obesity

Twenty-Four-Hour Movement Guidelines and Body Weight in Youth

Author/s: 
Zhu, X, Healy, S, Haegele, JA, Patterson, F

Objective

To examine the prevalence of youth meeting the 24-hour healthy movement guidelines (ie, ≥60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, ≤2 hours of screen time, age-appropriate sleep duration), and which combination of meeting these guidelines was most associated with bodyweight status, in a nationally representative US sample.

Study design

Cross-sectional data from the 2016-2017 National Survey of Children's Health were used. A multinomial regression model of body weight status was generated (underweight, overweight, obese vs healthy weight) and then stratified by sex. Analyses were adjusted for potential confounders.

Results

The sample (n = 30 478) was 50.4% female, 52.4% white, and the mean age was 13.85 ± 2.28 years; 15% percent were obese and 15.2% were overweight. Overall, 9.4% met all 3 of the 24-hour healthy movement guidelines, 43.6% met 2, 37.9% met 1, and 9.1% met none. Meeting zero guidelines (vs 3) was associated with the greatest likelihood of overweight (aOR, 1.85; 95% CI, 1.31-2.61), and obesity (aOR, 4.25; 95% CI, 2.87-6.31). Females (aOR, 4.97; 95% CI, 2.59-9.53) had higher odds of obesity than males (aOR, 3.99; 95% CI, 2.49-6.40) when zero (vs 3) guidelines were met. Meeting the moderate-to-vigorous physical activity guideline, either alone or in combination with screen time or sleep duration (vs all 3), was associated with the lowest odds for overweight and obesity in the full sample.

Conclusion

Meeting all movement guidelines was associated with the lowest risk for obesity, particularly in females. Meeting the moderate-to-vigorous physical activity guideline may be a priority to prevent overweight and obesity in youth.

Changes in nut consumption influence long-term weight change in US men and women

Author/s: 
X, Li, Y, Guasch-Ferre, M, Willett, WC, Drouin-Chartier, JP, Bhupathiraju, SN, Tobias, DK

Background Nut consumption has increased in the US but little evidence exists on the association between changes in nut consumption and weight change. We aimed to evaluate the association between changes in total consumption of nuts and intakes of different nuts (including peanuts) and long-term weight change, in three independent cohort studies.

Methods and findings Data collected in three prospective, longitudinal cohorts among health professionals in the US were analysed. We included 27 521 men (Health Professionals Follow-up Study, 1986 to 2010), 61 680 women (Nurses’ Health Study, 1986 to 2010), and 55 684 younger women (Nurses’ Health Study II, 1991 to 2011) who were free of chronic disease at baseline in the analyses. We investigated the association between changes in nut consumption over 4-year intervals and concurrent weight change over 20–24 years of follow-up using multivariate linear models with an unstructured correlation matrix to account for within-individual repeated measures. 21 322 individuals attained a body mass index classification of obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2) at the end of follow-up.

Average weight gain across the three cohorts was 0.32 kg each year. Increases in nut consumption, per 0.5 servings/day (14 g), was significantly associated with less weight gain per 4-year interval (p<0.01 for all): −0.19 kg (95% CI -0.21 to -0.17) for total consumption of nuts, -0.37 kg (95% CI -0.45 to -0.30) for walnuts, -0.36 kg (95% CI -0.40 to -0.31) for other tree nuts, and -0.15 kg (95% CI -0.19 to -0.11) for peanuts.

Increasing intakes of nuts, walnuts, and other tree nuts by 0.5 servings/day was associated with a lower risk of obesity. The multivariable adjusted RR for total nuts, walnuts, and other tree nuts was 0.97 (95% CI 0.96 to 0.99, p=0.0036), 0.85 (95% CI 0.81 to 0.89, p=0.0002), and 0.89 (95% CI 0.87 to 0.91, p<0.0001), respectively. Increasing nut consumption was also associated with a lower risk of gaining ≥2 kg or ≥5 kg (RR 0.89–0.98, p<0.01 for all).

In substitution analyses, substituting 0.5 servings/day of nuts for red meat, processed meat, French fries, desserts, or potato, chips (crisps) was associated with less weight gain (p<0.05 for all).

Our cohorts were largely composed of Caucasian health professionals with relatively higher socioeconomic status; thus the results may not be generalisable to other populations.

