obesity
Yes, that would be nice!
You want to lose weight?
Just take a few pills an Bob’s your uncle!
There is, of course no shortage of such pills – but do they work?
This study aimed at quantifying and ranking the effects of different nutraceuticals on weight loss. PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science to November 2022 were searched and all randomized trials (RCTs) evaluating the comparative effects of two or more nutraceuticals, or comparing a nutraceutical against a placebo for weight loss in adults with overweight or obesity were included. A random-effects network meta-analysis was conducted with a Frequentist framework to estimate mean difference [MD] and 95% confidence interval [CI] of the effect of nutraceuticals on weight loss.
One hundred and eleven RCTs with 6171 participants that investigated the effects of 18 nutraceuticals on body weight were eligible. In the main analysis incorporating all trials, there was high certainty of evidence for supplementation of spirulina (MD: -1.77 kg, 95% CI: -2.77, -0.78) and moderate certainty of evidence that supplementation of curcumin (MD: -0.82 kg, 95% CI: -1.33, -0.30), psyllium (MD: -3.70 kg, 95% CI: -5.18, -2.22), chitosan (MD: -1.70 kg, 95% CI: -2.62, -0.78), and Nigella sativa (MD: -2.09 kg, 95%CI: -2.92, -1.26) could result in a small improvement in body weight. Supplementations with green tea (MD: -1.25 kg, 95%CI: -1.68, -0.82) and glucomannan (MD: -1.36 kg, 95%CI: -2.17, -0.54) demonstrated small weight loss, also the certainty of evidence was rated low.
The authors concluded that supplementations with nutraceuticals can result in a small weight loss in adults with overweight or obesity.
The authors tell us little about the methodological quality of the studies. All they did report was this:
Among trials with a low risk of bias, only chitosan (mean difference: −1.72 kg, 95%CI: −3.37, −0.06) and green tea (mean difference: −1.61 kg, 95%CI: −3.14, −0.09) were effective for weight loss compared with placebo. There was no significant weight loss following increased consumption of other nutraceuticals in trials with a low risk of bias.
In view of the lack of reliability of the primary studies, I feel that the conclusions drawn by the authors are not justified. Even though far from recent, I much prefer our own conclusion of a similar data set:
The evidence for most dietary supplements as aids in reducing body weight is not convincing. None of the reviewed dietary supplements can be recommended for over-the-counter use.
In other words, if you want to lose weight, don’t rely on dietary supplements!
It is not only practitioners of so-called alternative medicine (SCAM) who can be fraudulent charlatans. The study of medicine does not protect you from joining in. Here is an impressive case in point:
It has been reported that a former doctor convicted of fraudulently submitting nearly $120 million in claims related to the 1-800-GET-THIN Lap-Band surgery business has been sentenced to seven years in federal prison.
Julian Omidi, 58, of West Hollywood was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Court Judge Dolly M. Gee. The judge also imposed a five-year probation period on Surgery Center Management LLC, an Omidi-controlled Beverly Hills-based company. In the coming weeks, Gee is expected to hold a separate hearing to decide on restitution and forfeiture in the case, along with setting a fine for the Beverly Hills company.
“Mr. Omidi made millions at the expense of the multiple victim companies he defrauded, and he violated his oath to ‘do no harm’ by callously misleading patients about the need for a sleep study and subsequent weight loss surgery,” said Donald Alway, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office.
Omidi controlled several entities in the GET-THIN network. Prosecutors say Omidi incentivized employees to ensure patients underwent sleep studies and then falsified the results to show that patients had obstructive sleep apnea to help them qualify for insurance coverage for the weight loss surgery. Those results were then filed with insurance companies to pre-approve the Lap-Band weight-loss surgeries. The 1-800-GET-THIN business received approximately $41 million for those procedures, according to prosecutors. While not all patients were approved to receive the surgery, prosecutors say GET-THIN would bill the patient roughly $15,000 for each sleep study, totaling $27 million in payments from insurance providers.
Omidi and his Beverly Hills-based company, Surgery Center Management, were found guilty of 28 counts of wire fraud, three counts of mail fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. Omidi was also found guilty of two counts of making false statements relating to healthcare matters, one count of aggravated identity theft, and two counts of money laundering after a 48-day trial in downtown Los Angeles.
