Weight Watchers is a commercial organization offering flexible food plans, weekly
support meetings, and an emphasis on sensible
eating and healthful lifestyle habits, including regular exercise. Members are assigned an
initial goal of losing 5 to 10% of their body weight through a combination of exercise and
food plans designed to reach that goal.
The program offers two food plans:
The Flex Plan—All foods are assigned point values. No food is prohibited,
as long as the total number of points does not exceed the daily allotment.
The Core Plan—This plan focuses on choosing nutritious, low-calorie foods
from every food group instead of counting points.
The weekly support meetings and detailed diet plans could work well for you if you like
having specific instructions and enjoy meeting with other people who have had similar
experience with wanting to lose weight.
Get started: Weight Watchers requires that you purchase membership in the program to
attend group support meetings, and to receive printed materials. You can access more
information on their official Web site: www.weightwatchers.com.
More about this diet
In the traditional program, called the Flex Plan, all foods are assigned point values
according to fat, calorie, and fiber content. Each member is given a daily range of
allowed points, and no foods are prohibited as long as dieters don't exceed the daily or
weekly point maximum. Increasing exercise allows a member to earn more points for additional
daily point allowances. A Web site (www.weightwatchers.com), printed guides, cookbooks, and
branded Weight Watchers foods available in grocery stores are designed to help members learn
and apply this point system.
A newer program, called the Core Plan, provides a list of nutritious and filling yet
low-calorie items in every food group that can be eaten freely without counting points.
Occasional treats are allowed in both plans, and members can switch from one plan to the other
if they desire.
Weekly group meetings led by a trained, experienced member allow dieters to get advice and
support one another. Members are encouraged to weigh themselves at each meeting. Online tools
are available to members for counting Flex Plan points and for tracking weight-loss progress
and exercise habits. Weight Watchers also offers a weight-maintenance plan.
Why do people follow this diet?
Founded in the early 1960s, Weight Watchers is one of the most successful diet
organizations in existence, with members numbering in the millions. One survey of successful
dieters found that many used organized programs such as Weight Watchers to lose weight. People
are most satisfied with Weight Watchers if they enjoy having regular support meetings to
attend, and the traditional food plan may appeal to those who find it useful to learn a system
for keeping track of food eaten throughout the day. Both food plans can be adapted for people
with specific needs, such as vegetarians,
teenagers, and breast-feeding mothers.
What do the advocates say?
The diet resembles the typical low-fat,
“heart healthy” diet advocated by many governmental and professional
organizations. Group meetings often help a weight-loss program to succeed by offering dieters
practical advice, consistent motivation, and the chance to share experiences with other
like-minded people. Preliminary research suggests that participating in Weight Watchers is
more effective than a “do-it-yourself” diet program, and that long-term weight
maintenance may be more successful with Weight Watchers than is reported for most dieters.
What do the critics say?
Though health and nutrition professionals design the Weight Watchers program, individuals
are not offered professional guidance; instead they must rely on printed materials, group
leaders, and other members for advice and problem solving. A recent report suggested that
while dieters using Weight Watchers for a full year lost an average of 5% of their body
weight, other dieters using Atkins, Zone, or very-low-fat diets lost the same amount.
Therefore, the cost of membership in Weight Watchers, while not as high as some other
commercial programs, might seem unnecessary when other weight-loss plans may be available
either free or for the price of a single book.
Furthermore, regular weigh-ins at group meetings may make some people uncomfortable, and
some health authorities believe that focusing on weight instead of overall health can lead to
unhealthy dieting practices.
Are there any groups or books associated with this diet?
Official Web site for Weight Watchers: www.weightwatchers.com
Weight Watcher's New Complete Cookbook and Program Basics by
Nancy Gagliardi (Editor). New York; Hungry Minds, Inc., 1998.
Weight Watchers The Fit Factor: How Getting Strong Can Help You
Lose Weight by Weight Watchers. New York; IDG Books Worldwide, 2000.
Weight Watchers Coach Approach: How to Motivate the Thin You
by Weight Watchers. Hoboken, NJ; John Wiley & Sons, 2003.
Bibliography
Dansinger, M.L., Gleason, J. L., Griffith, J.L., et al. “One
Year Effectiveness of the Atkins, Ornish, Weight Watchers, and Zone Diets in Decreasing Body
Weight and Heart Disease Risk.” Presented at the American Heart Association Scientific
Sessions; 2003, November 12; Orlando, FL.
Freedman MR, King J, Kennedy E. Popular diets: a scientific review.
Obes Res 2001;9 Suppl 1:1S–40S [review].
Jackson, R. Commercial weight-loss programs. Health Care Food Nutr
Focus 2004;21:8–9, 11.
Lowe MR, Miller-Kovach K, Phelan S. Weight-loss maintenance in
overweight individuals one to five years following successful completion of a commercial
weight loss program. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 2001;25:325–31.
Lowe MR, Miller-Kovach K, Frye N, Phelan S. An initial evaluation of a
commercial weight loss program: short-term effects on weight, eating behavior, and mood.
Obes Res 1999;7:51–9.
The information presented in the Food Guide is for informational purposes
only and was created by a team of US–registered dietitians and food experts. Consult
your doctor, practitioner, and/or pharmacist for any health problem and before using any
supplements, making dietary changes, or before making any changes in prescribed medications.
Information expires June 2009.