Conclusion Increasing daily consumption of nuts is associated with less long-term weight gain and a lower risk of obesity in adults. Replacing 0.5 servings/day of less healthful foods with nuts may be a simple strategy to help prevent gradual long-term weight gain and obesity.

Keywords 

Effectiveness of Behaviorally Designed Gamification Interventions With Social Incentives for Increasing Physical Activity Among Overweight and Obese Adults Across the United States: The STEP UP Randomized Clinical Trial

Author/s: 
Patel, M.S., Small, D.S., Harrison, J.D., Fortunato, M.P., Oon, A.L., Rareshide, C.A.L., Reh, G., Szwartz, G., Guszcza, J., Steier, D., Kalra, P., Hilbert V.

IMPORTANCE:

Gamification, the use of game design elements in nongame contexts, is increasingly being used in workplace wellness programs and digital health applications. However, the best way to design social incentives in gamification interventions has not been well examined.

OBJECTIVE:

To assess the effectiveness of support, collaboration, and competition within a behaviorally designed gamification intervention to increase physical activity among overweight and obese adults.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS:

This 36-week randomized clinical trial with a 24-week intervention and 12-week follow-up assessed 602 adults from 40 states with body mass indexes (calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared) of 25 or higher from February 12, 2018, to March 17, 2019.

INTERVENTIONS:

Participants used a wearable device to track daily steps, established a baseline, selected a step goal increase, were randomly assigned to a control (n = 151) or to 1 of 3 gamification interventions (support [n = 151], collaboration [n = 150], and competition [n = 150]), and were remotely monitored. The control group received feedback from the wearable device but no other interventions for 36 weeks. The gamification arms were entered into a 24-week game designed using insights from behavioral economics with points and levels for achieving step goals. No gamification interventions occurred during follow-up.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES:

The primary outcome was change in mean daily steps from baseline through the 24-week intervention period.

RESULTS:

A total of 602 participants (mean [SD] age, 39 [10] years; mean [SD] body mass index, 30 [5]; 427 [70.9%] male) were included in the study. Compared with controls, participants had a significantly greater increase in mean daily steps from baseline during the intervention in the competition arm (adjusted difference, 920; 95% CI, 513-1328; P < .001), support arm (adjusted difference, 689; 95% CI, 267-977; P < .001), and collaboration arm (adjusted difference, 637; 95% CI, 258-1017; P = .001). During follow-up, physical activity remained significantly greater in the competition arm than in the control arm (adjusted difference, 569; 95% CI, 142-996; P = .009) but was not significantly greater in the support (adjusted difference, 428; 95% CI, 19-837; P = .04) and collaboration (adjusted difference, 126; 95% CI, -248 to 468; P = .49) arms than in the control arm.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE:

All 3 gamification interventions significantly increased physical activity during the 24-week intervention, and competition was the most effective. Physical activity was lower in all arms during follow-up and only remained significantly greater in the competition arm than in the control arm.

TRIAL REGISTRATION:

ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03311230.

Association of Metabolic Surgery With Major Adverse Cardiovascular Outcomes in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes and Obesity

Author/s: 
Aminian, A, Zajicheck, A, Arterburn, DE, Wolski, KE, Brethauer, SA, Schauer, PR, Kattan, MW, Nissen, SE

IMPORTANCE:

Although metabolic surgery (defined as procedures that influence metabolism by inducing weight loss and altering gastrointestinal physiology) significantly improves cardiometabolic risk factors, the effect on cardiovascular outcomes has been less well characterized.

OBJECTIVE:

To investigate the relationship between metabolic surgery and incident major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in patients with type 2 diabetes and obesity.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS:

Of 287 438 adult patients with diabetes in the Cleveland Clinic Health System in the United States between 1998 and 2017, 2287 patients underwent metabolic surgery. In this retrospective cohort study, these patients were matched 1:5 to nonsurgical patients with diabetes and obesity (body mass index [BMI] ≥30), resulting in 11 435 control patients, with follow-up through December 2018.

EXPOSURES:

Metabolic gastrointestinal surgical procedures vs usual care for type 2 diabetes and obesity.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES:

The primary outcome was the incidence of extended MACE (composite of 6 outcomes), defined as first occurrence of all-cause mortality, coronary artery events, cerebrovascular events, heart failure, nephropathy, and atrial fibrillation. Secondary end points included 3-component MACE (myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, and mortality) and the 6 individual components of the primary end point.

