Although built, social, and community food environments can have potential direct and indirect influences on body weight (through their influence on energy intake and physical activity), these environmental factors are rarely considered as predictors of variation in weight loss. This study examined the association between built, social, and community food environments and changes in weight, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, and dietary intake among adults who completed an 18-month behavioral weight loss intervention. Grocery store density was positively associated with weight loss at 18 months and participants living in less walkable neighborhoods had lower levels of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity at baseline but greater increases in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity at follow-up.

Metabolic and morphological adaptations of the intestine have been suggested to play a role in the various therapeutic benefits of Roux–en–Y Gastric Bypass (RYGB) surgery. However, the precise underlying mechanisms remain unclear. The results of our study show that RYGB surgery in rats induces weight loss and improves glucose tolerance, independent of physical properties of ingested food and biliopancreatic secretions. The regulation of intestinal glucose utilization after RYGB is not determined by food form or bile redirection. Furthermore, neither physical properties of food nor biliopancreatic secretions influence intestinal morphological adaptations in RYGB.

The Healthy Lifestyle Community Program (cohort 3) achieved a significant reduction in body weight (−1.8 kg) in a community-based sample of mostly clinically healthy participants. This weight loss was sustained at the end of the study (16 months). Adherence to a healthy plant-based diet correlated with improved risk markers.

This study explored the weight maintenance behaviors and experiences of postmenopausal women who had followed a 4-month VLED for weight loss. VLEDs in the context of this study—was reported by participants to confer advantages in weight maintenance that previous weight loss attempts had not been able to do for them. Using a VLED in the context of a clinical weight loss trial conferred confidence, motivation and skills for weight maintenance among participants. These findings show that VLEDs with clinical support could be successfully leveraged to set up behaviors that will support weight maintenance in the long term.