This study evaluates the efficacy of a mobile telehealth short message service as a facilitator for weight management. Half of the participants will receive a standard care weight management group intervention, while the other half will receive daily text messages via their mobile phone to help facilitate weight loss. It is hypothesized that the intervention group receiving text messages will be as successful as the control group at achieving weight loss over a 3-month period.
Obesity, a chronic progressive disease, has become a major public health concern due to its increasing prevalence and association with many adverse health conditions including type 2 diabetes, many cancers and heart disease. The number of individuals requiring weight management intervention is increasing necessitating the need to explore other initiatives. Developments in health technology are growing in popularity and there is increasing evidence that this type of intervention for obesity can significantly improve clinical outcomes. Mobile phones are a popular means of communication that provide a convenient, inexpensive means to deliver a health technology intervention.Short message service (SMS) by mobile phone has the potential to serve as an intervention medium to promote weight loss that is accessible and easy to use.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
120
A service designed by professionals inside the National Health Service (NHS) to provide support and advice for participants to manage weight loss. It combines the expertise of the healthcare team and the convenience of the participant's own mobile phone to give prompts and advice to act on. It makes use of the familiar and convenient mobile phone text service 'SMS' to communicate directly with participants.
A standard Lothian NHS group programme facilitated by a Dietitian
Elizabeth McAnally
Edinburgh, West Lothian, United Kingdom
NHS Lothian
Edinburgh, West Lothian, United Kingdom
Weight Loss
weight recorded in Kg on a Seca 635 medical digital load cell balance
Time frame: 3 months
Behavioural changes necessary for weight loss
Self reported dietary and physical activity changes using 7-day food and exercise diaries
Time frame: 3 months
Body fat changes
Measured using a medically approved and validated scale: Tanita SC-240MA body composition analyser
Time frame: 3 months
Body Mass index
calculated using the formula weight in kg divided by height squared in metres
Time frame: 3 months
Height
Height measured using Seca portable stadiometer with a sliding head plate
Time frame: 3months
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