Healthy lifestyle study may affect more than weight loss

  • Published
  • By Merrie Schilter-Lowe
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs

Air Force members at Travis Air Force Base, California, have an opportunity to lose weight, improve their fitness level, make permanent lifestyle changes and potentially effect changes in the Air Force fitness program.

The 60th Medical Group Clinical Investigations Facility is conducting a six month healthy lifestyle study to determine which of three programs not only help members lose weight, but also reduces their risk of developing chronic diseases such as heart problems and diabetes, said Ruby Langeslay, a clinical research coordinator at the CIF. 

”While weight loss is one of the primary data outcomes we're measuring, we're trying to look beyond just that.  We also want to look at study participants' blood panels, particularly cholesterol, lipids and A1C (a measure for blood sugar), as well as abdominal circumference,” said Langeslay.

Harvard Medical School published a study in 2005 showing that abdominal, or visceral fat, has been linked to increased risk for cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes. 

Although visceral fat makes up only 10 percent of body fat, it has been linked with higher total cholesterol, higher levels of low-density lipoprotein, or bad cholesterol, and lower levels of high-density lipoprotein, or good cholesterol.  In women, visceral fat also has been associated with breast cancer and gallbladder issues. 

CIF researchers began recruiting volunteers for the study last year and hope to have at least 131 participants before summer. 

Volunteers will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: Group Lifestyle Balance, Better Body Better Life and the Fitness Improvement Program, which is online. 

Although the Group Lifestyle Balance study has been evaluated in civilian populations, it has not been studied with active-duty members, said Col. Nicole Armitage, chief of the En Route Care Research Division at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.  Also, no studies have been conducted with active-duty members since the Fitness Improvement Program went online, she said. 

“We want to find out which of these programs is the most effective, or if any are effective, and make that information available to the Air Force,” Armitage said in a telephone interview.

Armitage, who has a background in women’s health and fitness and is now a research scientist, was assigned to the 60th MDG until last year. She is conducting the study with Mary Nelson, 60th Aeromedical and Diagnostic Squadron, Health Promotions flight commander at David Grant USAF Medical Center at Travis AFB. 

Weight gain among military members is rising just as it is in other parts of society, said Nelson, a registered nurse with a doctorate in research. 

“While this is consistent with the general U.S. population, it is particularly concerning for active-duty personnel who must meet standards to optimally perform their mission,” said Nelson.   

Nelson cited recent data showing 62 percent of Air Force members have a body mass index of more than 25, meaning they are overweight.  Air Mobility Command has a rate of 65 percent and Travis has a rate of 60 percent.

“While some interventions have been found to help these Airmen with weight loss, it is unknown how these interventions could prevent disease or improve overall functional status and health,” said Nelson.

To participate in the study, volunteers must not be scheduled for reassignment for the next six to eight months.  Also, they should have a BMI of 25 or more and an abdominal circumference of 31.5 inches or more for women and 35 inches or more for men.

The GLB program is designed to help people lose at least 7 percent of body weight and increase physical activity to 150 minutes per week, or 30 minutes five days per week, said Langeslay.

“Participants also complete surveys about their mental, physical and emotional well-being throughout the course of the study and offer us feedback on the programs,” she said.

The GLB group will meet an hour a week for 12 weeks. The program focuses on four areas considered to be key in overall health and quality of life: activity, nutrition, education and emotional balance. 

BBBL is a five-week program broken into modules that people can take in any order or as their schedules allow.  Each two-hour class focuses on some aspect of nutrition, physical activity and behavior. The nutritional medicine outpatient clinic at DGMC offers classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays and anyone can enroll in the program.   

The 90-minute Fitness Improvement Program provides the flexibility of a customizable online program that focuses not only on fitness and nutrition, but also dietary supplement safety.

Although evidence shows that the GLB program has worked for other groups, it may not be as easy to maintain by military members who are “very mobile and transient,” said Armitage. 

“The GLB program is designed for the long-term to help people make lifelong habits to maintain weight control and reduce risk of disease,” she said. 

According to Nelson, previous research conducted at Travis show programs that concentrate on long term health behavior change verses “a quick fix,” are the most effective. However, it is difficult to fund these types of programs on a regular basis, she said.

For more information about the healthy lifestyle study, call Langeslay at 707-423-7704.