A Single Motivational Lecture Can Promote Modest Weight Loss: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Background: Obesity is a public health problem worldwide. To widely disseminate weightloss interventions across the target population, a cost-effective approach is needed. Objective: We aimed to test whether a single motivational lecture could promote weight loss. Methods: Our study was a 3-month randomized controlled trial, and we recruited participants via local newspaper advertisements in 3 cities in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan, and randomly assigned them to a control group (no intervention) and an intervention group, who attended a single motivational lecture lasting approximately 2 h. No other lectures or textbooks were provided. The eligibility criteria included an age of 40-64 years, a body mass index (BMI) of 25-40 kg/ m 2 , and the presence of at least 1 component of metabolic syndrome. The primary outcome was body weight change at 3 months. Results: We enrolled 145 eligible participants with a mean age of 53.8 ± 7.1 years and a BMI of 28.5 ± 3.1 kg/m 2 . The 3-month body weight change in the control and intervention groups was -0.65 kg (95% confidence interval [CI] -1.09 to -0.20) and -2.48 kg (95% CI -3.01 to -1.95), respectively. The between-group difference was 1.83 kg (95% CI 1.15-2.51). Conclusions: The significant difference suggested that a single motivational lecture is an effective option to promote modest weight loss in the short term. motivational lecture was given by an experienced researcher. Standardization of the lecture would be needed to disseminate the information to the public. Finally, we calculated the sample size based on the effect size from our previous RCT [7] and not based on the minimally clinically significant difference between groups. The default difference of 1.5 kg was equivalent to about 2% of baseline weight. Therefore, a single lecture might not be adequate to acquire clinically significant (3%-5%) weight loss.In conclusion, our 3-month RCT tested whether a single motivational lecture could promote weight loss for overweight Japanese adults. Our results suggest that a single lecture can be a cost-effective option to promote modest weight loss in the short term.

Long-term Effects of the Use of a Step Count–Specific Smartphone App on Physical Activity and Weight Loss: Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial

“…This may be because the control group in our study demonstrated a certain weight loss effect after 1 lecture and a few text messages even without using the app. A study has shown that a single motivational lecture can promote moderate weight loss in the short term [ 32 ]. Moreover, our study and the previous study [ 32 ] consisted of populations that were motivated to lose weight, which may have influenced the results.…”

“…A study has shown that a single motivational lecture can promote moderate weight loss in the short term [ 32 ]. Moreover, our study and the previous study [ 32 ] consisted of populations that were motivated to lose weight, which may have influenced the results. In addition, many intervention studies using mobile apps included several support tools in the apps, such as texts, emails, internet, interactive chatbots, and voice agents.…”

Efficacy of Additional Intervention to the Specific Health Guidance in Japan: The Takahata GENKI Project

“…Such interventions also help prevent disease exacerbation in such individuals as secondary prevention measures. [1][2][3][4][5] In Japan, specific health check-ups and health guidance became institutionalized in 2008 as universal measures for secondary prevention. 1,6 Thus, all residents with public health insurance aged 40-74 years are eligible for specific health check-ups.…”