Latest news with #slimming
BBC News
6 days ago
- General
- BBC News
'Losing 12 stone changed my life', says Lincoln woman
A woman from Lincoln who lost more than 12 stone (76kg) in a year without using weight loss drugs is setting up her own slimming club to help Hyde, 30, previously weighed around 22 stone (139kg) but after starting a diet last April lost a total of 12 stone and 9lbs (about 80kg).She said her success was down to "filling up on fresh foods rather than takeaways" and increasing the amount of exercise she did."There were definitely tough times, but I've had a hell of a lot of support around me, which keeps you motivated," she added. Ms Hyde, who turned 30 in October, said she was motivated to do something about her weight after being diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) - which she said meant she may never be able to have her own she said in order to get any support she would need to have a healthy body mass index (BMI).She told BBC Radio Lincolnshire: "I thought I need to get cracked on - I'm turning 30 and I've got these issues." Prior to losing weight, Ms Hyde, who works as a head chef, said she would not leave the house very often and would avoid looking in mirrors."I would hide away," she said."Nowadays, I'm walking out the door with a smile - enjoying getting dressed in the morning - going shopping," she added."It's been a life-changer for me."Ms Hyde said she could now enjoy horse riding again and taking part in events, including Race for said she now wanted to help others in a similar situation and has set up her own Slimming World group at the Moorland Park Methodist Church in Lincoln, with the first session taking place on 24 June."If I can help at least one person then it will be worth it," she added. Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
Daily Mail
22-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
WeightWatchers given lifeline from bankruptcy...thanks to deal signed with fat jab firm
WeightWatchers has teamed up with slimming jab company in bid to save itself from bankruptcy. The weight loss company had been struggling under $1.6billion (£1.2billion) of debt after losing business to revolutionary weight loss drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy. But the company, which filed for bankruptcy in the US earlier this month, has now teamed up with British weight loss injection supplier CheqUp. Under the deal, CheqUp members will be able to access a bespoke WeightWatchers, now known as WW, 'companion' diet and lifestyle support app to help slimmers make the most out of the drugs. It will provide advice on subjects like which foods to eat that minimise some of the side effects of weight loss jabs, such as nausea. The move is largely seen as lifeline to WW amid its financial struggles. James Hunt, deputy chief executive of CheqUp, said the partnership was the first of its kind in the UK and would offer more to patients taking the jabs, also known as GLP-1s. 'There is no doubt that the addition of WW breakthrough GLP-1 companion programme will add enormously to our patients' ability to achieve sustainable weight loss through its science-backed and proven programmes, together with their global community of like-minded individuals,' he said. 'This partnership offers the most attractive proposition in the market for those looking to benefit from the incredible potential of GLP-1 medications and behaviour change.' Scott Honken, chief commercial officer at WW, added data from the US demonstrated the value of offering patients on the jabs a companion programme. 'In the US, that our members on obesity medications, who also participate in our nutritional and behavioural lifestyle program, lose 11 per cent more weight on average than those using the medication alone,' he said. 'When medication is part of the journey, it's the combination with behavioural support that leads to more sustainable, superior results. 'We recognize the demand for GLP-1 medications in the UK is growing as more people seek effective weight management solutions. 'That's why we're proud to partner with CheqUp to deliver our GLP-1 Companion Programme to meet this growing need.' CheqUp provides both semaglutide jabs, the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy and Mounjaro which contains tirzepatide. The move follows a study earlier this month that showed patients who stop taking weight-loss jabs pile all the pound they lost pile it all back on within 10 months if they don't maintain a healthy lifestyle afterwards. WeightWatchers was founded in 1963 by Jean Nidetch, a housewife from Queens, New York. It all began in her kitchen, where she invited a group of friends over to talk about dieting and offer each other support. This launched a business based around selling low-calorie foods, diet and exercise advice to overweight people. A 2017 study published in The Lancet found participants on the programme lost an average of 4.75kg after 12 weeks and 6.76kg after a year. However, experts have previously warned that the low point scores promoted by WeightWatchers with certain foods don't always equal high nutritional value. Others have cautioned that weight loss through calorie-restricted diets is not often sustained. Over the years, celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and Jessica Simpson have helped market the brand. In 2014, Simpson appeared in ads at age 33
