ALABAMA A&M and AUBURN UNIVERSITIES

MANY AMERICANS DO NOT FOLLOW WEIGHT-LOSS GUIDELINES

AUBURN, OCT. 22---More than two-thirds of American adults are trying to lose weight or keep from gaining weight. According to an article in the Oct. 13 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), many don't follow guidelines recommending a combination of fewer calories and more exercise.

Mary K. Serdula and colleagues with the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, analyzed survey results from 107,804 men and women 18 and older. They were asked about their attempts to lose or maintain weight, and their weight control strategies. The data were part of the 1996 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, which included representative samples from 49 states and the District of Columbia.

According to study information, obesity has been increasing in the United States even though American consumers spend $33 billion a year on weight-loss products and services. Both the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Dietary Guidelines and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's Clinical Guidelines recommend decreasing calorie intake and increasing physical activity to lose weight. Both recommend at least 30 minutes or more of moderate physical activity on all or most days of the week for all Americans.

Respondents to the survey were asked if they were trying to lose or maintain weight, if they were consuming fewer calories or less fat, and if they were engaging in physical activity to lose weight or keep from gaining weight. Trying to maintain weight was reported by 35.1 percent of men and 34.4 percent of women. Only 21.5 percent of men and 19.4 percent of women reported using the recommended combination of eating fewer calories and engaging in at least 150 minutes of leisure-time physical activity per week.

 Almost 29 percent of men and 44 percent of women reported trying to lose weight. Among those attempting to lose weight, a common strategy was to consume less fat but not fewer calories (34.9 percent of men and 40.0 percent of women). Trying to lose weight by reducing fat intake is not an effective strategy unless calories are also reduced.

The survey found that many of those trying to lose weight were not following recommended guidelines on exercise. Two-thirds reported using physical activity but only 42.3 percent of men and 36.8 percent of women reported doing 150 minutes per week.

The survey found that exercising to lose weight was least common among the obese, the least educated and the oldest. "Researchers believe this suggests a need for better communication by health care professionals to adopt physical activity for weight control, especially among these groups.

These factors may contribute to the increase of obesity and decrease of physical activity among American adults. These factors include the use of automobiles, laborsaving devices, television/video entertainment and the availability of fast foods.

Reversing the trend in obesity will require changes at the societal, environmental and individual levels. At the individual level, researchers say there is a need for health care professionals to develop expertise in counseling patients to prevent weight gain or to lose weight through lower total caloric consumption and increased physical activity.

SOURCE: BARBARA STRUEMPLER, Extension nutritionist, Alabama Cooperative Extension System (334) 844-2217.