Treatment of Obesity - Related Resources

Cochrane reviews

Chromium picolinate supplementation might possibly result in a modest weight reduction in obese or overweight adults compared to placebo, but the evidence in insufficient. Data on possible adverse effects are lacking. Chromium Picolinate Supplementation for Overweight or Obese Adults
Green tea preparations may be associated with a small weight reduction of questionable clinical significance Efficacy and Safety of Green Tea Preparations for Weight Loss in Adults.
Low glycaemic index diets may increase weight loss and improve lipid profiles better than control diets Low Glycaemic Index or Low Glycaemic Load Diets for Overweight and Obesity.
Chitosan may be more effective than placebo in the short-term treatment of overweight and obesity but the evidence comes mainly from poor quality studies Chitosan for Obesity.
An increase in physical activity (usually endurance-type training) without a change of diet reduces overweight only a few kilograms The Effects of Endurance Training Alone (Without Change of Diet) on the Reduction of Overweight.
Intragastric balloon therapy appears not to reduce weight more than the conventional therapies in obesity and it carries the risk of adverse events .
Psychological interventions, particularly behavioural and cognitive-behavioural strategies, enhance weight reduction in people with overweight or obesity. They are predominantly useful when combined with dietary and exercise strategies Psychological Interventions for Overweight or Obesity.
Orlistat appears to reduce the weight and blood pressure of hypertensive patients in the short term, but long-term effects and effect on mortality and cardiovascular morbidity is unclear Effect of Weight-Reducing Drugs in Hypertensive Patients.

Other evidence summaries

Guar gum is not effective in weight reduction and causes adverse effects Guar Gum for Weight Reduction.
Ephedrine, ephedrine plus caffeine, or dietary supplements containing ephedra may be effective in producing a modest short-term weight loss as compared to placebo Ephedra and Ephedrine for Weight Loss.
Motivational interviewing in a scientific setting may be effective in the treatment of a broad range of behavioural problems and risk factors Motivational Interviewing in the Treatment of Behavioural Problems and Risk Factors.
Case management approach with personal contacts appears to be an effective way of supporting maintenance of weight loss in overweight or obese adults with additional cardiovascular risk factors Strategies for Sustaining Weight Loss.
Physical activity combined with a low-energy diet appears to improve weight reduction results with no more than a few kilograms compared with a low-energy diet alone The Combined Effect of a Low-Energy Diet and Exercising on the Reduction of Overweight.
Acupuncture seems to have no effect on weight reduction although there is no evidence from controlled trials Acupuncture/Acupressure for Weight Reduction.
Waist-to-hip ratio appears to have a graded and highly significant association with myocardial infarction risk in most ethnic groups worldwide. The use of waist-to-hip ratio instead of BMI appears to improve the risk estimate of myocardial infarction Obesity and Waist-to-Hip-Ratio and Risk of Myocardial Infarction.
Weight loss seems to improve health-related quality of life in some trials, but the effect is probably small and the trials are of poor quality Weight Loss and Health-Related Quality of Life.
Case management approach with personal contacts appears to be an effective way of supporting maintenance of weight loss in overweight or obese adults with additional cardiovascular risk factors Strategies for Sustaining Weight Loss.

Literature

Eckel RH. Clinical practice. Nonsurgical management of obesity in adults. N Engl J Med 2008 May 1;358(18):1941-50. [PubMed]
Padwal RS, Majumdar SR. Drug treatments for obesity: orlistat, sibutramine, and rimonabant. Lancet 2007 Jan 6;369(9555):71-7. [PubMed]
Sjöström L, Rissanen A, Andersen T, Boldrin M, Golay A, Koppeschaar HP, Krempf M. Randomised placebo-controlled trial of orlistat for weight loss and prevention of weight regain in obese patients. European Multicentre Orlistat Study Group. Lancet 1998 Jul 18;352(9123):167-72. [PubMed]
Noël PH, Pugh JA. Management of overweight and obese adults. BMJ 2002 Oct 5;325(7367):757-61. [PubMed]
Mustajoki P, Pekkarinen T. Very low energy diets in the treatment of obesity. Obes Rev 2001 Feb;2(1):61-72. [PubMed]
Anderson JW, Konz EC, Frederich RC, Wood CL. Long-term weight-loss maintenance: a meta-analysis of US studies. Am J Clin Nutr 2001 Nov;74(5):579-84. [PubMed]
Sjöström L. Surgical intervention as a strategy for treatment of obesity. Endocrine 2000 Oct;13(2):213-30. [PubMed]
McTigue KM, Harris R, Hemphill B ym. McTigue KM, Harris R, Hemphill B, Lux L, Sutton S, Bunton AJ, Lohr KN. Screening and interventions for obesity in adults: summary of the evidence for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Ann Intern Med 2003 Dec 2;139(11):933-49. [PubMed]
Li Z, Maglione M, Tu W, Mojica W, Arterburn D, Shugarman LR, Hilton L, Suttorp M, Solomon V, Shekelle PG, Morton SC. Meta-analysis: pharmacologic treatment of obesity. Ann Intern Med 2005 Apr 5;142(7):532-46. [PubMed]
Lindström J, Ilanne-Parikka P, Peltonen M et al; Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study Group. Sustained reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes by lifestyle intervention: follow-up of the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study. Lancet 2006 Nov 11;368(9548):1673-9. [PubMed]
Galani C, Schneider H. Prevention and treatment of obesity with lifestyle interventions: review and meta-analysis. Int J Public Health 2007;52(6):348-59. [PubMed]
Rucker D, Padwal R, Li SK, Curioni C, Lau DC. Long term pharmacotherapy for obesity and overweight: updated meta-analysis. BMJ 2007 Dec 8;335(7631):1194-9. [PubMed]

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Treatment of Obesity - Related Resources

Cochrane reviews

Other evidence summaries

Literature