Explore the online world of cyberdieting

Lose weight with moral support on the web

By Anne Bokma

Rebecca Friesen has been overweight most of her life. In Grade 10, she weighed 230 pounds. By the time she got married and had three kids, she tipped the scale at 300 pounds.

Last summer, after viewing holiday snapshots of herself in shorts and a T-shirt, she decided something had to be done. Friesen signed up for WeightWatchers online, a dieting support program that tracks the food she eats, charts her progress, offers more than 1,000 recipes and hooks her up with thousands of other women who are trying to lose weight.

Track progress on the web

Cyberdieting has exploded in the past 10 years, attracting millions of overweight North Americans. Studies show that online dieting web sites can help dieters stay on track through the use of online tools such as personalized meal plans, daily food journals, around-the-clock access to diet experts and peer-support chat rooms.

Researchers at the University of Vermont published a study in a 2004 issue of the journal Obesity that showed the Internet works as well as offline programs in maintaining long-term weight loss.

Find privacy on online diet sites

For those who dread the thought of speaking face to face with a dietitian about their weight problem, or even worse, getting on a scale in a roomful of other dieters, the privacy afforded by online programs is a real bonus, says Susan Whiting, a professor of nutrition at the University of Saskatchewan.

While she knew about Weight Watchers’ support groups, Friesen chose the online version because she couldn’t face the prospect of being weighed in front of others. “I was always afraid someone would announce my weight,” she says. The privacy also makes her comfortable chatting about weight issues online.

Get expert advice and helpful tips

A bonus of online diet sites is having an expert assess your diet in detail and provide you with honest feedback on how you are doing — a process that can be very involved when you meet face to face with your physician or dietitian, says Whiting. She also points out that many sites offer daily motivational tips, which can keep you feeling more pumped about your diet than a weekly meeting would.

Keep an online food journal

Diet sites encourage you to keep track of every morsel you eat. “Studies have shown that keeping a food diary is a very effective way to lose weight, especially if you are sending it to somebody who is going to comment on it,” says Whiting.

After every meal, Friesen enters what she has eaten in her online food journal and tries to stay within the daily points allotted to her on the program. So far her diet is working wonders: in one year, she’s lost 78½ pounds and plans to lose another 50.

Understand the fees that are involved

Some people may be concerned about the monthly fees online diet sites charge, but Whiting says there’s nothing wrong with paying for good advice and support. “Those fees are likely going to help pay for good staff,” she says. “The advantage of paying is that you’ve invested in it so that increases the chances that you will stick with the diet.”

Find a program that works for you

Friesen says that Weight Watchers was a name she felt she could trust. She was leery of sites that promised rapid weight loss or suggested cutting out an entire food group. “I’ve never felt bad on this diet,” she says. “It’s all about learning to eat properly.”

Despite the success people like Friesen have had with online dieting, Whiting does urge caution when looking for a program. Here are some tips to keep in mind.

Don’t buy prepackaged food. Some online programs try to get you to buy prepackaged food. “It’s expensive and once the food stops coming, you may not be able to eat the food in your own home,” says Whiting. The same goes for sites that push pills and supplements.

Find qualified advice. “Anyone can call herself a nutritionist,” says Whiting. Look in the Contact Us, About Us or Experts sections to ensure registered dietitians are on staff.

Be wary of sites that promise you can lose 10 pounds in 10 days. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Check the privacy policy. Make sure the site does not sell mailing lists or other information to third-party vendors.

Look into the following sites to find one that will help you meet your weight-loss goals.

• eDiets.com bills itself as the most popular online diet forum with more than 1.5 million members. It features personalized meal plans, daily food journals, on-staff dietitians and support groups.
• webMD Weight Loss Clinic packs a lot of credibility as it comes from one of the best medical sites on the web. It features an in-depth food intake evaluation and prepares a nutritional analysis report and a customized eating plan. An interactive food journal provides daily and weekly feedback.
• dietwatch was ranked the best customized diet site on the Net by Forbes magazine. It has a nutrition score that rates your eating habits with smiley faces and up-and-down arrows and makes customized suggestions about how to improve. Dietitians respond to e-mail within a day.
• Diet Reviews and Information offers a review of more than 300 diets and programs, many of which are online.