RESULTS:

Among the 13 722 study participants, the distribution of baseline covariates was balanced between the surgical group and the nonsurgical group, including female sex (65.5% vs 64.2%), median age (52.5 vs 54.8 years), BMI (45.1 vs 42.6), and glycated hemoglobin level (7.1% vs 7.1%). The overall median follow-up duration was 3.9 years (interquartile range, 1.9-6.1 years). At the end of the study period, 385 patients in the surgical group and 3243 patients in the nonsurgical group experienced a primary end point (cumulative incidence at 8-years, 30.8% [95% CI, 27.6%-34.0%] in the surgical group and 47.7% [95% CI, 46.1%-49.2%] in the nonsurgical group [P < .001]; absolute 8-year risk difference [ARD], 16.9% [95% CI, 13.1%-20.4%]; adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 0.61 [95% CI, 0.55-0.69]). All 7 prespecified secondary outcomes showed statistically significant differences in favor of metabolic surgery, including mortality. All-cause mortality occurred in 112 patients in the metabolic surgery group and 1111 patients in the nonsurgical group (cumulative incidence at 8 years, 10.0% [95% CI, 7.8%-12.2%] and 17.8% [95% CI, 16.6%-19.0%]; ARD, 7.8% [95% CI, 5.1%-10.2%]; adjusted HR, 0.59 [95% CI, 0.48-0.72]).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE:

Among patients with type 2 diabetes and obesity, metabolic surgery, compared with nonsurgical management, was associated with a significantly lower risk of incident MACE. The findings from this observational study must be confirmed in randomized clinical trials.

TRIAL REGISTRATION:

ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03955952.

Effect of a Long Bout Versus Short Bouts of Walking on Weight Loss During a Weight‐Loss Diet: A Randomized Trial

Author/s: 
Madjd, Amenah, Taylor, Moira A., Delavari, Alireza,, Reza, Macdonald, Ian A., Farshchi, Hamid R.

OBJECTIVE:

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of different daily physical activity (PA) frequencies, while maintaining the same daily volume of PA, on weight loss, carbohydrate metabolism, and lipid metabolism in women with overweight or obesity throughout a 24-week intervention.

METHODS:

During their weight-loss plan, 65 women (BMI = 27-35 kg/m2 ; age = 18-40 years) who had a sedentary lifestyle were randomly allocated to the following groups: diet plus a long bout of moderate physical activity (LBP) (one 50-minute bout of moderate-intensity PA) 6 d/wk or diet plus short bouts of moderate physical activity (SBP) (two 25-minute bouts of moderate-intensity PA) 6 d/wk. Anthropometric and blood measurements were taken at baseline and at 24 weeks.

RESULTS:

Compared with the LBP group, the SBP group had a greater decrease in weight (SBP: -8.08 ± 2.20 kg; LBP: -6.39 ± 2.28 kg; P = 0.019), BMI (SBP: -3.11 ± 0.87 kg/m2 ; LBP: -2.47 ± 0.86 kg/m2 ; P = 0.027), and waist circumference (SBP: -8.78 ± 2.62 cm; LBP: -5.76 ± 2.03 cm; P = 0.026). No significant differences were seen in carbohydrate and lipid metabolism characteristics after 24 weeks.

CONCLUSIONS:

PA undertaken in two shorter bouts per day could be more effective for weight loss than PA undertaken in a daily long bout in adult women in a 24-week weight-loss program.

Screening for Pancreatic Cancer: A Systematic Evidence Review for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force

Author/s: 
Henrikson, Nora B., Bowles, Erin J. Aiello, Blasi, Paula R., Morrison, Caitlin C., Nguyen, Matt, Pillarisetty, Venu G., Lin, Jennifer S.