“As found by the jury, the defendant Julian Omidi deliberately and repeatedly acted with an eye towards business and profits, rather than in the interest of GET-THIN’s medical patients, by inducing patients to undergo medical treatment premised on fraud rather than medical necessity, including surgeries that carry significant risks and life-long health impacts,” said U.S. Atty. Martin Estrada. A series of Los Angeles Times columns from 2010 to 2014 detailed how five patients died after they received Lap-Band surgeries at clinics affiliated with 1-800-GET-THIN. During a 2009 inspection, the Department of Health and Human Services found unsanitary conditions, inoperative scrub sinks, one-time-only equipment being reused, and several other deficiencies. The inspector shut down the clinic for a day, but further action was not taken at the time.
Omidi’s medical license was revoked in 2009, and he was arrested. In 2014, federal agencies seized more than $110 million from the 1-800-GET-THIN network in securities and funds.
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This is a spectacular case, of course. Yet, I fail to see how it differs in principle from the many instances we see on a daily basis in the realm of SCAM. Let me give you just a few examples:
- A chiropractor diagnoses subluxation and subsequently treats his patient with a series of spinal manipulations.
- A naturopath uses iridology to diagnose a weakness of the liver and subsequently treats it with herbal remedies.
- An acupuncturist diagnoses a blockage of chi and follows it up with a series of acupuncture sessions.
- A Heilpraktiker employs bioresonance to diagnose an intoxication which he then treats with a detox program.
The strategy is always the same:
- Charlatans use bogus diagnostic methods.
- They make bogus diagnoses with them.
- They then start expensive and often dangerous treatments.
- They make good money by defrauding the system.
Could someone please explain what the difference in principle is between the case of the fraudulent surgeon and the average SCAM practitioner?
The ‘keto diet’ is a currently popular high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet; it limits the intake of glucose which results in the production of ketones by the liver and their uptake as an alternative energy source by the brain. It is said to be an effective treatment for intractable epilepsy. In addition, it is being promoted as a so-called alternative medicine (SCAM) for a wide range of conditions, including:
- weight loss,
- cognitive and memory enhancement,
- type II diabetes,
- cancer,
- neurological and psychiatric disorders.
Now, it has been reported that the ‘keto diet’ may be linked to higher levels of cholesterol and double the risk of cardiovascular events. In the study, researchers defined a low-carb, high-fat (LCHF) diet as 45% of total daily calories coming from fat and 25% coming from carbohydrates. The study, which has so far not been peer-reviewed, was presented Sunday at the American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session Together With the World Congress of Cardiology.
“Our study rationale came from the fact that we would see patients in our cardiovascular prevention clinic with severe hypercholesterolemia following this diet,” said Dr. Iulia Iatan from the Healthy Heart Program Prevention Clinic, St. Paul’s Hospital, and University of British Columbia’s Centre for Heart Lung Innovation in Vancouver, Canada, during a presentation at the session. “This led us to wonder about the relationship between these low-carb, high-fat diets, lipid levels, and cardiovascular disease. And so, despite this, there’s limited data on this relationship.”
The researchers compared the diets of 305 people eating an LCHF diet with about 1,200 people eating a standard diet, using health information from the United Kingdom database UK Biobank, which followed people for at least a decade. They found that people on the LCHF diet had higher levels of low-density lipoprotein and apolipoprotein B. Apolipoprotein B is a protein that coats LDL cholesterol proteins and can predict heart disease better than elevated levels of LDL cholesterol can. The researchers also noticed that the LCHF diet participants’ total fat intake was higher in saturated fat and had double the consumption of animal sources (33%) compared to those in the control group (16%). “After an average of 11.8 years of follow-up – and after adjustment for other risk factors for heart disease, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, and smoking – people on an LCHF diet had more than two times higher risk of having several major cardiovascular events, such as blockages in the arteries that needed to be opened with stenting procedures, heart attack, stroke, and peripheral arterial disease.” Their press release also cautioned that their study “can only show an association between the diet and an increased risk for major cardiac events, not a causal relationship,” because it was an observational study, but their findings are worth further investigation, “especially when approximately 1 in 5 Americans report being on a low-carb, keto-like or full keto diet.”
I have to say that I find these findings not in the slightest bit surprising and would fully expect the relationship to be causal. The current craze for this diet is concerning and we need to warn consumers that they might be doing themselves considerable harm.
