THE EFFECTIVENESS OF AN INCENTIVE-BASED WEIGHT REDUCING TECHNIQUE AMONG UNIVERSITY PENDIDIKAN SULTAN IDRIS (UPSI) STUDENTS, MALAYSIA
Abstract
Increasing overweight and obesity prevalence are growing health concerns globally and in Malaysia due to various contributing factors such as life style, dietary intake (high sugar & high fat diets), less physical activities etc. In order to explore an effective weight reducing strategy for overweight and obese students; this study aimed to examine the significance of offering a monetary reward to students for weight reduction at the University Pendidkan Sultan Idris (UPSI), Malaysia. An experimental study was conducted among Forty Eight (48) University students selected based on criteria of Body Mass Index (BMI) above 25. The convenient sampling was used for 3-months weight reduction experimental program comprised of "repeated measure design" which involved multiple measurement of each subject and their exposure to all study conditions. Participants were divided into two groups: 12-pairs and 24-individuals to further compare results. Three introductory lectures were given to students by a nutritionist to educate both groups on ' nutritional aspects of everyday eating'. Participants were requested to attend follow-ups every two weeks to record their weight. ANOVA repeated measure with fixed effects were used to analyze data. Results indicated that "offering monetary reward" brought significant change in both groups students' weight reduction (F (3.09, 142.24) = 18.16, p <0.05.), and hasn't found significant comparative difference between two groups' weight reduction (F (1, 46) =2.74, p =0.10). The study reveals that offering monetary incentive or reinforcement to University-level students is an effective strategy in weight reduction either incentive is given to the groups or individuals. A similar long-term research project needs to be implemented and/or further research is required with large sample size to examine sustainability of weight loosing behavior reinforced by monetary incentives.
References
Aung Myo Oo, Al-abed Ali A. Al-abed et al. Prevalence of Obesity and Its Associate Risk Factors among Post-Basic Renal Care Nursing Students. Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine 2019, Vol. 19 (1): 177-183, pp 1.
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight
National Health & Morbidity Survey 2015, Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factors and other Health Problems, Volume II, Institute of Public Health, Ministry of Health Malaysia.
Dr. Chan Wah (August 2018). Retrieved from https://umsc.my/?umsc_news=malaysia-has-become-fattest-country-in-asia-in 30-years
Gopalakrishnan S, Ganeshkumar P, Prakash MVS, Christopher, Amalraj V. Prevalence of overweight/obesity among the medical students, Malaysia. Med J Malaysia. 2012;67: 442–4. [Abstract] [Google Scholar]
O’Connor EA, Evans CV, Burda BU, Walsh ES, Eder M, Lozano P. (2017)Screening for obesity and intervention for weight management in children and adolescents: evidence report and systematic review for the US Preventive Services Task Force. JAMA; 317(23):2427–44. Cross Refexternal icon PubMedexternal icon
Nelson MC, Kocos R, Lytle LA, Perry CL. (2009), Understanding the perceived determinants of weight-related behaviors in late adolescence: a qualitative analysis among college youth. J Nutr Educ Behav. 41:287–92.
Gordon-Larsen P, the NS, Adair LS. (2010), Longitudinal trends in obesity in the United States from adolescence to the third decade of life. Obesity. 18:1801–4.
Hu EY, Ramachandran S, Bhattacharya K, Nunna S. (2018), Obesity Among High School Students in the United States: Risk Factors and Their Population Attributable Fraction. Prev Chronic Dis; 15:180122. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd15.180122
Utusan Online. Kempen Fit Malaysia Bantu atasi masalah obesiti - Khairy. (2019); Retrieved from http://ww1.utusan.com.my/utusan/Dalam_Negeri/20140908/dn_14/Kempen-FitMalaysia-bantu-atasi-masalah-obesiti---Khairy
Harian Metro. Kempen makanan bersih, (2017) August 253831; Retrieved from https://www.hmetro.com.my/agro/2017/08/253831/kempen-makanan-bersih
Utusan Borneo. Semua pihak perlu jaya matlamat Kempen Mencegah Obesiti, (2017); Retrieved from https://www.utusanborneo.com.my/2017/03/16/semua-pihak-perlu-jaya-matlamat-kempen-mencegah-obesiti
Lim K. G. Review of adult obesity research in Malaysia, (2016); 71(1), 1-19 Medical Journal of Malaysia.
