Who Self-Weighs and What Do They Gain From It? A Retrospective Comparison Between Smart Scale Users and the General Population in England

Sperrin, Matthew; Rushton, Helen; Dixon, William G; Normand, Alexis; Villard, Joffrey; Chieh, Angela; Buchan, Iain

doi:10.2196/jmir.4767

Cited by 19 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Our findings are consistent with previous research showing that greater engagement with an intervention was associated with greater weight loss, even with different types of engagement measures [ 17 - 19 ]. For example, in a weight loss clinical trial testing the use of interactive voice response (IVR) technology for self-monitoring, 91 participants were randomized to either control or IVR for 12 months [ 18 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

The Association Between Engagement and Weight Loss Through Personal Coaching and Cell Phone Interventions in Young Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial

Lin¹,

Grambow²,

Intille³

et al. 2018

JMIR Mhealth Uhealth

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BackgroundUnderstanding how engagement in mobile health (mHealth) weight loss interventions relates to weight change may help develop effective intervention strategies.ObjectiveThis study aims to examine the (1) patterns of participant engagement overall and with key intervention components within each intervention arm in the Cell Phone Intervention For You (CITY) trial; (2) associations of engagement with weight change; and (3) participant characteristics related to engagement.MethodsThe CITY trial tested two 24-month weight loss interventions. One was delivered with a smartphone app (cell phone) containing 24 components (weight tracking, etc) and included prompting by the app in predetermined frequency and forms. The other was delivered by a coach via monthly calls (personal coaching) supplemented with limited app components (18 overall) and without any prompting by the app. Engagement was assessed by calculating the percentage of days each app component was used and the frequency of use. Engagement was also examined across 4 weight change categories: gained (≥2%), stable (±2%), mild loss (≥2% to <5%), and greater loss (≥5%).ResultsData from 122 cell phone and 120 personal coaching participants were analyzed. Use of the app was the highest during month 1 for both arms; thereafter, use dropped substantially and continuously until the study end. During the first 6 months, the mean percentage of days that any app component was used was higher for the cell phone arm (74.2%, SD 20.1) than for the personal coaching arm (48.9%, SD 22.4). The cell phone arm used the apps an average of 5.3 times/day (SD 3.1), whereas the personal coaching participants used them 1.7 times/day (SD 1.2). Similarly, the former self-weighed more than the latter (57.1% days, SD 23.7 vs 32.9% days, SD 23.3). Furthermore, the percentage of days any app component was used, number of app uses per day, and percentage of days self-weighed all showed significant differences across the 4 weight categories for both arms. Pearson correlation showed a negative association between weight change and the percentage of days any app component was used (cell phone: r=−.213; personal coaching: r=−.319), number of apps use per day (cell phone: r=−.264; personal coaching: r=−.308), and percentage of days self-weighed (cell phone: r=−.297; personal coaching: r=−.354). None of the characteristics examined, including age, gender, race, education, income, energy expenditure, diet quality, and hypertension status, appeared to be related to engagement.ConclusionsEngagement in CITY intervention was associated with weight loss during the first 6 months. Nevertheless, engagement dropped substantially early on for most intervention components. Prompting may be helpful initially. More flexible and less intrusive prompting strategies may be needed during different stages of an intervention to increase or sustain engagement. Future studies should explore the motivations for engagement and nonengagement to determine meaningful levels of engagement required for effective inter...

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

The Association Between Engagement and Weight Loss Through Personal Coaching and Cell Phone Interventions in Young Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial

Lin¹,

Grambow²,

Intille³

et al. 2018

JMIR Mhealth Uhealth

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…detecting and reversing small regains) was explicitly stated either to participants or by participants . By contrast, ad libitum weighing in general population samples is unlikely to be naturally underpinned by this maintenance‐specific rationale and may thus be of lesser importance for maintenance in this context.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence and predictors of weight loss maintenance: a retrospective population‐based survey of European adults with overweight and obesity

