New Study Offers Hope For Dieters (NAPSA)—Many Americans work hard to trim down, butoften find that the real challenge is keeping the weightoff. Fortunately, new research published in Archives of Internal Medicine shows that Slim*Fast meal replacements (MRs) may help people lose weight and keepit off longterm. The study compared the weight loss success of overweight premenopausal women using MRs as part of a weight managementprogram to those that did not use MRs. The program included diet, behavior and exercise changes. In addition, the women received coun- seling in either a physician’s office or a dietitian-led group setting. “Comparing the women in the two dietitian-led groups, the group using meal replacements lost twice as much weight and were more successful in keeping the weight off for one year,” said Judith Ashley, Ph.D., MSPH, RD, principal investigator and associ- ate director of the Nutrition Education and Research Program at University of Nevada School of Medicine. Researchers attribute the group’s success to the known caloric quantity and controlled por- Meal replacement shakes and bars have been shown to help keepthe weightoff. tions provided by MRs because hidden calories and oversized por- tions are two commonfactors in failed diet attempts. According to Ashley, people also fall off diets because they are too hard to maintain. “Meal replacements are a simple weight management tool that can be incorporated into any lifestyle,” said Ashley. For more information about Slim*Fast or for tools on healthy living log on to the Web site www.slim-fast.com.
