UK Congress on Obesity: why partnership working is the key to tackling obesity
A symposium, organised by Slimming World and presented to delegates at the UK Congress on Obesity, explored how academics, health professionals and industry partners can work together to provide effective large-scale person-centred behaviour change programmes.
‘Research and reach: practical solutions in an overweight world’ discussed how academic and industry research can help in the development of behaviour change models and strategies that put individuals at the centre and can be applied on a large scale.
Weight management experts demonstrated how weight loss programmes that are founded on providing support that takes into account slimmer’s psychological and emotional needs, as well as physiological factors, are most effective when developing behaviour change solutions to obesity. Through working together with academics, Slimming World is able to continue to develop a strong evidence base and apply its well-developed support to reach large numbers of people, both in local community groups and online.
Dr Jacquie Lavin, Slimming World’s Head of Nutrition and Research, said: “Having supported people to lose weight for 47 years, Slimming World has a huge amount of expertise and understanding of people who struggle with weight.
Slimming World has a huge amount of expertise and understanding of people who struggle with weight.
“By working with academics and experts in behaviour change we can develop new models and strategies to help people lose weight and, when the evidence is strong, build them into our support programme – increasing their impact due to our scale.”
Speakers at the symposium included Dr Paul Sacher, Chief Research and Development Officer for Slimming World and founder of MEND, Professor Ken Fox, Emeritus Professor of Exercise and Health Sciences at the University of Bristol and special advisor to Slimming World, and Amanda Avery, Consultant Dietitian in Weight Management at Slimming World, who has 20 years’ experience working as a community Dietitian in the NHS and is Assistant Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics at the University of Nottingham.
Slimming World was founded by Margaret Miles-Bramwell (OBE, FRSA) in 1969. There are now more than 18,000 groups held weekly across the UK and Republic of Ireland via a network of 4,000 community-based Slimming World Consultants, who receive specific training in the role of diet and physical activity in weight management, as well as sophisticated behaviour-change techniques.
Slimming World’s healthy eating plan, Food Optimising, is based on the science of satiety and energy density. Our phased activity programme, Body Magic, eases members into activity until it becomes an intrinsic part of their daily routine. The principles behind Slimming World’s philosophy are based on a deep understanding of the challenges faced by overweight people and a recognition that those who struggle with weight carry a double burden, the weight itself and a burden of guilt and shame about their weight. Slimming World’s programme integrates practical, up-to-date advice with a highly developed support system based on care and compassion, and Consultant training focuses on facilitating behaviour change in a warm and friendly group environment. Consultant training is delivered through the Slimming World Academy. Slimming World also invests in a comprehensive research programme to develop its support for long-term weight management. The group support provided by Slimming World is recognised as effective by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the NHS.
For more information about Slimming World’s approach visit www.slimmingworld.co.uk or call 0344 897 8000.
For the Press Office please email public.relations@slimmingworld.co.uk