Weight control practices in adults: results of a multistate telephone survey

In this study, data collected in 1989 in a random-digit dialing telephone survey of 60 590 adults in 38 states and the District of Columbia were analyzed. Approximately 38% of women and 24% of men reported that they were currently trying to lose weight. Methods reported were counting calories (24% of women, 14% of men), participating in organized weight loss programs (10%, 3%), taking special supplements (10%, 7%), taking diet pills (4%, 2%), and fasting for 24 hours or longer (5%, 5%). Among both sexes, only half of those trying to lose weight reported using the recommended method of caloric restriction combined with physical activity. (Am J Public Health. 1994;84:1821-1824)
About one-half of American adults seem to use the recommended combination of reducing calories and increasing exercise in their attempts to control their weight. A telephone interview survey of 60,590 adults in Washington, DC, and 38 states in 1989 indicated that 24.3% of the men and 38.4% of the women were trying to lose weight at the time of the survey. About 52% of the men and about 48% of the women said they were increasing their activity levels and lowering their calorie consumption. About 4% of the women and about 2% of the men were taking diet pills to try to lose weight. Ten percent of the women, but only 3.5% of the men belonged to an organized weight loss program.