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Are you sold on the idea that SMS reminders to your iPhone or S4 (not to mention your BlackBerry) can help you better manage your weight?

If yes, you could be wrong.

Despite the considerable enthusiasm around the countless services that offer to send health tips and feedback straight to your smart phone, Jaydee Woo and colleagues from the University of British Columbia, after looking at the only six relevant studies on the use of this technology for weight management, had to conclude that the effects are rather minimal.

As they discuss, this is in line with other recent studies showing small effects in patients with diabetes, hypertension or asthma and even less evidence to support the use of SMS to deliver preventive health care, including prenatal support, smoking cessation and childhood weight control.

On the other hand, individual experience with these services may well vary.

If you’ve had success with this technology, I’d sure love to hear about it.

@DrSharma
Edmonton, AB

Jayde Woo MPT, Jennifer Chen MPT BHK, Vesta Ghanavati MPT, Rachel Lam MPT, Nathanial Mundy MPT, et al. (2013) Effectiveness of Cellular Phone-Based Interventions for Weight Loss in Overweight and Obese Adults: A Systematic Review. Orthop Muscul Syst 3: 141. doi: 10.4172/2161-0533.1000141