Used alone, weight loss apps might not help overweight young adults

Contact: Samiha KhannaPhone: 919-419-5069Email: samiha.khanna@duke.edu FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE at 10 a.m. (ET) on Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2015 DURHAM, N.C. -- Used alone, a cell phone app that tracks exercise, calories and weight loss goals is, on average, not enough to create meaningful weight loss in young adults, according to new research from Duke Medicine. The study was published online November 4 by the journal Obesity and offers a sober insight about the complexities of weight loss and potential limitations of an app-based approach. The inexpensive and easily accessed tool was aimed at tech-savvy adults ages 18 to 35.   “Thirty-five percent of this age-group is overweight or obese, and that’s a huge public health problem,” said Laura P. Svetkey, M.D., the study’s lead author and professor of medicine at the Duke University School of Medicine. “We thought that because this is an age group that is most engaged in technology, it might be possible to intervene and prevent future problems like cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and diabetes while they are still developing their lifestyle habits.” The randomized study included 365 people ages 18 to 35 who were overweight or obese. One group of participants used a free Android app called CITY (Cell Phone Intervention for You), which was designed exclusively for the study through a collaboration between Duke investigators and the mHealth research group at Northeastern University.  Like many commercial...
Source: DukeHealth.org: Duke Health Features - Category: Pediatrics Tags: Duke Medicine Source Type: news