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Losing weight and keeping it off is our new national obsession.  

Programs, supplements, medical procedures and other weight-related products are a worth an estimated $60.9 Billion in the US Market alone according to Market data Enterprises, Inc., a leading independent market research publisher of "off-the-shelf" studies about service industries since 1979, in its released its biennial 412-page study: The U.S. Weight Loss & Diet Control Market (11th edition).

One new and growing trend which is showing some success, are online based programs.  Seven researchers in several eastern states have found that delivering weight loss or weight maintenance programmes online or by computer helped overweight and obese patients lose and/or maintain weight.

The health related costs to the American economy due to obesity related illness is estimated to cost upwards of $190 Billion a year.  Extra pounds can lead to many chronic conditions such as Diabetes, Heart disease and high blood pressure.

Susan Wieland, PhD, based at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, US, was the lead author of the study. "Computer or web-based weight management programmes may be less beneficial than face-to-face interventions, but health care providers have limited opportunities to provide this care, so lower impact treatment approaches need to be considered," said Wieland.

"These large-scale systematic reviews are helpful to determine - using available peer-reviewed studies - what works and what doesn't work, so health care providers can make evidence-based recommendations," said Karina W. Davidson, PhD, director, Center for Behavioral Cardiovascular Health, Columbia University Medical Center, and an author of the study. "Since more patients are participating in online weight loss or management programs, these results reveal that computer-based delivery can be effective."

Finally, something new has come along to replace our Angry Birds habit.