The NHS’s weight-loss programme for severely obese individuals – individuals with a BMI greater than 40 – is not a commercial product, but rather a support system for individuals who would otherwise be facing gastric surgery and also those that need assistance losing weight prior to being deemed eligible for surgery.
A new weight-loss programme available on the NHS for severely-obese individuals offers a safer, more cost-effective remedy than gastric surgery, according to a new study.
Researchers at the University of Glasgow evaluated the success and costs of the Counterweight Plus weight-loss programme which is aimed at people with a BMI greater than 40 and available through GP and Primary Care facilities.
The researchers looked at statistics from 22 general practices in Scotland where 91 severely-obese patients were put on the programme with uses the Cambridge Weight Plan diet – an 810 kcal per day low-energy liquid diet with carefully designed food-reintroduction and weight-loss maintenance plans.
Results, published in the British Journal of General Practice, showed that almost all patients lost weight – up to 30-40kg in some cases – with average losses after 14 weeks of 17kg and at least 33% of the 91 who started the study maintained more than a 15kg (two stones) loss for 12 months.
Read the rest of this article here.
Further reading links:
All the papers can be found at: http://www.counterweight.org/Publications/Published-Papers-1
http://www.cambridgeweightplan.com/
BMI calculator link – http://www.nhs.uk/Tools/Pages/Healthyweightcalculator.aspx
BMI is your weight in kg, divided by height in metres squared. Ideal is BMI 21-22.
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