The odds they'll drop the excess weight are less than 1%

Jul 18, 2015 08:22 GMT  ·  By

In a recent paper published in the American Journal of Public Health, a team of researchers at King's College London in the UK argue that, once they gain enough weight to qualify as obese, men and women alike have a less than 1% chance to slim down. 

Otherwise put, it would appear that it is nearly impossible for obese individuals to ever attain a normal body weight, the King's College London scientists argue. The best they can do is try to shed at least some weight in an attempt to improve their health.

The odds are stacked against obese people

In their report in the American Journal of Public Health, the researchers detail that, as part of their work, they monitored a total of 278,982 volunteers, i.e. 129,194 men and 149,788 men, between the years 2004 and 2014. The focus was on the study participants' weight.

During the study period, merely 1,283 of the men and 2,245 of the women included in the investigation managed to attain a normal body weight by dieting and exercising on a regular basis.

Having done all the math, the King's College London team found that, in the case of obese individuals, the odds of slimming down to a normal weight are 1 in 210 for men and 1 in 124 for women. In the case of severely obese people, they are even lower than this.

“The chance of an obese person attaining normal body weight is 1 in 210 for men and 1 in 124 for women, increasing to 1 in 1,290 for men and 1 in 677 for women with severe obesity,” the specialists say.

Then again, this does not mean all hope is lost

Attaining a normal body weight might not be a realistic goal for obese and severely obese individuals, but this does not mean that all hope is lost. On the contrary, the King's College London specialists say even a 5% weight loss is more than enough to make a difference in terms of health.

Besides, this weight loss goal is well within reach. Thus, it appears that the chance of an obese person to drop 5% of their weight simply by watching their food intake and exercising is 1 in 12 for men and 1 in 10 for women.

“Losing 5 to 10 per cent of your body weight has been shown to have meaningful health benefits and is often recommended as a weight loss target,” researcher Alison Fildes explained in an interview.