Other authors have recently pointed out that, within the first 6-12 months of initiating the keto diet, transient decreases in blood pressure, triglycerides, and glycosylated hemoglobin, as well as increases in HDL and weight loss may be observed. However, the aforementioned effects are generally not seen after 12 months of therapy. Despite the diet’s favorable effect on HDL-C, the concomitant increases in LDL-C and very-low-density lipoproteins (VLDL) may lead to increased cardiovascular risks. And another team of researchers has warned that “given often-temporary improvements, unfavorable effects on dietary intake, and inadequate data demonstrating long-term safety, for most individuals, the risks of ketogenic diets may outweigh the benefits.”
Konjac glucomannan (KGM), also just called ‘glucomannan’, is a dietary fiber hydro colloidal polysaccharide isolated from the tubers of Amorphophallus konjac. It is used as a food, a food additive, as well as a dietary supplement in many countries. KGM is claimed to reduce the levels of glucose, cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure.
The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of the consumption of gummy candy enriched with KGM on appetite and to evaluate anthropometric data, biochemical, and oxidative stress markers in overweight individuals. Forty-two participants aged 18 to 45 years completed this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial. Participants were randomly assigned to consume for 14 days, 2 candies per day, containing 250 mg of KGM or identical-looking placebo candy with 250 mg of flaxseed meal, shortly after breakfast and dinner. As a result, we observed that there was a reduction in waist circumference and in the intensity of hunger of the participants who consumed KGM. The authors believe that a longer consumption time as well as an increased dose of KGM would contribute to even more satisfactory body results.
These findings seem promising, yet somehow I am not convinced. The study was small and short-term; moreover, the authors seem uncritical and, instead of a conclusion, they offer speculations.
Our own review of 2014 included 9 clinical studies. There was a variation in the reporting quality of the included RCTs. A meta-analysis (random effect model) of 8 RCTs revealed no significant difference in weight loss between glucomannan and placebo (mean difference [MD]: -0.22 kg; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.62, 0.19; I(2) = 65%). Adverse events included abdominal discomfort, diarrhea, and constipation. We concluded that the evidence from available RCTs does not show that glucomannan intake generates statistically significant weight loss. Future trials should be more rigorous and better reported.
Rigorous trials are required to change my mind, and I am not sure that the new study falls into this category.
While still at Exeter, we had a whole program examining so-called alternative medicines (SCAMs) for weight reduction. I thus can assure you of one thing: there are plenty out there! We also published many papers on the subject. The results can be summarized quite easily:
NONE OF THEM WORK CONVINCINGLY AND MANY ARE OUTRIGHT FRAUDULENT.
So I thought I had seen them all … until I saw this advertisement:
Hourglass S-line Waist Slimming Patch ingredients directly transfers them to your skin which then stimulates your body, kickstarts your metabolism and increases calorific burn. This process tones your skin, busts fat cells giving you a slimmer appearance with radiant looking skin.
Consist of 3 Key Ingredient For Hourglass S-line Waist Slimming Patch:
- Ay Tsao
- Wormwood
- Mint
Ay Tsao is a flowering plant that is mostly cultivated for its root, it decreases inflammation, stimulates digestion, and suppresses your appetite. These properties are effective ways promote weight loss. Experts says that this plant plays a huge role in providing a person with health benefits, determining decongestion and improving blood circulation.
Wormwood is regarded as a useful remedy for liver and gallbladder problems. Wormwood contains strong bitter agents known as absinthin and anabsinthin, which stimulate digestive and gallbladder function. Wormwood is believed to stimulate digestion and relieve spasms in the intestinal tract
Mint play an essential role in losing weight in a healthy way. Mint leaves promote digestion and boost metabolism to help in losing weight. Mint tea is a great refreshing calorie-free beverage to promote weight loss.
This is why Hourglass S-line Waist Slimming Patch is special
- Effectively prevent forming a waist fat.
- Accelerate the burning of fat.
- Maintaining a perfect body continuously.
- Extracting the essence from pure, safe, and healthy natural plants.
- Better sleep;
- Safe for daily use.
- Relieves gas and bloating.
- Slim down, and increase your energy levels for a better, healthier life.
- Made of high-quality material, with good breathability and adhesion.
Natalie’s Hourglass S-line Waist Slimming Patch report
Natalie Having trouble wearing dress because of her weight. She wanted a body that will make a dress look good for her. She gladly found this product online.
