Table 1.
Studies evaluating the effect of the holiday period on body weight in adults.
| Author, year, and country | Number of participants, age, sex, BMI, and prevalence of overweight/obesity | Date of measurementsa | Sample, masking of participants, retentionb | Mean weight change ± SD |
p value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rees et al. 1985 United Kingdom |
22 healthy adults and 13 adults with T2DM (age, sex, BMI, and prevalence not reported) |
Measurements: December 10, 22 and 29. January 5 and 26. | Convenience sample. No. Retention 76%. |
Healthy = 0.9 ± 1.0 kg T2DM = 0.7 ± 0.6 kg |
p < 0.001 |
|
| |||||
| Reid and Hackett 1999 United Kingdom |
26 adults 17–59 years Men = 42% Women = 58% BMI = 20.5 ± 3.28 kg/m2 Low weight = 23% Normal weight = 65% Overweight = 12% |
Initial measurement: December 18 to 21. Final measurement: January 4. |
Convenience sample. No. Retention 96%. |
0.93 ± 1.2 kg | p < 0.05 |
|
| |||||
| Yanovski et al. 2000 United States |
195 adults 19–82 years Men = 49% Women = 51% BMI 25.9 ± 4.8 kg/m2 Normal weight = 52% Overweight = 27% Obese = 21% |
Initial measurement: in mid-November. Final measurement: in early January. |
Convenience sample. Yes. Retention 98%. |
0.37 ± 1.5 kg | p < 0.001 |
|
| |||||
| Wagner et al. 2012 United States |
34 adults 23–61 years Men = 41% Women = 59% BMI = 25.3 ± 5.3 kg/m2 Normal weight = 65% Overweight = 35% |
Initial measurement: November 24-25. Final measurement: January 5-6. |
Convenience sample. No. Retention 92%. |
−0.1 ± 1.48 kg | p = 0.87 |
|
| |||||
| Cook et al.c 2012 United States |
443 adults 40–69 years Men = 55% Women = 45% BMI man = 28 ± 4 kg/m2 BMI woman = 27 ± 6 kg/m2 Normal weight = 30% Overweight = 42% Obese = 28% |
Initial measurement: mid-September–mid-October. Final measurement: mid-January–early March. |
Convenience sample. Yes. Secondary analysis. Retention 98%. |
Man = 0.9 ± 1.4 kg Woman = 0.6 ± 1.3 kg |
p < 0.05 |
|
| |||||
| Stevenson et al. 2013 United States |
148 adults 18–65 years Men = 32% Women = 68% BMI = 25.1 ± 0.5 kg/m2 Normal weight = 57% Overweight = 26% Obese = 17% |
Initial measurement: mid-November. Final measurement: mid-January. |
Convenience sample. Yes. Retention 70%. |
0.78 ± 0.1 kg | p < 0.001 |
aWeight of participants in all studies was measured as part of the study. bMasking: the participants did not know that the study objective was to evaluate the effect of holidays on obesity parameters. cThe winter holiday season period was not specifically measured; however, the evaluation covered the month of December; BMI: body mass index. T2DM: type 2 diabetes mellitus.