Slimming club success for overweight teens

Tuesday, 13 March 2012 12:50 PM

Slimming clubs have once again been praised as a successful way to change lifestyle habits and reduce Body Mass Index (BMI) - particularly for overweight teens.

A study, published in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, looked at young people aged 11-15 who attended one of Slimming World’s 8,500 local community-based groups under the club’s Family Affair scheme.

They found the teens who attended became more active and made healthier food choices - resulting in a drop in BMI as they grew. The scheme is available free for teens aged 11 to 15, attending a slimming group with a parent.

“This study shows that providing young people with long term healthy lifestyle support through specialised weekly sessions can help them to make changes to their behaviour and maintain those changes over time,” said Dr James Stubbs, Slimming World’s obesity research specialist and study author. “It is in the crucial 11-15 age bracket that many young people begin to establish ingrained dietary habits.”

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