Here is the result…
Week 1
“Having a sexy body is always what I wanted. But what I can only do is light exercise. So I decided to use this Hourglass S-line Waist Slimming Patch. In just a week my body felt light. I still have a medium-sized belly but I’ll keep trying. Improvement is important and I see it with this product.”
Week 4
“I’m on day 30 of using this product. I love it. I combined its use with diet and light exercise. This is a good treatment for my muscles because Hourglass S-line Waist Slimming Patch also helps with muscle cramps or pain. I never feel my waist muscles working as well as they do when I’m using this product. I love feeling my body muscles actually moving in there. I literally KNOW this product is working my muscles for me. It’s incredible.”
Week 6
“After a month and a half, the result is great. I am amazed that the product is just as described. It will surely achieve the body that you want!! A must try for everyone, this patch is restrengthening muscles, or to add an extra kick in the gut for your exercise, this is it!”
Natalie Lopez — Toronto, Canada
This Patch saves you tons of money!
Hourglass S-line Waist Slimming Patch all natural ingredients are carefully made to make a huge impact not only to your skin but also saves you tons of money in the long run.
With this product you can avoid expensive sessions, time consuming appointments and you can use this patch at your home that can save transportations fare.
How to Use:
- Make sure your waist is dry and clean.
- Take 2 pcs patch and tear of the back then stick it to your both side waist.
- Remove after 3 – 8 hours a day.
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I find it hard to believe that there are people who actually fall for such an advertisement. And the more I think about it, the sadder I feel. There are quite obviously some who believe such nonsense and get ripped off by irresponsible snake-oil salesmen. Not only does the product not work, but some of the ingredients are also potentially toxic.
I hope that my posing this will prevent a few people from wasting their hard-earned money on outright quackery:
None of the claims made in this advertisement is backed by evidence!
Acupuncture is often promoted as a therapeutic option for obesity and weight control. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of electroacupuncture (EA) on body weight, body mass index (BMI), skin fold thickness, waist circumference and skin temperature of the abdominal region in non-obese women with excessive abdominal subcutaneous fat.
A total of 50 women with excessive abdominal subcutaneous fat (and average BMI of 22) were randomly assigned to one of two groups:
- an EA group (n = 25) receiving 10 EA sessions (insertion of needles connected to an electrical stimulator at a frequency of 40 Hz for 40 min),
- a control group (n = 25) that received no treatment.
Outcome measures evaluated included waist circumference, supra-iliac and abdominal skinfolds, body composition and superficial skin temperature (measured by cutaneous thermography) before and after treatment.
Compared with the untreated group, women in the EA group exhibited decreased supra-iliac and abdominal skin folds (p < 0.001), waist circumference (p < 0.001), percentage body fat (p = 0.001) and percentage abdominal fat (p < 0.001). In addition, the EA group showed an elevated skin temperature at the site of the treatment. However, EA did not significantly impact body weight (p = 0.01) or BMI (p = 0.2).
The authors concluded that EA promoted a reduction in abdominal waist circumference, supra-iliac and abdominal skin folds, and percentage body and abdominal fat in women of normal BMI with excessive abdominal subcutaneous fat, as well as an increase in the superficial skin temperature of the abdominal region.
If we did not know that acupuncture researchers were all honest investigators testing hypotheses the best they can, we could almost assume that some are trying to fool us. The set-up of this study is ideally suited to introduce a proper placebo treatment. All one has to do is to not switch on the electrical stimulator in the control group. Why did the researchers not do that? Surely not because they wanted to increase the chances of generating a positive result; that would have been dishonest!!!
So, as it stands, what does the study tell us? I think it shows that, compared to patients who receive no treatment, patients who do receive the ritual of EA are better motivated to adhere to calorie restrictions and dietary advice. Thus, I suggest to re-phrase the conclusions of this trial as follows:
The extra attention of the EA treatment motivated obese patients to eat less which caused a reduction in abdominal waist circumference, supra-iliac and abdominal skin folds, and percentage body and abdominal fat in women of normal BMI with excessive abdominal subcutaneous fat.
DNP (2,4-dinitrophenol) is highly toxic. In the UK, it is illegal to sell DNP for human consumption. DNP causes serious harm to health. Its consumption has resulted in a significant number of deaths in the UK. Other side effects of DNP include: 
- nausea
- vomiting
- restlessness
- flushed skin
- sweating
- dizziness
- headaches
- rapid breathing
- an irregular heartbeat.