Telegraph
14-05-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Patients who stop taking weight-loss jabs ‘regain lost pounds within months'
People who take slimming injections regain their lost weight when they come off the medication, new research suggests. The study found that even those prescribed the latest jabs returned to their former weight after 18 months. Experts said the findings suggested that patients needed to keep taking the drugs for life to fully reap the benefits, which may include living for longer. The analysis of 11 weight-loss drug studies by the University of Oxford found that patients typically lost 8kg (18lb) after taking the jabs. However, participants returned to their original weight within 10 months of stopping the medication. The study, presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Malaga, found that even those taking newer weight loss drugs, such as Wegovy and Mounjaro, piled the pounds back on once they stopped treatment. Those taking semaglutide (Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro) lost double the weight of those on older jabs – 16kg (36lbs) on average – but put back on 10kg (21lbs) within a year. This meant they could expect to regain all their lost weight in around 18 months, the researchers said. Data from a total of 6,370 adults from eight randomised controlled trials and three observational studies were examined for the analysis. Of these, 1,465 patients took semaglutide and tirzepatide – higher dose jabs recommended specifically for weight loss. The findings were part of a bigger study directly comparing the efficacy of dieting versus weight-loss drugs. Findings raise questions over NHS strategy Previous analysis by the same researchers found that when dieters lost weight without using medication, the rate of regain was much slower, taking participants at least five years to put their weight back on. Prof Susan Jebb, co-author of the study and professor of diet and population health at the University of Oxford, said: 'These drugs are very effective at helping you lose weight, but when you stop them, weight regain is much faster than [after stopping a] diet.' The findings could mean the NHS may have to overhaul its approach. Senior doctors have called for wider use of the jabs, with some heralding a 'golden age' in obesity prevention, using drugs which could halve rates of cancer and deaths from heart attacks. Prices are expected to plummet, as a result of increased competition as the patents for some of the early drugs expire during the next decade. Current guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence states that patients prescribed the drugs should only stay on them for two years. Prof Jebb said: 'Is it going to be worth the NHS investing in these drugs if they only have them for a short time and then they pile all the weight back on, or does the NHS have to accept that these are going to be long-term therapies? 'Either people really have to accept this as a treatment for life, you're going to have to keep going forever, or we in science need to think really, really hard [about] how to support people when they stop the drug.' 'Not a quick fix' The study did not show why those coming off the jabs piled weight back on so quickly. But Prof Jebb speculated that people who lost weight without drugs had to practice restraint to slim down, whereas those taking drugs that suppress appetite and make them fuller have to make less effort. She said: 'When the drugs are then taken away, you haven't got those sort of behavioural strategies in place that help keep the weight off.' Tam Fry, chair of the National Obesity Forum, said: 'It shouldn't surprise anyone if people regain weight having used GLP-1 [weight-loss] drugs without seriously attempting to improve their lifestyle … Using GLP-1 is not the quick fix which many users believe it to be.' Prof Jane Ogden, a health psychology expert at the University of Surrey, said once patients came off the jabs, 'there's no point just throwing people back out into the world of their own lives, carrying on their own behaviours from before'. She added: 'They're going to need psychological counselling, behaviour change, nutritional support from that moment on to help them sustain healthier behaviour in the long term, to keep the weight off. Jason Halford, a former president of the European Association for the Study of Obesity, said: 'We need to ensure patients have the support to make the changes in their behaviour they need to sustain the benefits of treatment. [Weight-loss jabs] are an adjunct to behavioural change, not a replacement.'
