Prevention of overweight and obesity in adult populations: a systematic review (original) (raw)

The prevalence of normal-weight adults is decreasing, and the proportion in excessive weight categories (body mass index ≥ 25) is increasing. In this review, we sought to identify interventions to prevent weight gain in normal-weight adults. We searched multiple databases from January 1980 to June 2013. We included randomized trials of primary care-relevant behavioural, complementary or alternative interventions for preventing weight gain in normal-weight adults that reported weight change at least 12 months after baseline. We included any studies reporting harms. We planned to extract and pool data for 4 weight outcomes, 6 secondary health outcomes and 5 adverse events categories. One small study provided moderate-quality evidence. The 12-month program, which used education and financial strategies and was offered more than 25 years ago in the United States, was successful in stabilizing weight and producing weight loss. More intervention participants maintained their baseline weig...