Obesity Abstracts

Background: Roughly twenty percent of individuals who are successful at weight loss can successfully maintain the weight loss permanently. The physiological and psycho-behavioural compensatory responses to weight loss makes weight loss maintenance a rare phenomenon. In a preliminary study we found that successful weight loss maintainers have higher executive function, higher eating restraint and adhere to higher levels of physical activity compared to lean individuals with no weight loss history, and women experiencing weight loss relapse. The proposed study stems from the latter findings. The study protocol investigates the role of working memory training on executive function and eating behaviour outcomes to determine its effectiveness as a strategy to prevent weight regain after weight loss.

Methods: Fifty apparently healthy women between the ages of 25 to 45 years will be non-randomly assigned to one of three groups in this prospective cohort study. Twenty women with obesity reporting weight loss will complete working memory training four times a week for six weeks additionally to following a self-developed educational programme that may aid weight loss maintenance. Fifteen women with obesity reporting weight loss will serve as the first control group who will only follow the educational programme, where fifteen women without obesity (no weight loss history) will serve as the second control group. Pre- and post-intervention; a series of assessments will include: eating behaviour questionnaires (Emotional Eating, Three factor eating questionnaire, LFPQ, self-control, weight efficacy); Executive function and working memory; metabolic rate; and hunger and satiety before and after meal ingestion.

Results: The results will reveal the association between possible changes in executive function and changes in eating behaviour, perceived hunger and satiety. Additionally, the latter changes will also be compared to physiological changes of metabolic rate, hunger and satiety.

Conclusions: The study may support evidence that working memory training can be an effective strategy to combat possible compensations to weight loss and prevent weight regain in people who have lost weight.