Association between weight loss, change in physical activity, and change in quality of life following a corporately sponsored, online weight loss program

Höchsmann, C., Dorling, J. L. , Martin, C. K., Earnest, C. P. and Church, T. S. (2022) Association between weight loss, change in physical activity, and change in quality of life following a corporately sponsored, online weight loss program. BMC Public Health, 22, 451. (doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-12835-4) (PMID:35255862) (PMCID:PMC8900429)

Abstract

Background: The physiological benefits associated with corporately sponsored weight loss programs are increasingly well documented. However, less is known about how these programs affect employees’ quality of life (QoL). The purpose of the present analysis was to examine the association between weight loss, change in physical activity, and change in QoL following a corporately sponsored, online weight loss program. Methods: We examined the relationship between weight loss, self-reported change in physical activity, and change in several QoL indices in 26,658 participants (79% women) after the initial 10 weeks of the online weight loss program. The trend in changes in each QoL index with increasing weight loss and change in physical activity was examined using logistic regression analysis. Results: We observed greater improvements in each QoL index with increasing weight loss (p-for-trend, < 0.001) as well as with progressive increases in physical activity (p-for-trend, < 0.001). The combination of increasing weight loss and increases in physical activity were associated with the greatest improvements in each QoL index (additive effect). The percentage of employees reporting improvements in QoL (“improved” or “very much improved”) was 64% for energy, 63% for mood, 33% for sleep, 65% for self-confidence, 68% for indigestion, and 39% for musculoskeletal pain. Conclusions: Among people, who engage with a commercial weight loss program, greater weight loss during the program was associated with greater improvements in QoL, and increases in physical activity further enhanced the QoL-related benefits.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL. C.H. is supported by a National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Research Service Award (T32DK064584). J.L.D. is supported by the American Heart Association (Grant No. 20POST35210907). Pennington Biomedical Research Center, at which C.H., J.L.D., and C.K.M. are employed, is supported by grant U54 GM104940 from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the NIH that funds the Louisiana Clinical and Translational Science Center, and the NORC Grant P30 DK072476 entitled “Nutrition and Metabolic Health Through the Lifespan” sponsored by National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
• Keywords: Quality of life, weight loss program, corporate health, web-based, online, physical activity.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Dorling, Dr James
• Authors: Höchsmann, C., Dorling, J. L., Martin, C. K., Earnest, C. P., and Church, T. S.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Medicine, Dentistry & Nursing
• Journal Name: BMC Public Health
• Publisher: BioMed Central
• ISSN: 1471-2458
• ISSN (Online): 1471-2458
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2022 The Authors
• First Published: First published in BMC Public Health 22: 451
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License