Weight loss and ethnicity: a cohort study of the effects induced by a very low calorie diet.

We aimed to determine whether British Asians of Indian or Pakistani descent differed in their baseline characteristics and in response to a twelve-week, very-low-calorie diet (VLCD). We then assessed whether or not a VLCD had a different effect on Asians and Caucasians, in terms of changes in weight and waist circumference. Weight loss was achieved using a nutritionally-complete VLCD with an average daily intake of 550kcal, using greater than or equal to 50g protein, greater than or equal to 50g carbohydrate, mean 15.9g fats, and greater than or equal to 100% of the recommended daily allowances (RDA) for key vitamins and minerals. The VLCD was used alongside a unique behaviour-change programme, called LighterLife (LL). Data were analysed for Asians who were recruited onto LL in 2009/2010, and for whom twelve-week weight change information was available. Waist circumference data were available for a subset of Asians, including age, body mass index and gender. These were matched to a Caucasian population and compared by independent t-test. No differences were observed between the Indian and Pakistani group for baseline measurements or weight change at twelve weeks. Caucasians had a greater percent excess body weight loss (%EBWL) than Asians at twelve weeks (72.4 ± 22.1 vs 48.9 ± 18.0, p < 0.0001). However, Asians had a greater waist circumference reduction per kilogram of weight loss when compared to Caucasians (1.16 ± 0.7 vs 0.95 ± 0.3, p = 0.037). It appears that, despite a greater %EBWL for Caucasians, Asians had a greater waist circumference reduction per kilogram of weight loss using a VLCD approach for a twelve-week period