Changes in Abdominal Adiposity in Overweight and Obese Subjects Following an 8-Week Community Weight Management Program

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that 68% of the Americans are either overweight or obese. Adiposity has been linked with increased risk of heart disease, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, high cholesterol, respiratory disease, and stroke. Specifically, visceral adiposity has been reported to increase the risk of these comorbidities. PURPOSE: To examine changes in visceral and subcutaneous abdominal fat stores, body mass, and body mass index (BMI) following an 8-week community weight management program. METHODS: Over the last nine years (2000-2009), 231 subjects, 175 females and 56 males (mean ± SEM, age: 50.5 ± 0.7y; height: 1.6 ± 0.005m; body mass: 95.6 ± 1.4kg; BMI: 34.2 ± 0.45 kg/m2) participated in an 8-week community based weight management program consisting of a low-calorie diet (1200 kcal/day) and moderate physical activity. Subjects participated in weekly group meetings where they received education on the food exchange system and were counseled on behavior modification strategies related to diet and exercise adherence. Fat distribution was estimated using anthropometric sagittal diameter and predictive equations. Percent body fat was measured using bioelectric impedance, Tanita BF-350 (Arlington Heights, IL). Self-reported data was used to monitor adherence to diet and exercise. Two test periods (pre-post) were analyzed using paired sample T-test to determine changes in body mass, BMI, percent fat, visceral adipose tissue (VAT), subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) and total adipose tissue (TAT). RESULTS: Significant decreases (p<0.001) in body mass, BMI, VAT, SAT, TAT, and percent body fat (p<0.01) were found from pre-to-post test. Relative reductions were 6% for percent body fat, 18% for VAT, 9% for SAT, and 10% for TAT at the end of the 8-week intervention. CONCLUSION: The significant decrease in body mass as well as percent body fat contributed to significant losses in VAT, SAT, and TAT. In addition, there was greater relative loss of VAT than SAT. Our results show that an 8-week community based weight management program consisting of a low-calorie diet and moderate physical activity led to significant positive changes in body composition.