Fat men offered up to £400 to lose weight and received daily texts urging them to ‘avoid the kebab shop’ in NHS ‘Game of Stones’ trial

The NHS is paying obese men up to £400 to lose weight, while sending text reminders to shed the pounds.

The trial – called Game of Stones – involves men being given daily tips, including ‘walk a different route home to avoid the kebab shop’ and ‘don’t treat your body like a skip’.

Researchers said the program could now be rolled out across the NHS, with the weight loss achieved far exceeding that of the weight-loss courses.

The study was funded by the government and recruited 585 men from Bristol, Glasgow and Belfast through GP practices.

Men who lost 10 percent of their body weight in a year and maintained it received a cash reward of £400

They were challenged to lose 10 percent of their body weight within a year and maintain it, while receiving a cash reward of £400.

Normally the men lost 4.8 per cent of their body weight and received £128 each, while 27 men succeeded and received the full £400.

The messages were written ‘by men and for men’, which proved more popular than lessons in which men said they didn’t like being told what to do.

They received £50 if they lost five percent of their body weight within three months, and a further £150 if they lost ten percent within six months.

A final £200 is given if they maintain this weight for a further six months, with men being weighed four times a year.

The trial is still ongoing and the approach will now also be tested in women, according to findings presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Venice.

Experts say paying people to lose weight is likely to be cost-effective for the NHS in the long term, as it reduces treatment costs for obesity-related conditions such as diabetes and heart disease.

The plan is expected to be rolled out for women as well

Study author Professor Pat Hoddinott, from the University of Stirling in Scotland, said the program “is now ready to scale up and we are confident this is possible.”

She added: ‘The weight lost was greater than many of the behavioral weight management services currently offered in the UK. They are generally very intense and we found that they are not attractive to men.

‘Losing weight can make people feel better, reduce the risk of many health problems such as diabetes, and help healthcare systems in their goal of keeping men healthy. However, we know that men often don’t like going to traditional weight loss groups.

‘The research found that offering cash incentives was a popular and effective way to help men lose weight.

“This initiative would be a low-cost solution that the health care system could offer to men, requiring only four short weight-loss appointments, with the money only paid out at the end to those who lose more than 5 percent of their starting weight.”

According to researchers, the program was an ‘attractive option for general practitioners’ and better than the current recommendation for patients to attend twelve weight-loss sessions.

She said: ‘The number of people taking part in weight-loss classes is falling sharply – it’s good at first, but people are dropping out. As a GP I saw that all the time, so that’s why I wanted to design something that was easier for the NHS. Texts alone were not enough, the financial incentives were that little bit of extra motivator.’

Professor Haddinott said she hopes the program will “pay for itself” in the long term as patients will need less treatment.

Research shows that the NHS spends on average £979 to £1,375 a year on caring for an obese patient, compared to £638 for someone of a healthy weight, due to lower rates of chronic diseases such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes and joint pain. .

Jane DeVille-Almond, chair of the British Obesity Society, said cash rewards would likely be cheaper for the NHS than the cost of paying staff for more intensive weight loss clinics.

She said: ‘This is exciting news and we absolutely need an easy and cost-effective way to help society lose weight.

“Men are a particularly difficult group to include in our healthcare system, so text messages and financial incentives are a great step forward.”