WASHINGTON: Smartphones may not be as useful for weight loss as expected, according to a new study which found that teens are not be able to control weight when the devices are the only tool helping them stay on track.
In a 24-week behavioural study, researchers from Brigham Young University (BYU) in the US combined traditional weight control intervention with smartphone-assisted helps.
The study took place during two consecutive 12-week periods, the first of which combined electronic (smartphone) intervention and traditional in-person treatment.
During this period, each of the 16 participants met weekly with a clinician and other participants to share their experiences and discuss topics like adopting healthy eating patterns, reading food labels and increasing physical activity throughout the day.
In addition to these meetings, the teens were encouraged to record their daily food intake and exercise on the Daily Burn app.
They also received text messages from the researchers three times each day to encourage healthy behaviour and pose thought-provoking questions about motivations.
Study participants achieved modest weight loss during this period, decreasing their BMI by 0.08 points on average.
However, the in-person meetings were removed for the second 12 weeks of the study, so the only interventions helping the teens stay motivated were the daily texts and self-monitoring on the Daily Burn app.
During this period, self-monitoring rates dropped from nearly 50 per cent to 16.8 per cent and the teens regained their lost weight.
Lead author Chad Jensen, professor at BYU, suggested that a possible reason for this result is that smartphones, no matter how helpful or easy-to-use, lack certain critical characteristics present during the in-person treatment.
“The Daily Burn app does not include all the things we know are successful for weight control, like social support and the accountability that comes with it,” said Jensen.
“That support existed when the teens were meeting with other teens and sharing their experiences. And that was taken away,” said Jensen.
These results emphasise the importance of social support in creating lasting change and motivating healthy behaviour.
However this does not mean that smartphone fitness tools are useless – they are just best used as an add-on to augment other fitness habits by making it easier to track progress.
“We know that self-monitoring is really important for weight control as it helps people be mindful about the foods they are eating, but very few teens do it because it is so laborious,” Jensen said.
The study was published in the Journal of Medical Research. (PTI)
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