Feasibility of a virtual reality-based approach to improve behavioral weight management outcomes

Abstract Background Behavioral weight loss interventions promote clinically significant weight loss over 12 months, but weight regain remains problematic and a substantial proportion of participants do not achieve long-term weight loss maintenance. Novel methods are needed that instill habit strength for sustaining weight control behaviors long term. Virtual reality (VR) has the potential to provide opportunities within behavioral treatment for patients to practice desired weight control behaviors in the frequency and magnitude necessary to build durable habits. A pilot randomized trial was done to test the feasibility integrating virtual reality (VR) into standard behavioral weight loss treatment. Methods Participants were 15 adults (43 years; 46.7% Hispanic), with overweight or obesity who were randomly assigned to a 4-week Standard Behavioral Weight Loss plus Non-Weight-Related VR app (i.e., Control Group) or Standard Behavioral Weight Loss plus Weight-Related VR app (i.e., Intervention Group). The Intervention’s VR tool was designed to enable practice of behavioral skills taught in weekly group meetings, including managing social and home environmental cues for eating and activity. Results Participants were recruited over 3 months, and retention at the final assessment visit was high (86.6%). The VR footage and resulting app were rated as highly realistic (6.7 on a 10-point scale), and the VR program overall was rated as highly satisfactory (3.6 on a 4-point scale). Adverse effects of eye strain and motion sickness were minimal (~ 2 on a 7-point scale). As expected, the intervention and control groups both lost weight and unadjusted means (SD) averaged 3.4% (2.7) and 2.3% (3.6), respectively, over the 4 weeks. Overall, participants reported preferring a VR approach above traditional weight loss programs (rating of 5 on a 7-point scale). Conclusions Future research is needed to develop and test the feasibility of using VR for other weight control skills with a larger sample size and longer evaluation period to determine if VR can improve standard behavioral weight loss outcomes by intensifying practice opportunities and building habit strength for weight loss maintenance. Trial registration NCT04534088; date of registration: 09/01/2020, retrospectively registered.

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Discrepancies Between Clinician and Participant Intervention Adherence Ratings Predict Percent Weight Change During a Six-Month Behavioral Weight Loss Intervention

Translational Behavioral Medicine ◽

10.1093/tbm/ibab011 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (4) ◽

pp. 1006-1014

Author(s):

Michael P Berry ◽

Elisabeth M Seburg ◽

Meghan L Butryn ◽

Robert W Jeffery ◽

Melissa M Crane ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Weight Loss ◽

Weight Change ◽

Weight Control ◽

Calorie Intake ◽

Behavioral Weight Loss ◽

Weight Loss Treatment ◽

Self Monitoring ◽

Weight Control Behaviors ◽

Behavioral Weight Loss Intervention ◽

Behavioral Weight Loss Treatment

Abstract Background Individuals receiving behavioral weight loss treatment frequently fail to adhere to prescribed dietary and self-monitoring instructions, resulting in weight loss clinicians often needing to assess and intervene in these important weight control behaviors. A significant obstacle to improving adherence is that clinicians and clients sometimes disagree on the degree to which clients are actually adherent. However, prior research has not examined how clinicians and clients differ in their perceptions of client adherence to weight control behaviors, nor the implications for treatment outcomes. Purpose In the context of a 6-month weight-loss treatment, we examined differences between participants and clinicians when rating adherence to weight control behaviors (dietary self-monitoring; limiting calorie intake) and evaluated the hypothesis that rating one’s own adherence more highly than one’s clinician would predict less weight loss during treatment. Methods Using clinician and participant-reported measures of self-monitoring and calorie intake adherence, each assessed using a single item with a 7- or 8-point scale, we characterized discrepancies between participant and clinician adherence and examined associations with percent weight change over 6 months using linear mixed-effects models. Results Results indicated that ratings of adherence were higher when reported by participants and supported the hypothesis that participants who provided higher adherence ratings relative to their clinicians lost less weight during treatment (p < 0.001). Conclusions These findings suggest that participants in weight loss treatment frequently appraise their own adherence more highly than their clinicians and that participants who do so to a greater degree tend to lose less weight.

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Session 23: Maintaining Motivation

Effective Weight Loss ◽

10.1093/med:psych/9780190232023.003.0024 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 139-144

Author(s):

Evan M. Forman ◽

Meghan L. Butryn

Keyword(s):

Weight Loss ◽

Weight Control ◽

Hard Work ◽

Short Term ◽

Self Monitoring ◽

Healthy Behaviors ◽

Weight Control Behaviors ◽

Motivate Behavior ◽

Do So

This chapter (Session 23) discusses how to maintain long-term motivation for weight control by focusing on the importance of values to motivate behavior, even if short-term reward of weight control behaviors is decreasing (e.g., weight loss is slowing, self-monitoring is becoming tiresome). Clients are encouraged to view the hard work of weight control as working toward their values and to use the skill of willingness to continue to engage in healthy behaviors, even when it is difficult uncomfortable to do so.

