weight regain follows.

This method, which is described in her current book, The Solution: 6 Winning Ways to Permanent Weight Loss is used by more than 100 hospitals nationwide.

Acquiring these internal skills needed for lasting weight loss is like learning to ride a bicycle, according to Mellin. "Once mastered, the skills are available to us in the long run. And these skills of soothing and empowering ourselves from within appear to lead to improvements in many areas of life. Typically, participants are pleased they are losing weight without dieting, but the other rewards--more happiness, vitality, intimacy, productivity and a deeper spirituality--are of even greater value to them."

By Suzanne Leigh

1st appeared 09/30/97

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