Evans

Sainsbury

Marques

et al. 2019

J Human Nutrition Diet

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2019) Prevalence and predictors of weight loss maintenance: a retrospective population-based survey of European adults with overweight and obesity J Hum Nutr Diet. 32, 745-753 https://doi.org/10.1111/jhn.12666 † These authors contributed equally to the present study. AbstractBackground: The prevalence of weight loss attempts has increased worldwide, although the extent to which sustained weight loss is achieved is unknown. There is insufficient research into weight loss maintenance (WLM) in individuals with overweight or obesity who have recently lost clinically significant amounts of weight (≥5%), particularly in the European general population. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence and retrospective predictors of WLM in population-based samples of European adults with overweight or obesity who had made a recently completed weight loss attempt. Methods: Participants (N = 2000) in UK, Denmark and Portugal completed an online survey about loss and regain in their most recent completed weight loss attempt, features of their attempt (duration, self-weighing, lapses, strategies), as well as loss of control and binge eating. Multiple regression analysis was used to determine factors retrospectively associated with WLM in those who achieved clinically significant weight loss (n = 1272). Results: Mean (SD) self-reported weight loss was 9% (8%) and mean (SD) regain was 96.3% (9%) of participants' start weight. Twenty-three percent of the total sample had maintained weight loss of ≥5% for at least 1 month. Controlling for weight loss and time since attempt, predictors of better WLM were avoidance of a temporary lapse, infrequent/absent loss of control and binge eating, and use of a greater number of dietary strategies for WLM (r 2 = 0.338, P < 0.001). Principal conclusions: Factors associated with recent successful WLM indicate the importance of the continued use of dietary and other strategies for WLM, particularly in the face of a lapse, as well as the need to manage dysfunctional eating behaviours. 745

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“…[16][17][18] For example, in a weight loss clinical trial testing the usage of interactive voice response (IVR) technology for self-monitoring, 91 participants were randomized to either control or IVR for 12 months. [17] Completion of the IVR calls was significantly correlated with weight loss.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Other research has also shown that weight loss was associated with greater engagement with participant self-weighing. [16,19,21, 22] A 6-month intervention showed that participants in the intervention group self-weighed more days/week (6.1 +/-1.1) than controls (1.1+/-1.5) and these participants lost significantly more weight than controls (-6.55% vs -0.35%).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Association Between Engagement and Weight Loss Through Personal Coaching and Cell Phone Interventions in Young Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

Lin¹,

Grambow²,

Intille³

et al. 2018

Preprint

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(450 words limit, now 433)Background: Mobile health (mHealth) technology provides innovative ways to deliver weight loss interventions. Understanding how engagement in mHealth interventions relates to weight change may help develop more effective intervention strategies. Objectives: To examine 1) patterns of participant engagement overall and in key intervention features within the interventions of the Cell Phone Intervention For You (CITY) clinical trial, 2) associations of engagement with weight change, and 3) characteristics of participants that are related to engagement. Methods: The CITY trial tested two 24-month behavioral weight loss interventions. One was delivered with a smartphone application (app) (Cell Phone; CP) that contained 24 features (weighing, tracking of diets, etc.) and included regular prompting by the app in pre-determined frequency and forms. The other intervention was delivered by a coach via monthly phone calls (Personal Coaching; PC) supplemented with limited app features (18 total) and without any prompting by the app. Engagement was assessed by calculating the percentage of days each app feature was used and the frequency of usage. Engagement was also examined across four weight change categories: gained (≥2%), stable (±2%), mild loss (≥2% to <5%), and greater loss (≥5%). Results: Data from 122 CP and 120 PC participants were analyzed. Usage of the app features was highest during month 1 for both groups; thereafter, usage dropped substantially and continuously until the end of the study. During the first six months, mean percentage of days any app feature was used was higher for the CP (74.2%, standard deviation [SD], 20.1) than for the PC group (48.9%, SD, 22.4). The CP group used the app features an average of 5.3 times/day [SD, 3.1], while the PC used them 1.7 times/day [SD, 1.2]. Similarly, when the self-weighing feature was examined alone, CP self-weighed more than PC (57.1% days [SD, 23.7] vs. 32.9% [23.3]). Further, percentage of days any app feature was used, number of app usages/day and percentage of days self-weighed all showed significant differences across the four weight categories for both CP and PC. Pearson correlation coefficients showed a negative linear association between weight change and percentage of days any app feature was used (CP: r=-0.213; PC: r=-0.319), number of app usages/day (CP:r=-0.264; PC:r=-0.308), and percentage of days self-weighed (CP:r=-0.297; PC:r=-0.354). Conclusion: Engagement in CITY intervention was associated with weight loss during the first six months. Nevertheless, engagement dropped substantially early on for most intervention features. Prompting may be helpful initially. More flexible and less-intrusive prompting strategies may be needed during different stages of an intervention to increase or sustain engagement. Future studies should explore the motivations for engagement and non-engagement in order to design effective intervention. Trial Registration: NCT01092364

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Who Self-Weighs and What Do They Gain From It? A Retrospective Comparison Between Smart Scale Users and the General Population in England

Cited by 19 publications

References 24 publications

The Association Between Engagement and Weight Loss Through Personal Coaching and Cell Phone Interventions in Young Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial

The Association Between Engagement and Weight Loss Through Personal Coaching and Cell Phone Interventions in Young Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial

Prevalence and predictors of weight loss maintenance: a retrospective population‐based survey of European adults with overweight and obesity

The Association Between Engagement and Weight Loss Through Personal Coaching and Cell Phone Interventions in Young Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

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