Is family-based behavioral weight control appropriate for severe pediatricobesity?

Objective: Although the efficacy of family-based behavioral treatment for m oderate pediatric obesity has been well established, few studies have focus ed on the treatment of severe obesity. We sought to evaluate the acceptabil ity and feasibility of a family-based intervention for severely obese child ren. Method: Twenty-four families with children aged 8-12 years who were gr eater than or equal to 160% of their ideal body weight participated in a 10 -12-session behavioral intervention. Participants were weighed and their he ights measured at the start of each treatment session and during a follow-u p visit 4-13 (M = 7.8) months posttreatment. Children also completed measur es of depressive symptoms and anxiety at pretreatment, posttreatment, and f ollow-up, and eating attitudes were assessed at pretreatment and followup. Results: One third of the families did not complete treatment. However, chi ldren who completed the program lost a significant amount of weight and rep orted significant improvements in depression, anxiety, and eating attitudes that were maintained over time. Discussion: A short-term, family-based beh avioral intervention was successful in moderating weight gain for most chil dren and had positive effects on children's mood and eating disorder sympto ms. Future randomized, controlled trials of longer interventions are necess ary to determine the success of this approach. (C) 2001 by John Wiley & Son s, Inc.