Overweight or obese individuals with access to a Web-based "virtual coach" made more progress in increasing activity levels than those without coaches, according to a study published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research, Healthcare IT News reports.
The study was conducted by the Center for Connected Health and Massachusetts General Hospital (Wicklund, Healthcare IT News, 2/1).
Study Details
For the study, 70 overweight or obese individuals were given a wireless pedometer and access to a website where they could review their step counts.
Half of the group also had access to an online animated virtual coach, which provided personalized feedback and helped establish activity goals (Dolan, MobiHealthNews, 2/1).
Study Findings
The study found that:
- Individuals with access to a virtual coach sustained their step counts, while step counts for the group without virtual coaches declined by 14.3%;
- 58.1% of participants with a virtual coach said that they felt motivated to be more active; and
- 87.1% of individuals with a virtual coach said they felt guilty if they skipped an online appointment.
Joseph Kvedar -- study co-author and director of the Center for Connected Health -- said, "Virtual coaching has many applications beyond promoting activity and is increasingly recognized as an important component in the management of chronic conditions ... and in the promotion of healthy behaviors, such as adherence to medication" (Healthcare IT News, 2/1).