Schools
Self-Help Programs May Be an Effective Option for Overweight Kids
UCSD study involved 50 overweight or obese children between ages 8 and 12 and family members.
By Kenny Goldberg, KPBS
Clinic-based treatment programs can help children lose weight, but they're not easily accessible. A new study from UC San Diego suggests a self-help program may be a viable option for overweight kids.
The study involved 50 overweight or obese children between the ages of 8 and 12 and their family members.
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Parents and kids were given a manual, and asked to read a chapter a week and to apply the skills at home. Every two weeks, they weighed-in at a clinic, and a had a brief discussion with a health provider.
After the five-month program, kids lost an average of five pounds. Six months later, they hadn't gained the weight back.
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UC San Diego's Dr. Keri Boutelle, who led the study, said the self-help method relies on some principals of behavior therapy.
"Behavior therapy is a way of kind of setting up your environment, and setting up rewards and systems, to make yourself more successful," she explained.
Boutelle said her study suggests a self-help program with minimal supervision may be just as effective as clinic-based weight loss programs.
Her research is published in the April 1 edition of the journal Pediatrics.
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