Strategies for Preventing Weight Regain Following Medical Weight Loss

Strategies for preventing weight regain following medical weight loss emphasize the critical role of long-term lifestyle changes. Maintaining a lower weight after initial loss is often challenging, and a permanent change in eating habits is necessary.

Key strategies include:

• Adopting and maintaining healthy eating patterns: This involves dietary control with a balanced intake, potentially including calorie-controlled diets. Public health policies should support access to healthier food options. Education on optimal health and diet is crucial.
• Incorporating regular physical activity: Exercise is essential for overall health and can help offset weight gain. Building physical activity into daily routines is recommended.
• Relapse prevention strategies: Similar to managing chronic conditions like substance misuse and eating disorders, anticipating and planning for potential weight regain (‘relapse’) is important. This includes identifying triggers for unhealthy eating or reduced activity, developing coping mechanisms, and establishing support systems.
• Considering environmental factors: Utilizing principles from nudge theory, small changes in the environment can make healthier choices easier. Promoting portion size reductions, for example, could help.
• Long-term monitoring and follow-up: Regular check-ups can help track progress and address any signs of weight regain early. In the context of eating disorders, careful monitoring is crucial for relapse prevention.
• Addressing psychological and social factors: Support networks and a positive outlook can contribute to long-term success. Addressing emotional or psychological factors that might contribute to weight regain is also important, as seen in the management of eating disorders and substance misuse.
• Considering pharmacological aids (under medical guidance): In some cases, medications like GLP-1 receptor agonists or SGLT-2 inhibitors, primarily used in diabetes management, have demonstrated effects on weight and could potentially be considered for preventing regain, although this is not explicitly detailed for general post-medical weight loss. Orlistat is mentioned as an adjunct to a low-fat diet for weight loss in individuals with a BMI over 30 kg/m², and its continuation depends on achieving a certain level of weight loss.
• Bariatric surgery considerations: For individuals who have undergone bariatric surgery, long-term nutritional monitoring and lifestyle support are essential to maintain the achieved weight loss.

It is important to note that sustained weight management is often challenging, and a holistic approach that addresses lifestyle, psychological factors, and potentially pharmacological or environmental supports is likely to be most effective.