All this does not seem to deter entrepreneurs in so-called alternative medicine (SCAM). One of them has just been jailed. Jack Finney, 25, of Northwich in Cheshire, sold the highly toxic chemical 2.4-Dinitrophenol (DNP) between June 2017 and July 2020 on the dark web. Finney was sentenced at Chester Crown Court and was handed a 28-month prison sentence.
In 2018, 31-year-old businessman Bernard Rebelo, from east London, was the first person to be convicted of manslaughter in relation to the sale of DNP pills. Mr Rebelo became a millionaire after selling the ‘weight-loss capsules’ to clients, but he was jailed for seven years after selling them to bulimic student Eloise Parry, who later died.
Reginald Bevan, Deputy Head of the National Food Crime Unit, said: ‘We welcome today’s sentencing as it sends a strong message to anyone seeking to profit from the illegal sale of this life-threatening substance. We continue to be relentless in pursuing and bringing to justice those who are endangering the public and breaking the law. This operation continues to demonstrate how seriously the NFCU takes the illegal sale of DNP for human consumption in the UK and through our close working partnership with local authorities and other law enforcement agencies in the UK and abroad that we are able to tackle offenders, close websites and work to disrupt possible supply routes within and into the UK.’
On FACEBOOK I recently found this advertisement posted by ‘LifeCell Health’
Guys, weight loss starts at our gut. The reishi mushroom targets this key area of the body and promotes weight loss in a unique way, by changing our gut bacteria to digest food in a manner that improves weight loss and can even prevent weight gain. By combining 3 of the most researched mycological species on the planet, LifeCell Myco+ delivers a blend of weight loss mushrooms like no other: Improve gut health, speed up weight loss, enhance immune function, natural energy and more with our blend of Reishi, Turkey Tail, and Shiitake mushrooms. Each mushroom has been the subject of several in-vivo studies proving their efficacy when it comes to weight loss.
Why Mushrooms Work.
Reishi: Prevents weight gain by altering bacteria inside the digestive system
Shiitake: Helps the body develop less fat by nourishing good gut bacteria.
Turkey Tail: Reduces inflammation and helps prevent weight gain.
That sounded interesting, I thought, and I investigated a bit further. On the website of the firm, I found this text:
By combining 3 of the most researched mycological species on the planet, LifeCell Myco+ delivers an organic wellness formula unlike any other. Improve gut health, speed up weight loss, enhance immune function, natural energy and more with our blend of Reishi, Turkey Tail, and Shiitake mushrooms.
Keeping a healthy balance of beneficial bacteria in your gut is critical for maintaining a strong immune system. Your gut bacteria interact with immune cells and directly impact your immune response. Turkey tail mushrooms contain prebiotics, which help nourish these helpful bacteria. An 8-week study in 24 healthy people found that consuming 3,600 mg of PSP extracted from turkey tail mushrooms per day led to beneficial changes in gut bacteria and suppressed the growth of the possibly problematic E. coli and Shigella bacteria.
Next, I conducted a few Medline searches but was unable to find any trial data suggesting that any of the three mushrooms or their combination might reduce body weight. So, I wrote to the company:
Dear Madam/Sir
I am intrigued by your product MYCO +. Would you be kind enough to send me the studies showing that it can reduce body weight?
Many thanks
Edzard Ernst
What followed was a bizarre correspondence with several layers of administrators in the firm. They all said that I should discuss this with the next higher person. So, I asked myself up the hierarchy of LiveCell. The last email I received was this one:
Good morning Edzark,
Thank you for your email and I hope you are enjoying your day.
It is great to hear that you are interested in our LifeCell Myco. I have forwarded your request for additional information and once received I will be sure to forward the information to you.
What do I conclude from this experience?
Apart from being unable to get my name right, the people responsible at ‘LifeCell Health’ seem also not able to send me the evidence I asked for. This, I fear, means that there is no such evidence which means the claims are unsubstantiated. Scientifically, this might amount to misconduct; legally, it could be fraudulent.
But I am, of course, no lawyer and therefore leave it to others to address the legal issues.
PS
If anyone happens to know of some evidence, please let me know and I will correct my post accordingly.
