Weight loss maintenance 1 year after individual counseling.

Many individual and group weight loss programs can boast short-term success. There has been little documentation on the long-term success of any particular program. A study was conducted to examine total weight loss for individually counseled patients seen in a hospital outpatient nutrition clinic February to October 1986. All patients who lost weight were contacted via telephone 1 year later to ascertain weight loss maintenance. During this period, 157 patients were seen. In an average of five visits, 119 (75%) lost an average of 9 lb. One year later, 73 (61%) of these patients were contacted, 54 of whom (74%) reported that they had either maintained or lost additional weight during the year. Sixteen (30%) of these 54 individuals lost additional weight during the year--an average of 13 additional lb. Results were similar for men and women. Although based on a small sample size, the results suggest that weight loss counseling can be successful in maintaining as well as losing weight. Such results should encourage dietetic practitioners to track their own patients for long-term results and to share the results with physicians, administrators, and insurers who are concerned about whether their money has been well spent.