Objective: We conducted a systematic evidence review to support the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) in updating their recommendation on screening for pancreatic cancer. Our review addresses the following Key Questions (KQs):
1. Does screening for pancreatic adenocarcinoma improve cancer morbidity or mortality or all-cause mortality; and 1a) Does screening effectiveness vary by clinically relevant subpopulations (e.g., by age group, family history of pancreatic cancer, personal history of new-onset diabetes, or other risk factors)?
2. What is the diagnostic accuracy of screening tests for pancreatic adenocarcinoma?
3. What are the harms of screening for pancreatic adenocarcinoma?
4. Does treatment of screen-detected or asymptomatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma improve cancer mortality, all-cause mortality, or quality of life?
5. What are the harms of treatment of screen-detected pancreatic adenocarcinoma?
Data Sources: We searched Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Medline, and PubMed, and reference lists of relevant systematic reviews. We searched for articles published from 2002 to October 3, 2017, and updated our search on April 27, 2018. We also searched ClinicalTrials.gov and WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP), for relevant ongoing studies.
Study Selection: We reviewed 19,596 abstracts and 824 articles against specified inclusion criteria. Eligible studies included those written in English and conducted in adults age 18 years or older with or without risk factors for pancreatic cancer. For key questions on screening, we included imaging-based screening protocols. For key questions on treatment, we included studies of adults with screen-detected or asymptomatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

Data Analysis: We conducted dual, independent critical appraisal of all provisionally included studies and abstracted study details and results from fair- and good-quality studies. Because of the limited number of studies and the population heterogeneity, we provided a narrative synthesis of results and used summary tables to allow for comparisons across studies. After confirming that the yield of different imaging modalities was similar across studies, we calculated a pooled diagnostic yield across studies and produced forest plots to illustrate the range of effects seen across studies. For harms of screening (KQ3) and harms of treatment (KQ5), we stratified results by procedural and psychosocial harms.
Results: We included 13 unique prospective cohort screening studies (24 articles) reporting results for 1,317 people. Studies were conducted in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, and all screening populations except one small comparison group were exclusively in persons at elevated familial or genetic risk for pancreatic cancer. No studies reported on the effect of screening for pancreatic adenocarcinoma on cancer morbidity, mortality, or all-cause mortality (KQ1); and no studies reported on the effectiveness of treatment for screen-detected pancreatic adenocarcinoma (KQ4).

Thirteen fair quality studies reported on the diagnostic accuracy of screening tests for pancreatic adenocarcinoma (KQ2). Across these studies, 18 cases of pancreatic adenocarcinoma were detected.. Twelve of 18 cases (66.7%) were detected at stage I or II or classified as “resectable.” Pooled yield for all screening tests to detect pancreatic adenocarcinoma on initial screening in high-risk populations was 7.8 per 1000 (95% confidence interval, 3.6 to 14.7); and for total yield including both initial and repeat screening, it was 15.6 per 1000 (95% CI, 9.3 to 24.5).

Harms of screening for pancreatic adenocarcinoma
Procedural harms of screening were evaluated in eight screening studies (n=675); psychological harms were assessed in two studies (n=277). Details on the assessment of harms were variably reported. In two studies (n=277) in which 150 individuals received ERCP as a diagnostic followup test, 15 people (10%) reported acute pancreatitis, nine of which required hospitalization. No evidence of increased worry, distress, depression, or anxiety after screening was reported, compared to before screening.

Harms of treatment of screen-detected pancreatic adenocarcinoma
Of the 57 people who underwent surgery across all studies, six studies (n=32 people receiving surgery) assessed harms of treatment of screen-detected pancreatic adenocarcinoma (KQ5), with 7 harms detected in two studies. Methods of assessing harms were variably reported. Harms included one person experiencing stricture to the hepaticojejunal anastomosis at 11 months after surgery, one with unspecified post-operative complications, 2 with post-operative fistula and 3 cases of diabetes. In the two studies that systematically assessed harms in all surgical patients (n=12 people receiving surgery), no harms were reported.

Limitations: No randomized trials of screening were identified. The body of evidence includes observational screening studies with limited sample sizes and focused on populations with known familial risk, many with a substantial proportion of people with known genetic mutations. No studies included a clinical followup or unscreened comparison group, limiting assessment of diagnostic accuracy. Of those studies that reported harms of screening or treatment, limitations included inadequate description of the methods of assessing harms, including whether all participants were systematically assessed.

Conclusions: Imaging-based screening in groups at high familial risk can detect pancreatic adenocarcinoma with limited evidence of minimal harms. However, the clinical impact of screening is not well documented. There is insufficient evidence to assess benefits or harms of surgical intervention for screen-detected pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

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