Reynu R, & Kosai N R, (2012), Innovations in obesity and metabolic surgery: boon or bane. Medicine and Health; 12(1), 1-3.
Subramaniam K, Low W Y, Lau P C, Chin K F, Chinna K, Kosai N R, Rajan R, (2018), Eating behavior predicts weight loss six months after bariatric surgery: a longitudinal study. Nutrients; 10, 1616.
Ruffault A, Czernichow S, Hagger MS, Ferrand M, Erichot N, Carette C, Boujut E, Flahault C, (2016), The effects of mindfulness training on weight-loss and health-related behaviours in adults with overweight and obesity: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Epub 2016 Sep 19. Review. PMID: 27658995.
Stewart F, Avenell A, (2016), Behavioural Interventions for Severe Obesity Before and/or After Bariatric Surgery: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. 2016 Jun; 26(6):1203-14. doi: 10.1007/s11695-015-1873-6. Review. PMID: 26342482.
Shaw K, O'Rourke P, Del Mar C, Kenardy J, (2014), Psychological interventions for overweight or obesity. Update in: Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2014; 5:CD003818.PMID:15846683
Mohammad Alimoradi; Morteza Abdolahi; Leila Aryan; Roya Vazirijavid; Marjan Ajami, (2016), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Treatment of Adult Obesity Volume 3, Issue 1, Pages 371-379
L. E. Burke, J. Wang, and M. A. Sevick, (2011), “Self-monitoring in weight loss: a systematic review of the literature,” Journal of the American Dietetic Association, vol. 111, no. 1, pp. 92–102, 2011.View at: Publisher Site | Google Scholar
Melissa M. Crane, Deborah F. Tate, Eric A. Finkelstein and Laura A. Linnan, (2012), Motivation for Participating in a Weight Loss Program and Financial Incentives: An Analysis from a Randomized Trial, Vol. 2012, Article ID 920589, journal of obesity
R. L. Kane, P. E. Johnson, R. J. Town, and M. Butler, (2004), “A structured review of the effect of economic incentives on consumers' preventive behavior,” American Journal of Preventive Medicine, vol. 27, no. 4, pp. 327–352, 2004.
Ries NM, (2012), financial incentive for weight loss and healthy behavior, Healthcare Policy; 7(3):23-8. PMID: 23372578
Staddon JE, Cerutti DT, (2003), Operant conditioning. Annu Rev Psychol. 2003; 54:115-44. doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.54.101601.145124.
Kendra Cherry, (2019), what is Operant Conditioning and How Does It Work Retrieved from: https://www.verywellmind.com/operant-conditioning-a2-2794863
WHO https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight
Finkelstein et al. (2014), Lifetime Direct Medical Costs of Childhood Obesity. Asian Scientist Magazine at: https://www.asianscientist.com/2014/04/health/obesity-could-cost-us19000-per-child-2014/
Eric Andrew Finkelstein, Wan Chen Kang Graham and Rahul Malhotra, Pediatrics May (2014), Asian Scientist, 133 (5) 854-862; DOI: ttps://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2014-0063
Wickham, H. (2016) ggplot2: Elegant graphics for data analysis. 2 eds. N.Y: Springer
Finkelstein et al. (2017), Applying Economic Incentives to Increase Effectiveness of an Outpatient Weight Loss Program (TRIO) – A Randomized Controlled Trial. Social Science & Medicine, Volume 185 pages 63-70. Read more from Asian Scientist Magazine at: https://www.asianscientist.com/2017/06/health/cash-pay-lose-weight/
Wai-Theng Kong, Siew-Siang Chua, Syireen Alwi, (2002), Weight Loss Practices Among Malaysian Adults, First Published July 1, 2002 Research Article Find in PubMed https://doi.org/10.1177/101053950201400208
Sena Abdullah Abdul Jabbar Al-Qalah et al (2014) Dietary Weight Loss Practice among Government Working Women Who Successfully Lose Weight in Malaysia Pakistan Journal of Nutrition 13 (8): 486-491, 2014
Esra Tajik et al. (2016) Unhealthy diet practice and symptoms of stress and depression among adolescents in Pasir Gudang, Malaysia. Obesity Research & Clinical Practice Volume 10, Issue 2, March–April 2016, Pages 114-123