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Session 23: Maintaining Motivation

Effective Weight Loss ◽

10.1093/med:psych/9780190232009.003.0023 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 199-204

Author(s):

Evan M. Forman ◽

Meghan L. Butryn

Keyword(s):

Weight Loss ◽

Weight Control ◽

Hard Work ◽

Short Term ◽

Self Monitoring ◽

Healthy Behaviors ◽

Weight Control Behaviors ◽

Motivate Behavior ◽

Do So

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Dietary and Body Weight Control: Therapeutic Education, Motivational Interviewing and Cognitive-Behavioral Approaches for Long-Term Weight Loss Maintenance

Nestlé Nutrition Workshop Series: Clinical & Performance Program - Nutritional Management of Diabetes Mellitus and Dysmetabolic Syndrome ◽

10.1159/000094430 ◽

2006 ◽

pp. 127-137 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Alain Golay

Keyword(s):

Weight Loss ◽

Body Weight ◽

Motivational Interviewing ◽

Weight Control ◽

Weight Loss Maintenance ◽

Cognitive Behavioral ◽

Therapeutic Education ◽

Body Weight Control ◽

Cognitive Behavioral Approaches

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Through Thick and Thin: Identifying Barriers to Bariatric Surgery, Weight Loss Maintenance, and Tailoring Obesity Treatment for the Future

Surgery Research and Practice ◽

10.1155/2016/8616581 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 2016 ◽

pp. 1-7 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Donevan Westerveld ◽

Dennis Yang

Keyword(s):

Bariatric Surgery ◽

Weight Loss ◽

Weight Control ◽

Weight Loss Maintenance ◽

The United States ◽

Physician Perceptions ◽

Perceptions And Attitudes ◽

Treatment Of Obesity ◽

Weight Loss Interventions

More than one-third of the adults in the United States are obese. This complex metabolic disorder is associated with multiple comorbidities and increased all-cause mortality. Bariatric surgery has been shown to be more effective than medical therapy and has been associated with weight loss maintenance and decreased mortality. In spite of these well-established benefits, less than 1% of candidates undergo surgery due to multiple factors, such as patient and physician perceptions and attitudes, patient-physician interaction, lack of resources, and cost burden. Furthermore, even in patients who do undergo bariatric surgery and/or alternate weight loss interventions, long-term weight control is associated with high-risk failure and weight regain. In this review, we highlight some of the current barriers to bariatric surgery and long-term weight loss maintenance and underscore the importance of an individualized multidisciplinary longitudinal strategy for the treatment of obesity.

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Behavioral Mediators of Long-Term Weight Loss Maintenance

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e500822014-008 ◽

2013 ◽

Author(s):

J. W. Coughlin ◽

C. M. Gullion ◽

P. J. Brantley ◽

V. J. Stevens ◽

A. Bauck ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Weight Loss ◽

Weight Loss Maintenance

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Perspectives into the experience of successful, substantial long-term weight-loss maintenance: a systematic review

International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-Being ◽

10.1080/17482631.2020.1862481 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 1862481

Author(s):

Marie Spreckley ◽

Jaap Seidell ◽

Jutka Halberstadt

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Weight Loss ◽

Weight Loss Maintenance

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A Conceptual Model of Long-Term Weight Loss Maintenance: The Importance of Cognitive, Empirical and Computational Approaches

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18020635 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (2) ◽

pp. 635

Author(s):

Darren Haywood ◽

Blake J. Lawrence ◽

Frank D. Baughman ◽

Barbara A. Mullan

Keyword(s):

Weight Loss ◽

Weight Loss Maintenance ◽

Computational Approaches ◽

Healthy Habits ◽

Health Related ◽

The One ◽

Major Factors ◽

Positive Social Support ◽

Weight Loss Interventions

Living with obesity is related to numerous negative health outcomes, including various cancers, type II diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Although much is known about the factors associated with obesity, and a range of weight loss interventions have been established, changing health-related behaviours to positively affect obesity outcomes has proven difficult. In this paper, we first draw together major factors that have emerged within the literature on weight loss to describe a new conceptual framework of long-term weight loss maintenance. Key to this framework is the suggestion that increased positive social support influences a reduction in psychosocial stress, and that this has the effect of promoting better executive functioning which in turn facilitates the development of healthy habits and the breaking of unhealthy habits, leading to improved ongoing maintenance of weight loss. We then outline how the use of computational approaches are an essential next step, to more rigorously test conceptual frameworks, such as the one we propose, and the benefits that a mixture of conceptual, empirical and computational approaches offer to the field of health psychology.

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Effects of self-conditioning techniques in promoting weight loss in patients with severe obesity: a randomized controlled trial protocol

International Journal of Clinical Trials ◽

10.18203/2349-3259.ijct20170304 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

pp. 20 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Simona Bo ◽

Farnaz Rahimi ◽

Bice Properzi ◽

Giuseppe Regaldo ◽

Ilaria Goitre ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Weight Loss ◽

Standard Care ◽

Traditional Approach ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Well Being ◽

Control Group ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Rapid Induction ◽

Conditioning Approach

Background: Obesity is a worldwide epidemic; most obese individuals who lose weight after lifestyle educative treatments, soon regain it. Our aim is to evaluate the effectiveness of a training to teach self-conditioning technique (self-hypnosis) added to standard care in determining weight loss compared with standard care in patients with obesityMethods: This randomized controlled open trial will recruit 120 obese patients (BMI 35-50 Kg/m2), aged 20-70 years. The control group will receive a traditional approach: diet + exercise + behavioral recommendations. The experimental group will receive self-conditioning techniques + traditional approach.Three individual sessions of hypnosis with rapid-induction techniques will be administered by trained personnel. All the participants of both groups will be assessed at three, six, nine and twelve months after randomization. The primary outcome is weight loss difference between groups at 12 months after randomization; secondary outcomes are changes in adherence to dietetic and exercise recommendations, appetite and satisfaction/well-being, waist circumference and body fat, blood pressure and blood metabolic and inflammatory variables.Conclusions: The results of this trial will assess whether a self-conditioning approach, based on self-hypnosis, is able to help participants to modulate unhealthy patterns of eating and sustain weight loss in the long term.

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