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ARS Home » Plains Area » Houston, Texas » Children's Nutrition Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #183618
Title: BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS FOR OBESITY

Author
item BERKEL, LAVERNE - UNIV MISSOURI-KANSAS CITY
item POSTON, WALKER - UNIV MISSOURI-KANSAS CITY
item REEVES, REBECCA - BAYLOR COLLEGE MED
item Foreyt, John

Submitted to: Journal Of The American Dietetic Association
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/28/2005
Publication Date: 5/1/2005
Citation: Berkel, L.A., Poston, W.S.C., Reeves, R.S., Foreyt, J.P. 2005. Behavioral interventions for obesity. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 105(5 Suppl.1):S35-S43.

Interpretive Summary: This article describes the application of principles of behavior to manage obesity. This review concludes that behavior modification can be effectively applied to less-traditional approaches (internet use, meal-replacement, and telephone interventions) in weight reduction and maintenance. These findings further advance obesity treatment and its long-term management.

Technical Abstract: Because of the increased risk of comorbid conditions such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and osteoarthritis, and the high health care costs associated with obesity, researchers and clinicians continually search for low-cost and effective treatments for weight loss and weight maintenance. In this article we provide an overview of the principles of behavior modification as applied to the treatment of obesity, examine the benefits of augmenting behavioral interventions with pharmacotherapy, and review the use of less-traditional applications of behavior modification in the treatment of obesity, specifically Internet interventions, meal replacements, and telephone interventions. Based on our review, we conclude that these less-traditional approaches can be used effectively to apply the principles of behavior modification, specifically stimulus control and self-monitoring, to obese patients. Future directions for research are outlined, which include examining the use of nontraditional behavioral interventions with children and the development of culturally sensitive interventions for racial and ethnic minority populations.