Overweight and obese dieters who participated in a new global study lost more than two times as much weight by following the Weight Watchers program, as compared to others who only received weight-loss counseling from medical professionals. Published initially in The Lancet, the study was the first of its kind and resulted from a unique partnership between primary care physicians and the Weight Watchers community.

772 participants were asked to join the 12-month study by primary care physicians across the UK, Germany and Australia. Close to half of the participants were randomly selected to receive a free year long membership to Weight Watchers, which included access to weekly meetings, while the other half were asked to attend monthly meetings with a medical professional to discuss weight loss strategies.

Researchers included Dr. Susan Webb, who is the head of diet and population health at the Medical Research Council Human Nutrition Research Lab in Cambridge, as well as Professor Hans Hauner at The Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universitat Munchen, and Professor Ian Caterson at the Boden Institute of Obesity, Nutrition, Exercise and Eating Disorders in Sydney.

The results of the study carry clear implications for dieters around the world, as participants who took part in the Weight Watchers program lost more than twice as much weight as those who only received counseling from traditional medical professionals. Also of note, members of the Weight Watchers group were more than three times as likely to lose at least 10% of their total starting weight and 61% of this group lost at least 5% of their total body weight during the course of the year. By comparison, only 32% of those in the standard care group lost at least 5% of their total starting weight.

Since losing between 5 and 10% of your total body weight has been shown to significantly reduce the risk of serious health problems such as diabetes and heart disease, while simultaneously increasing your overall level of health, the study has shed new light on the effectiveness of programs such as Weight Watchers, giving new hope to people around the world who are struggling with their weight. Participants in the Weight Watchers control group also exhibited a greater reduction of waist size and overall body fat.

Obesity is a serious problem in all parts of the developed world, with the US expected to have at least 65 million additional obese adults by 2030 and the UK projected to have at least 11 million by this time. In addition to highlighting the overall effectiveness of Weight Watchers, the study also shows the benefits of physician intervention and referrals to the program, indicating that this method could be implemented as a way to help those who are struggling with excess weight.

“Trials like this are vital to identify effective interventions to tackle obesity and provide the evidence to inform policy decisions,” said Dr. Susan Jebb. “The similar weight losses achieved in Australia, Germany and the UK implies that this commercial program, in partnership with primary care providers, is a robust intervention which is likely to be generalizable to other economically developed countries with a Western lifestyle.”

Sources: CBS MarketWatch, CNN Health

The Medifast diet program is one of the most respectable and well known names in the weight loss industry, their range of products offers one of the most effective and easy to understand plans to help get you in the best shape of your life.

Medifast was originally created for the morbidly obese as a program to save their lives by helping them lose weight and thanks to its success it eventually became available for everyone. For people who follow the program instructions and don’t cheat, Medifast has been proven to be one of the most effective diets on the market. (Of course everyone is different and we will all have different levels of success on the program.)

Medifast Plan Basics

The basics of the program starts with the 5 and 1 plan where the dieter eats five Medifast prepackaged meals every day, and then follows it up with a “lean and green” meal (a meal consisting of a lot of veggies and lean meats) later in the day. In addition to the meals, it is recommended that you take supplements like fish oil and flaxseed oil to ensure that your body is getting the right nutrients while your total number of calories are down.

Medifast Food Options

There are dozens of food choices available on the plan so no matter what types of foods you are looking for there is really something in the program for everyone. Food choices range from everything like shakes, snack bars, soups, eggs, even cheese puffs and ice cream… I mean seriously, it doesn’t get much better than ice cream and cheese puffs on a diet does it?

Typically Medifast users eat between 800 to 1,000 calories per day, which is part of the reason why the diet is so effective. It should be noted however that 800-1,000 calories is a lot less than the daily recommended caloric intake of 2,200-2,400 calories per day (according to USDA guidelines) so it is highly recommended that you consult your doctor before starting the Medifast plan.

You may also want to follow the plan under doctor supervision, especially if you are in bad health when you start since some people do have side effects to Medifast or any diet plan for that matter.

Medifast Pricing

Medifast can be a bit expensive, depending on package you order of course. The specific amount will vary per customer, but also remember that this expense is offset by the fact that you aren’t buying as many groceries.

There are also two other great ways to save money when you order…

First you can use Medifast coupons when you place your order. With coupons you can save up to $50 off your order if you spend a certain amount. There is also a $25 coupon for those of you who spend less (minimum purchase required).

The other option for you to save money on your order is to sign up for the Medifast Advantage Program (formerly the Medifast VIP program). The Advantage plan is an automatic delivery option that re-fills your food order every month and just bills your credit card. When you sign up for this program you get 56 free meals (valued at $132). You also get free shipping (on qualified orders) and a 5% discount on all future orders, so the savings can really add up.

If you have Medifast reviews of your own please leave your thoughts in the comments section… good or bad leaving your thoughts can be a great help to others looking to lose weight on the plan!

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I’m a big fan of Weight Watchers because it teaches you how to eat for the rest of your life, not just for a couple weeks while you’re trying to burn off that belly fat. Don’t get me wrong, pre-packaged diets are great and they really do work (for more information on these see our Medifast coupons page) but do you really see yourself eating Medifast for the rest of your life? Probably not!

The Weight Watchers plan is a great way to learn what you can and can not eat, and to figure out the portion sizes for that food. These are fundamental changes in your diet that will teach you the right way to eat, but you don’t deprive yourself either.

If you want a slice of pizza or a scoop of ice cream, you can have that, but you just cant eat junk food all day, you have to make changes to the rest of your diet as a result. Maybe you need to mix in more salad for the day, or just take it easy on your afternoon snack. For those of you who like to dine out (and believe me I’m with you here) then you can do that too, but the Weight Watchers plan teaches you to make smarter choices because it hurts your ultimate goal … getting thinner.

Don’t you owe it to yourself to get the body you’ve always wanted? You know you deserve it… sign up today.

Disclosure: LoseWeightDaily.com is an advertising partner of Weight Watchers