Slimming clubs are

support group In a support group, members provide each other with various types of help, usually nonprofessional and nonmaterial, for a particular shared, usually burdensome, characteristic. Members with the same issues can come together for sharing coping str ...

s to encourage

weight loss Weight loss, in the context of medicine, health, or physical fitness, refers to a reduction of the total body mass, by a mean loss of fluid, body fat (adipose tissue), or lean mass (namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon, and other conn ...

through healthy

diet Diet may refer to: Food * Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group * Dieting, the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake ** Diet food, foods that aid in creating a diet for weight loss ...

and fitness. Known as lifestyle weight management programmes, slimming clubs have been recommended by the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

in the UK since 2007. Public slimming clubs are typically commercial ventures and are distinct from non-profit clinical groups, which are usually short-term in nature, and

twelve-step Twelve-step programs are international mutual aid programs supporting recovery from substance addictions, behavioral addictions and compulsions. Developed in the 1930s, the first twelve-step program, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), aided its member ...

groups such as

Overeaters Anonymous Overeaters Anonymous (OA) is a twelve-step program founded in 1960 for people with problems related to food including, but not limited to, compulsive overeaters, those with binge eating disorder, bulimics and anorexics. Anyone with a problematic ...

, which address food addictions. Some firms cover the membership fees for their employees, if health is an issue or employees are required to fit in small spaces. Weight Watchers, one of the most popular slimming clubs, was founded in the United States in 1961, when housewife

Jean Nidetch Jean Evelyn Nidetch (née Slutsky, October 12, 1923 – April 29, 2015) was an American business entrepreneur who was the founder of the Weight Watchers organization. Early life Jean Nidetch was born on October 12, 1923 in the New York City boro ...

began a support group at her home in

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

. In the UK,

Slimming World Slimming World is a weight loss organisation based in Derbyshire in England that caters for men and women of all ages. It was founded in Derbyshire in 1969 by Margaret Miles-Bramwell, who remains its chairman. Its focus is predominantly weight ...

was founded in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

in 1969.

Rosemary Conley Rosemary Jean Neil Conley CBE, DL (''née'' Weston, 19 December 1946)''The International Who's Who of Women 2002'', Europa, , p. 113 is an English businesswoman, author and broadcaster on exercise and health. Conley authored a low-fat diet and ...

founded another British slimming club, which is now online only. In the UK, women are much more likely to join clubs though there is a higher rate of obesity among men; the notion that weight loss is a feminist issue has led to a demand for all-male clubs. In British popular culture, slimming clubs featured in the television sketch comedy ''

Little Britain Little Britain may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Little Britain'' (sketch show), a British radio and then TV show ** ''Little Britain USA'', an American spin-off * "Little Britain", a song by Dreadzone from the 1995 album '' Second Light'' ...

'' as well as the television series ''

Fat Friends ''Fat Friends'' (also known as ''Kay Mellor’s Fat Friends'') is a British drama that aired on ITV from 12 October 2000 to 24 March 2005, consisting of 25 episodes over four series. Set in Leeds, the series explores the lives of several slimmi ...

'', which was turned into a musical.

References

Obesity Weight loss Support groups {{org-stub

See also

References