Comadres Weight Loss Pilot Program

Latinas are more likely to be obese and physically inactive than white women. Therefore, a behavioral weight loss program for Latinas will be tested in this pilot study. Thirty overweight or obese Latinas will be recruited for a 12 week weight loss program at the Weight Control \& Diabetes Research Center. Participants will be provided with nutrition and physical activity education and be taught behavioral skills to help them adopt lifestyle changes that produce weight loss. Participants will be placed on a reduced calorie diet and instructed to gradually increase their level of physical activity. To encourage participants to monitor their daily eating and exercise activities, participants will be instructed to record these activities in food and exercise diaries and submit them each week. Two treatment groups will be tested. The first group will have participants attend sessions with a female friend (comadre). The second group will have participants attend sessions without a comadre. The aims of this study are to determine whether we can succeed in recruiting Latinas with their comadres and whether we can reduce participant drop-out by having Latinas participate with their comadres in a behavioral weight loss program.