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John G Love,1 John S McKenzie,2 Efsevia A Nikokavoura,3 John Broom,3 Catherine Rolland,3 Kelly L Johnston4,5 1School of Applied Social Studies, Faculty of Health & Social Care, Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, UK; 2Rowett Institute of Health & Nutrition, University of Aberdeen, St Mary’s, Kings College, Aberdeen, UK; 3Centre for Obesity Research, Faculty of Health & Social Care, Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, UK; 4LighterLife, Harlow, Essex, UK; 5Diabetes and Nutritional Sciences Division, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, Kings College London, London, UK Abstract: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is variously reported to affect between 5% and 26% of reproductive age women in the UK and accounts for up to 75% of women attending fertility clinics due to anovulation. The first-line treatment option for overweight/obese women with PCOS is diet and lifestyle interventions. However, optimal dietary guidelines are missing, with very little research having been done in this area. This paper presents the findings from a qualitative study (using semistructured interviews) of ten obese women who had PCOS and who had used LighterLife Total (LLT), a commercial weight loss program which utilizes a very low-calorie diet in conjunction with behavioral change therapy underpinned by group support. We investigated the women’s history of obesity, their experiences of other diets compared with LLT, and the on-going impact that this has had on their lives. Findings show that most women reported greater success using this weight loss program in terms of achieving and maintaining weight loss when compared with other diets. Furthermore, all the women nominated LLT as their model weight loss intervention with only a few modifications. Keywords: PCOS, obesity, weight loss, diet

Efsevia A Nikokavoura,1 Kelly L Johnston,2 John Broom,1 Wendy L Wrieden,1 Catherine Rolland1 1Centre for Obesity Research and Epidemiology, Institute for Health & Wellbeing Research (IHWR), Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, 2LighterLife UK Limited, Harlow, Essex, UK Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) affects between 2% and 26% of reproductive-age women in the UK, and accounts for up to 75% of anovulatory infertility. The major symptoms include ovarian disruption, hyperandrogenism, insulin resistance, and polycystic ovaries. Interestingly, at least half of the women with PCOS are obese, with the excess weight playing a pathogenic role in the development and progress of the syndrome. The first-line treatment option for overweight/obese women with PCOS is diet and lifestyle interventions; however, optimal dietary guidelines are missing. Although many different dietary approaches have been investigated, data on the effectiveness of very low-calorie diets on PCOS are very limited. Materials and methods: The aim of this paper was to investigate how overweight/obese women with PCOS responded to LighterLife Total, a commercial very low-calorie diet, in conjunction with group behavioral change sessions when compared to women without PCOS (non-PCOS). Results: PCOS (n=508) and non-PCOS (n=508) participants were matched for age (age ±1 unit) and body mass index (body mass index ±1 unit). A 12-week completers analysis showed that the total weight loss did not differ significantly between PCOS (n=137) and non-PCOS participants (n=137) (–18.5±6.6 kg vs –19.4±5.7 kg, P=0.190). Similarly, the percentage of weight loss achieved by both groups was not significantly different (PCOS 17.1%±5.6% vs non-PCOS 18.2%±4.4%, P=0.08). Conclusion: Overall, LighterLife Total could be an effective weight-loss strategy in overweight/obese women with PCOS. However, further investigations are need