Women lost an average of 21 lbs after six months on Jenny Craig, dropping from 203 lbs to 182 lbs

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Tuesday, November 29, 2011 12:44 pm Email this article
Overweight and obese women assigned to a Jenny Craig commercial weight loss program lost an average of roughly 21 pounds after six months, dropping from roughly 203 lbs at the start of the study to 182 lbs after six months, according to a study from researchers at the University of California, San Diego.

(This is the data for women with measured weights.)

Subjects

Subjects: 442 overweight or obese women, average age of 44

The study involved 442 overweight or obese women with a body mass index of 25-40, aged 18 to 69 years with an average age of 44 years.

“Participants were enrolled at 4 study sites —University of California, San Diego; University of Arizona, Tucson; University of Minnesota, Minneapolis; and Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Center Northwest, Portland, Oregon.”

“Participants were recruited using list serves and flyers distributed by the research staff at each site. Eligibility criteria included age 18 years or older; BMI of 25 to 40 and a minimum of 15 kg [33 lbs] over ideal weight as defined by the 1983 Metropolitan Life Insurance tables.”

“The diet component of the program consisted of a nutritionally adequate, low-fat (20%-30% of energy), reduced-energy diet (typically 1200-2000 kcal/d) that included prepackaged prepared food items with increased amounts of vegetables and fruits to reduce the energy density of the diet.”

“The approach was tailored so that participants could choose regular foods when preferred. Participants were encouraged during the initial period to follow a menu plan with prepackaged foods, which would provide 42% to 68% of energy for those who choose not to deviate from the plan.

“Regular foods, such as vegetables, fruit, cereal or grain products, low-fat dairy products, lean meat or the equivalent, and unsaturated fat sources were recommended to achieve the total prescribed energy intake.

“Over time, participants were transitioned to a meal plan based mainly on food not provided by the commercial program, although participants could choose to include 1 prepackaged meal per day during weight loss maintenance.

“Prepared foods and counselors were provided by Jenny Craig Inc (Carlsbad, California).”

REFERENCE

Rock C, Flatt S, Sherwood N, Karanja N, Pakiz B, Thomson C. Effect of a free prepared meal and incentivized weight loss program on weight loss and weight loss maintenance in obese and overweight women: A randomized controlled trial. JAMA. 2010 Oct 27, 304(16):1803-10.

AUTHOR’S CONTACT INFORMATION

Cheryl L. Rock, PhD, RD
School of Medicine
University of California, San Diego
La Jolla, California 92093, USA
and
Moores UCSD Cancer Center
La Jolla, California 92093, USA
.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

 

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