Weight Loss Evidence

Evidence map

Self monitoring: what the evidence base looks like

11 publications, 6 of them trials and 2 syntheses. This page describes the shape of that literature rather than summarising its conclusions.

Updated 4 min read 11 citations

What the evidence on self monitoring is made of Of 11 publications on this topic, the breakdown by study type: 2 meta-analysis, 6 randomised trial, 2 review, 1 other. 2621meta-analysis (2)randomised trial (6)review (2)other (1)
11 publications, by study type. Volume is not strength — the same count can be a settled question or a pile of commentary, and which one it is depends almost entirely on this breakdown. Harvested from PubMed and Crossref; publication type as recorded by the source.

What this literature is made of

There is a real trial literature here, but comparatively little synthesis. Individual trials can disagree, and without meta-analysis it is easy to find one that supports almost any position.

The distinction that matters most is between synthesis and primary research. A meta-analysis pools trials and is the closest thing to a settled answer a field produces. A narrative review is one group's reading of the same material and can be selective without being dishonest. Counting them together, which most citation counts do, obscures exactly the thing you want to know.

When the self monitoring literature was published Publication years for the 11 papers on this topic, grouped into bands from before 2015 through to 2023 onwards. 2020-20225 papers2023 onwards4 papersBefore 20152 papers
Still active. The most recent paper here is from 2024, so this is a field where an answer written today may not hold for long. Publication years as recorded by PubMed and Crossref.

How this page is built

Everything above is computed from the citations this site harvested from PubMed and Crossref, not written by hand. When the weekly harvest finds a new paper on this topic, these counts change and the characterisation changes with them. That is the point: a hand-written claim about how strong an evidence base is starts decaying the day it is written.

Publication type is taken as the source records it. That is imperfect — journals label inconsistently, and a paper indexed as a "review" may be a systematic one — so treat the bands as approximate. They are accurate enough to distinguish a trial literature from a commentary literature, which is the distinction that matters.

The strongest work on this topic

Ordered by study design first, then recency. The full set is listed in the references below.

  1. Diagnosis and Management of Prediabetes: A Review — Echouffo-Tcheugui JB, Perreault L, Ji L et al., 2023, meta-analysis
  2. Self-monitoring in weight loss: a systematic review of the literature — Burke LE, Wang J, Sevick MA, 2011, systematic review
  3. An Adaptive Behavioral Intervention for Weight Loss Management: A Randomized Clinical Trial — Spring B, Pfammatter AF, Scanlan L et al., 2024, randomised controlled trial
  4. Efficacy and safety of co-administered once-weekly cagrilintide 2·4 mg with once-weekly semaglutide 2·4 mg in type 2 diabetes: a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, active-controlled, phase 2 trial01163-7) — Frias JP, Deenadayalan S, Erichsen L et al., 2023, randomised controlled trial
  5. The Effect of a mHealth App (KENPO-app) for Specific Health Guidance on Weight Changes in Adults With Obesity and Hypertension: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial — Sakane N, Suganuma A, Domichi M et al., 2023, randomised controlled trial
  6. Isocaloric-restricted Mediterranean Diet and Chinese Diets High or Low in Plants in Adults With Prediabetes — Luo Y, Wang J, Sun L et al., 2022, randomised controlled trial
  7. Dietary carbohydrate restriction augments weight loss-induced improvements in glycaemic control and liver fat in individuals with type 2 diabetes: a randomised controlled trial — Thomsen MN, Skytte MJ, Samkani A et al., 2022, randomised controlled trial
  8. Personalized Postprandial Glucose Response-Targeting Diet Versus Mediterranean Diet for Glycemic Control in Prediabetes — Ben-Yacov O, Godneva A, Rein M et al., 2021, randomised controlled trial
  9. Nutrition Concepts for the Treatment of Obesity in Adults — Wiechert M, Holzapfel C, 2021, review
  10. Long-term weight loss maintenance — Wing RR, Phelan S, 2005, review
How much research is there on self monitoring?
11 publications are indexed here, of which 6 are trials and 2 are syntheses.
Does more research mean a stronger conclusion?
No. Composition matters more than volume — five randomised trials support a claim far better than fifty commentaries, and citation counts do not distinguish between them.
How current is this?
The most recent paper indexed here is from 2024. The set is refreshed weekly from PubMed and Crossref.
Why does this page not tell me the answer?
Because summarising a literature into a conclusion requires reading it, and doing that automatically is how confident nonsense gets published. This page tells you how much weight a conclusion could bear; the articles on this site do the interpreting.

References

Every citation below links to the original peer-reviewed record on PubMed or via DOI. Nothing here is a substitute for medical advice.

  1. Diagnosis and Management of Prediabetes: A Review Echouffo-Tcheugui JB, Perreault L, Ji L, et al. · JAMA · 2023 · Meta-analysis DOIPubMed 37039787
  2. Self-monitoring in weight loss: a systematic review of the literature Burke LE, Wang J, Sevick MA · Journal of the American Dietetic Association · 2011 · Systematic review DOIPubMed 21185970Full text
  3. An Adaptive Behavioral Intervention for Weight Loss Management: A Randomized Clinical Trial Spring B, Pfammatter AF, Scanlan L, et al. · JAMA · 2024 · Randomised controlled trial DOIPubMed 38744428Full text
  4. Efficacy and safety of co-administered once-weekly cagrilintide 2·4 mg with once-weekly semaglutide 2·4 mg in type 2 diabetes: a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, active-controlled, phase 2 trial Frias JP, Deenadayalan S, Erichsen L, et al. · Lancet (London, England) · 2023 · Randomised controlled trial DOIPubMed 37364590
  5. The Effect of a mHealth App (KENPO-app) for Specific Health Guidance on Weight Changes in Adults With Obesity and Hypertension: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial Sakane N, Suganuma A, Domichi M, et al. · JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2023 · Randomised controlled trial DOIPubMed 37043287Full text
  6. Dietary carbohydrate restriction augments weight loss-induced improvements in glycaemic control and liver fat in individuals with type 2 diabetes: a randomised controlled trial Thomsen MN, Skytte MJ, Samkani A, et al. · Diabetologia · 2022 · Randomised controlled trial DOIPubMed 34993571Full text
  7. Isocaloric-restricted Mediterranean Diet and Chinese Diets High or Low in Plants in Adults With Prediabetes Luo Y, Wang J, Sun L, et al. · The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism · 2022 · Randomised controlled trial DOIPubMed 35579171Full text
  8. Personalized Postprandial Glucose Response-Targeting Diet Versus Mediterranean Diet for Glycemic Control in Prediabetes Ben-Yacov O, Godneva A, Rein M, et al. · Diabetes care · 2021 · Randomised controlled trial DOIPubMed 34301736
  9. Nutrition Concepts for the Treatment of Obesity in Adults Wiechert M, Holzapfel C · Nutrients · 2021 · Review DOIPubMed 35011045Full text
  10. Long-term weight loss maintenance Wing RR, Phelan S · The American journal of clinical nutrition · 2005 · Review DOIPubMed 16002825
  11. Taking back control Oliver N · Diabetic medicine : a journal of the British Diabetic Association · 2022 · Journal article DOIPubMed 35165918