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Objective To assess the long term effectiveness of the "green prescription" programme, a clinician based initiative in general practice that provides counselling on physical activity. Design Cluster randomised controlled trial. Practices were randomised before systematic screening and recruitment of patients. Setting 42 rural and urban general practices in one region of New Zealand.

OBJECTIVE -To assess whether pedometers and text messaging increase physical activity in adolescents with type 1 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS-A 12-week randomized controlled trial was conducted. A total of 78 subjects participated in the trial (mean Ϯ SD age 14.4 Ϯ 2.37 years, 36 [47%] male). Intervention participants wore an open pedometer and received regular motivational text messages. Control participants received usual care. Primary outcomes were daily step count (4-day closed pedometer) and physical activity questionnaire.RESULTS -Baseline median step count was 11,063 steps/day (range 1,541-20,158). At 12 weeks, mean daily step count reduced by 840 (95% CI Ϫ1,947 to 266) in the control group and by 22 (Ϫ1,407 to 1,364) in the intervention group (P ϭ 0.4). Mean self-reported moderate or vigorous physical activity increased by 38.5 min/week in the control group and by 48.4 in the intervention group (P ϭ 0.9).CONCLUSIONS -A 12-week intervention using pedometers and text messaging as motivational tools in adolescents with type 1 diabetes did not increase physical activity.

Objective To assess the effectiveness of a primary care based programme of exercise on prescription among relatively inactive women over a two year period.Design Randomised controlled trial.Setting 17 primary care practices in Wellington, New ZealandParticipants 1089 women aged 40-74 not undertaking 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity on at least five days of the weekIntervention Brief physical activity intervention led by nurse with six month follow-up visit and monthly telephone support over nine months.Main outcome measure Physical activity assessed at baseline and 12 and 24 months. Secondary outcomes were quality of life (SF-36), weight, waist circumference, blood pressure, concentrations of fasting serum lipids, glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), glucose, insulin, and physical fitness.Results Mean age was 58.9 (SD 7) years. Trial retention rates were 93% and 89% at 12 and 24 months, respectively. At baseline, 10% of intervention participants and 11% of control participants were achieving 150 minutes of at least moderate intensity physical activity a week. At 12 months rates increased to 43% and 30% and at 24 months to 39.3% and 32.8% (P<0.001), respectively. SF-36 physical functioning (P=0.03) and mental health (P<0.05) scores improved more in intervention compared with control participants, but role physical scores were significantly lower (P<0.01). There were no significant differences in clinical outcomes. More falls (P<0.001) and injuries (P=0.03) were recorded in the intervention group.Conclusions This programme of exercise on prescription increased physical activity and quality of life over two years, although falls and injuries also increased. This finding supports the use of exercise on prescription programmes as part of population strategies to reduce physical inactivity.Trial registration Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR) ANZCTRN012605000490673.

In a 'real-world' setting, prescription of an energy-reduced low-fat diet, with either increased protein or carbohydrate, results in similar modest losses in weight and waist circumference over 2 years