Those who are obese rarely achieve target weights without medical intervention

August 14, 2023

Source; Kompaniyets, et al JAMA Network Open August 7, 2023

JAMA Network Open published a 14-year review of de-identified data from electronic health records of 18.5 million adults showing that those who are overweight (BMI 25 to <30) or obese (BMI 30+) rarely achieve normal body weight. This large retrospective observational study includes those who were trying to lose weight and those who were not; on average 72.5% of the population was overweight or obese.  While 10% annually were able to lose 5% of their body weight, only 1 in 37 (2.7%) who were overweight or obese were able to attain normal body weight.  The chance that an individual with a BMI of 40 or more would achieve a BMI of under 25 was just 0.18% (one in 1111!)

Implications for employers:

-        Given our current understanding of the biology of obesity, this data reinforces that those with obesity are likely to need medical intervention, such as an effective anti-obesity or bariatric surgery, to achieve healthy body weight.

-        Those who face greater social determinate of health burden are more likely to be obese

-        There are potential cost savings from effective obesity treatment; I’ll plan to cover that issue next week.

Tomorrow -- KFF survey suggests reluctance to take an injectable drug for obesity

See previous posts in the archive of Employer Coverage

Please “like” and suggest this newsletter to friends and colleagues. Thanks.