Bach flower remedies were invented in the 1920s by Dr. Edward Bach (1886-1936), a doctor homeopath who had previously worked in the London Homeopathic Hospital. They have since become very popular in Europe and beyond. Bach flower remedies are clearly inspired by homeopathy; however, they are not the same because they do not follow the ‘like cures like’ principle and are they potentized. They are manufactured by placing freshly picked specific flowers or parts of plants in water which is subsequently mixed with alcohol, bottled, and sold. Like most homeopathic remedies, they are highly dilute and thus do not contain therapeutic amounts of the plant printed on the bottle.
The aim of this new randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was to compare the efficacy of flower therapy for the treatment of anxiety in overweight or obese adults with that of a placebo. The authors examined improvement in sleep patterns, reduction in binge eating, and change in resting heart rate (RHR).
The study included 40 participants in the placebo group and 41 in the intervention group. Participants were of both genders, from 20 to 59 years of age, overweight or obese, with moderate to high anxiety. They were randomized into two groups:
- one group was treated with Bach flower remedies (BFR) (bottles containing 30 mL of 30% hydro-brandy solution with two drops each of Impatiens, White Chestnut, Cherry Plum, Chicory, Crab Apple, and Pine), purchased from Healing® Flower Essences (São Paulo, Brazil)
- the other group was given a placebo (same solution without BFR).
All patients were instructed to orally ingest the solutions by placing four drops directly in the mouth four times a day for 4 weeks.
The primary outcome was anxiety (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory [STAI]). Secondary outcomes were sleep (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index [PSQI]), binge eating (Binge Eating Scale [BES]), and RHR (electrocardiogram).
Multivariate analysis showed significant reductions in scores for the following variables in the intervention group when compared with the placebo group: STAI (β = −0.190; p < 0.001), PSQI (β = −0.160; p = 0.027), BES (β = −0.226; p = 0.001), and RHR (β = −0.07; p = 0.003).
The authors concluded that anxiety symptoms, binge eating, and RHRs of the individuals treated with flower therapy decreased, and their sleep patterns improved when compared with those treated with the placebo.
Did the alcohol in the verum preparation had a relaxing effect? No, I was teasing. The amount would have been too small and the effect would have been the same in both groups. But what could have caused the observed outcome? I have to admit that I have no idea.
I read the study several times and could not find a major flaw. Hence it must have been the flower remedy that caused the positive outcome? No, I am teasing again. I find this impossible to imagine. These remedies contain nothing that might explain the results and all previous systematic reviews of all the available trials have all reached a negative conclusion. Before I seriously consider the option that flower remedies are more than placebos, I would like to see an independent replication.
Tai chi is a form of exercise that combines deep breathing and relaxation with meditative, slow movements. Originally developed as a martial art in 13th-century China, tai chi is now practised around the world as a health-promoting exercise. Despite its popularity, its therapeutic value is not clear. 
This randomized, assessor-blinded trial examined the therapeutic efficacy of tai chi for the management of central obesity. A total of 543 participants with central obesity were randomly assigned in a 1:1:1 ratio to:
- a control group with no exercise intervention (n = 181),
- conventional exercise consisting of aerobic exercise and strength training (EX group) (n = 181),
- a tai chi group (TC group) (n = 181). Interventions lasted 12 weeks.
Outcomes were assessed at baseline, week 12, and week 38. The primary outcome was waist circumference (WC). Secondary outcomes were body weight; body mass index; high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), triglyceride, and fasting plasma glucose levels; blood pressure; and incidence of remission of central obesity.
The adjusted mean difference in WC from baseline to week 12 in the control group was 0.8 cm (95% CI, -4.1 to 5.7 cm). Both intervention groups showed reductions in WC relative to control (adjusted mean differences: TC group vs. control, -1.8 cm [CI, -2.3 to -1.4 cm]; P < 0.001; EX group vs. control: -1.3 cm [CI, -1.8 to -0.9 cm]; P < 0.001); both intervention groups also showed reductions in body weight (P < 0.05) and attenuation of the decrease in HDL-C level relative to the control group. The favorable changes in WC and body weight were maintained in both the TC and EX groups, whereas the beneficial effect on HDL-C was only maintained in the TC group at week 38.
The authors concluded that Tai chi is an effective approach to reduce WC in adults with central obesity aged 50 years or older.
This is a decent trial with an odd conclusion: it is not just the Tai chi intervention but both types of exercise that yield significantly positive effects on the primary outcome measure. So, why did the authors not conclude exercise is an effective approach to reduce WC in adults with central obesity aged 50 years or older?
Could it be that such a conclusion would have meant stating the obvious?
