Careful where you find weight loss information and advice

This is an interesting bit of research, especially as we are including it in our blog.

We are very careful as HMHB not to tell people what to do. We pass on tools and tricks around mindset; demonstrate various exercise and ways to improve your fitness and energy levels; talk about how our body needs certain nutrition in our diets to stay healthy; and look at overall health and targets - all in a new pioneering approach with a unique interactive delivery. But notedly, we do not tell people what to do.

Even in this blog, we are putting research and studies around aspects of health and exercise, and sometimes putting our own take on it, but we do not say if it is right or wrong.

However, some blogs do want to tell you what to do. And for people wanting to lose weight, and are struggling, they may actually be doing harm. Experts have said that slimmers cannot trust weight loss advice in most blogs online!!!

A Glasgow University team studied active weight management blogs which had more than 80,000 followers (we can but dream) on at least one social media site. They found that just one in nine of the most popular gave accurate information. Wow!  Some touted opinion as fact and failed to provide any evidence for nutritional claims. And None of the blogger's meals met Public Health England calorie targets or traffic light criteria. Again, wow!!!!

They scored nine blogs against twelve credibility criteria. Writers only passed the test if they met 70% or more of this criteria.  Researchers also examined the ten latest recipes from each blog for energy content, carbohydrates, protein, fat, saturated fat, fibre, sugar and salt content.  Only ONE blog - by a registered nutritionist with a degree - passed overall with 75 per cent. The lowest score of 25 per cent was for an influencer without nutritional qualifications.

Wow - it is in credible. I know people may say that we do not have qualifications in mental health etc, but we are not giving advice. We certainly believe that anyone who is passing on advice on weight management advice to that many people, should be overseen to ensure the advice is accurate, appropriate, relevant and not harmful.