Sometimes people need a personal trainer to lose weight or stay fit, but health advice over the phone can also help, suggests a new study by Australian researchers, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
The researchers reviewed more than twenty studies on telephone health counseling and found that most counseling over the phone was successful. Nurses or other counselors helped people on the phone improve their exercise and eating style.
Telephone health counseling was part of a program that also included face-to-face counseling, written materials, or classes.
Those who will not or cannot join a formal group activity may find this study to be good news.
Telephone health advice was designed to help participants get over hurdles, make lifestyle changes, or find new goals in their lives.
Seventy-seven percent of the studies showed that people who received health advice by phone improved their exercise and eating habits.
The program was more effective if it included both telephone and face-to-face counseling. Also, more than six months of counseling were more effective than short-term help.
Researchers don’t know yet if patients maintain their improved exercise and eating habits after telephone health counseling stops.
There are already telephone services for cancer information, and it might be possible to include exercise and diet advice into these programs, according to the researchers.
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