ABSTRACT
Obesity, and its associated complications, is one of the most costly diseases in modern civilisations. Dieting alone rarely gives good long-term results. The effect of the combination of nutritional education and moderately intensive physical exercise on the evolution of weight and Body composition has been analysed by bio-impedancemetry over a one-year period. Patients could be divided into four groups: patients lost after the 3-week nutritional course, patients neither dieting nor exercising, patients dieting and patients both dieting and exercising. The results for the four groups were the following: undeterminably, 5% loss compared to initial weight (and nearly 10% compared to reported maximum weight). 10% loss and 15% loss over one year. In the last group, Body composition showed a relative increase in muscle mass, which explains the lack of a drop in basal metabolic rates seen in the diet-alone group. This maintained metabolic rate probably prevented patients from weight cycling (yo-yo phenomenon). This result can be compared to other life-style changing studies or pharmacological treatments (Orlistat, sibutramine) of obesity, which resulted in an approx. 10% weight reduction.
