Maintained Weight Loss: Facilitators and Barriers (V1)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Maintained Weight Loss in Individuals diagnosed with Morbid Obesity: Facilitators and Barriers
IRAS ID
141587
Contact name
Carol Cullen
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Wolverhampton
Research summary
Obesity is a now becoming recognised as a chronic condition, which is often associated with a variety of related disorders. For those who are classified as being morbidly obese*, the frequency and severity of associated disorders are magnified and weight loss is made increasingly difficult through poor mobility. Thus the consequences of obesity have a significant effect, not only on the individual with regard to their health and quality of life, but also to the economy.
The initiatives used for weight loss have worked in the short term, whilst under the care/monitoring of a weight loss programme, however when looking at long-term maintenance of weight loss this shows rather limited success, particularly for those with morbid obesity.
The aim of this research is to explore the experiences of morbidly obese adults who have intentionally achieved a weight loss of 10% or more of their initial body weight and maintained this weight loss for at least one year.
By using a Grounded Theory (GT) approach to analyse the data from semi-structured interviews,the study aims to obtain insight into the facilitating and inhibiting factors involved in achieving and maintaining weight loss in the long term. The semi-structured interviews allow us to understand weight loss from the unique perspective of the patient, creating a person-centred approach. GT allows the researcher to follow leads which are shown to be pivotal to the participants’ weight loss, thus broadening the knowledge gained to ultimately contribute to existing interventions.
*Morbid Obesity is defined as having a BMI (kg/m2)of 35 with associated disorders and a BMI of 40 or more without. (NICE, 2006)
REC name
North West - Preston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/NW/0167
Date of REC Opinion
12 Mar 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion