National Obesity Awareness Week: Find out if self-management education programmes can help.
Stock photo for illustration
National Obesity Awareness Week in the UK takes place from 10 to 16 January 2025. In the UK, it is estimated approximately 1 in every 4 adults are living with obesity1 with people living in the most deprived areas most affected2 . By 2050, it is estimated 50% of the adult population could be living with obesity3.
We are highlighting how the self-management programmes developed and tested by the NHS DESMOND team here at the Leicester Diabetes Centre (LDC) could support adults living with obesity or overweight, and with , or at risk of, type 2 diabetes and other long-term health conditions.
Obesity is complex with potentially multiple causes. Obesity and overweight occurs when extra calories are stored in the body as fat. A balanced diet and active lifestyle can help support weight care, as well as in managing type 2 diabetes. Over many years here at LDC we have developed a range of education programmes designed to support people to self-manage their health; read on to find out the impact these have had directly on supporting people’s weight care journeys.
DESMOND
Established in 2003, DESMOND is a group-based type 2 diabetes self-management programme which was developed by a multi-disciplinary team from across the UK and now with its Head Office here at LDC. DESMOND is currently commissioned in over 100 areas in the UK and Ireland as the type 2 diabetes patient education of choice.
In 2022-23 46.5% of all goals set by patients attending a DESMOND group were linked to weight loss4
Our original 2008 trial for people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes was associated with benefits in weight loss, illness beliefs, physical activity, smoking status and depression5.
MyDESMOND
MyDESMOND is the online version of the award-winning DESMOND group programme. MyDESMOND’s portable, interactive, web-based platform supports people with type 2 diabetes to manage their health. The programme has helped over 53,000 users since its launch in 2018.
Our data shows that 52.6% of MyDESMOND users who were classified as overweight or obese when they started using MyDESMOND lost >5% of their body weight after 6-months or more use6
Whilst 66% of all users reported they were more active and 79% reported changes to their diet as result of using MyDESMOND4
Let’s Prevent Diabetes
Let’s Prevent Diabetes is a group education programme that aims to support people identified as at higher risk for developing type 2 diabetes to prevent or delay the condition.. A digital version is also available on the MyDESMOND platform.
The lifestyle changes supported by this programme have helped many of the attendees to lose weight.
36-months after attending our Let's Prevent Diabetes group, attendees still showed greater improvements in weight, waist and BMI compared to people who did not attend7
LENA
Here at LDC one of our recent innovations is the Low ENergy Approach (LENA) digital self-directed programme; designed to support people to reduce their chances of developing type 2 diabetes or other health risks. LENA is also for people with type 2 diabetes to support remission or medication reduction. This innovative programme is hosted on the MyDESMOND digital health platform and is in partnership with LighterLife.
LENA is designed to support people to safely reduce weight by 10-15% over 12-months across three-phases with an initial total diet replacement leading to gradual reintroduction of ordinary foods and maintenance thereafter, helping people to create new dietary habits.
A pilot of LENA in primary care demonstrated significant and clinically meaningful sustained weight loss and HbA1c reduction for 12 months8
Want to know more about our programmes?
If you are someone with, or at risk of, type 2 diabetes who is also looking for weight care support, one of our programmes could be for you. Follow this link to find your nearest DESMOND Centre: https://www.desmond.nhs.uk/find-your-nearest-centre
If you work in healthcare and would like to make any of our programmes available to your patients or discuss this further, please email desmondnationalprogramme@uhl-tr.nhs.uk
What’s next?
As a leading health research unit, LDC strives to set the bar in long-term condition research, education, and real-world implementation. With a wealth of world-renowned clinicians and researchers at the helm, LDC is proud to be running a range of ground-breaking clinical trials investigating the latest weight loss medications, as well as designing and testing innovative services and technology to support people with obesity and overweight. Click on the links below to find out more:
Learn first-hand from our Healthcare Professional training team, EDEN, by registering for their new FREE eLearning “Type 2 Diabetes & Obesity Management” – register your interest by emailing them on eden@uhl-tr.nhs.uk
ENDS
1 https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/obesity/
2 Obesity Profile: short statistical commentary May 2024 - GOV.UK
4 MyDESMOND 23-24 Annual Report https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5e219f184be93e7c47a7cc13/t/6644d20c6ef7b155e67be5e0/1715786253603/Desmond_Highlights_Report23-24.pdf
5 Davies et al, 2008 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5e219f184be93e7c47a7cc13/t/60f03deb98ba4d74611adc4a/1626357228478/Davies+et+al+2008+unabridged.pdf
6Barker et al, 2023 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5e219f184be93e7c47a7cc13/t/6462378585b23e722159b880/1684158344074/P211_Northern.pdf
8 Redman et al, 2022
Redman E, Arsenyadis F, Fullerton D, Yates T, Sinfield L. (2022). Pilot health outcomes of an online self-management programme for people with type 2 diabetes following a Low ENergy Approach (LENA) in primary care. Diabetes & Primary Care. 24:A Poster_LENA22_v1.pdf