At-home weight loss programs for kids lack evidence

Programs designed to prevent childhood obesity in the home don't affect kids' weight a year or more down the line, according to a review of the evidence. But that conclusion comes from only a small number of available studies on the programs, and doesn't prove that such studies can't work, according to lead author Dr. Nakiya Showell. "We need additional studies to answer this question, especially studies with greater number of participants, greater program exposure among participants and longer participant followup," said Showell, of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore. Other studies have shown that family influence and home environment play an important role in preventing childhood obesity, which affects about 17 percent of American children, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_137766.html