The government has today launched a healthy living campaign to stem the rising obesity rates in England warning that, left alone, obese and overweight people would cost the taxpayer £50bn by 2050.

The "eat well, move more, live longer" message of the "Change4Life" campaign isn’t a surprise to Slimming World members who do just that! With Food Optimising and Body Magic, they lead healthier, fitter lives… and pass those positive changes to their families too.

For forty years, Slimming World has been helping people all over the UK to make small changes to the way they shop, cook and eat, and to take realistic steps to become more active in their day to day lives. Hand in hand, with the powerfully motivating group support Slimming World is renowned for, hundreds of thousands of slimmers have lost millions of pounds and reaped the many health benefits associated with weight loss.  You can read their inspiring stories of success here…

Whether you want to lose weight to feel more energetic, to love the way you look, to lead a healthier life or to avoid health problems in the future, join a warm and friendly Slimming World group and start making easy, realistic change towards a healthy new you - for life.

Obesity is one of the UK's most urgent health problems, and, in England, it's growing at 1.25 per cent each year. This means that by the end of 2009, another 675,000 people will be obese - that's 1,850 people every day becoming a statistic, and putting their long-term health at risk.  

Researchers at Slimming World have identified that if slimmers are successful in the first six weeks of a weight loss campaign, they're far more likely to carry on and lose weight in the long term. The motivation of a great start in those crucial first six weeks is strongly linked to would-be slimmers reaching their ultimate target weight and the longer they keep going to a slimming group the more likely they are to stay at their goal weight long term.  

Now we're is marking its 40th anniversary by unveiling a brand new eating plan which promises to make losing weight easier than ever before. Created by our expert team of nutritionists, the new plan, called 'Extra Easy', has been piloted throughout 2008 with highly successful results.  

Our new plan cuts right through all the conflicting advice around at this time of year to give a really easy, flexible start to every slimmer's journey. It's easy to follow with loads more choices, no measuring and no counting. And because it's based on basic everyday filling foods it fits easily with the family whatever their lifestyle.

In trials members had great results on the scales - as well as saving money on their weekly shopping bills!  In trials members who tried the new plan were enthusiastic about its flexibility and adaptability. They report that because it is so easy to follow, with no weighing or measuring, plenty of choice and enough freedom to still enjoy a glass of wine or chocolate it is easier than ever to stick to. 

Sue Kennedy, a member who has been trying the new eating plan since November says: "I had been struggling to get to my target weight and Extra Easy has made it feel less of a struggle. I love it! I lost 4lbs in two weeks - I'm very happy, it's going to be a slimmer New Year." 

The Extra Easy Plan is based around four main principles:  

• Choice and satisfaction: choosing healthier foods and eating to satisfy your appetite
• Sustainability: choosing normal everyday foods that fit with the whole family and can be cooked and prepared easily
• Affordability: choosing foods that fit with every budget and taste
• Healthy eating: based on a healthy balanced diet that includes all essential food groups and encourages slimmers to fill up on at least five fruit and vegetables a day

• Group support: through the support of a group, a Consultant or online, members learn to identify their own personal, emotional and mental blocks that prevent successful weight management. Ongoing support and encouragement boosts their confidence and self-esteem.
• Becoming more active:  building activity into their everyday life by taking small steps to make activity an intrinsic part of the day.
  

A truly easy weight loss plan is the holy grail for slimmers. Our new plan isn't magic - it does require people to change their eating habits and make healthier, low fat food choices. But we believe it genuinely is the most liberating and 'user friendly' weight loss plan currently available to slimmers in the UK, and we're 100% confident that anyone who tries it will lose weight.

To find out more about Extra Easy, visit our Extra Easy page here, or try it for FREE with our new 7-day eating plan!

Hundreds of thousands of members of Slimming World groups across the UK are learning to make the most of the credit crunch by sharing tips and ideas about how to slim down their food bills as well as their waistlines. They’re cutting out takeaways and ready meals, spending less on crisps and biscuits and filling up on fruit and vegetables.

In a campaign launched after many Consultants reported that members were struggling with household bills, we set out to crack the credit crunch.

Driven by our 2,500 Consultants based at the heart of communities the campaign has gathered pace. Consultants are leading the way by surveying supermarket best food buys and sharing low-cost budget recipes for the whole family.

Caryl Richards, Slimming World Managing Director, says: “We got the message loud and clear from many of our 300,000 members that they were feeling the pinch. The last thing they wanted to do was give up their weight loss plans, so Consultants made it their mission to create a forum for sharing bargains and cooking on a budget.”

Members around the UK have been pooling ideas not just about how to boost their weight losses, but how to eat healthily and heartily without spending a fortune. Prices of some of the most popular fruit and vegetables have risen by up to 30 per cent at leading supermarket chains in the past year. So Consultants and members share news about the lowest supermarket prices and best value fruit and veg and Buy One Get One Free offers on healthy foods.

Results of a credit crunch survey showed that since joining Slimming World:

• 57% of members had reduced their spending on takeaways from an average £15 to £0
• 71% of members ate fewer takeaways
• 66% have fewer ready meals
• 81% spent less on biscuits, chocolates and crisps
• 95% eat more fruit and vegetables.

“We’re hearing that members are gathering to share news not just about reducing numbers on the scales, but about how to drop the size of their bills at the tills,” says Caryl.

“Keeping the cost of food down is all part of the challenge of healthy eating on a budget. Some members report having cut their shopping bill by half.

“Members of Slimming World groups have always shared food and recipe ideas to help keep them motivated and inspired for their weight loss. But now they’re sharing credit-crunch and money-saving tips too. Every week Consultants and members come to group with ideas about bargains and how to reduce their grocery bills. And in-between groups they’re texting, emailing and calling each other with news about the latest savings,” she adds.

In weekly groups, Consultants and members share tips and ideas about:

• how to prepare healthy fast foods like burgers and pizzas at home without having to spend on takeaways
• where to go for the cheapest prices and price comparison on similar products from different supermarkets
• sharing meal ideas to feed the family for a fiver
• how to prepare filling, credit-crunching, satisfying meals  like shepherd’s pie, pasta bakes, egg and chips
• offering incentives and membership discounts encourage members to stay on track with their healthy weight loss.

 To find your local warm and friendly group - and slim while you save - visit our nearest group page. Or take a look through our 'Save £££s and lose lbs' feature here...

A ground-breaking pan-European research project to identify the key psychological and behavioural predictors of weight gain is making excellent progress thanks to the support of Slimming World.

So far more than 1400 Slimming World members have contributed to the five-year ‘Diet, Obesity and Genes’ project – otherwise known as ‘Diogenes’ – and final results are expected in 2010.

The programme involves a consortium of 34 partners across 14 countries in Europe, including world-class centres in diet and health studies, epidemiology, dietary genomics and food technology. 

Leading obesity researcher and Slimming World research specialist, Dr James Stubbs, who is co-ordinating the company’s involvement in the study, says: “The main objective of the Diogenes study is to assess the lifestyle and psycho-social aspects of food intake to develop software that will improve individual lifestyle solutions to weight management. This will ultimately make it easier to navigate to, and remain at, a healthy weight. 

“Participation in this project further strengthens Slimming World’s position at the cutting edge of weight management. The research will integrate studies of dietary, genetic, physiological and behavioural factors in weight management and aims to advance understanding into how obesity can be prevented and treated.”

For more information about Diogenes, visit their website at: www.diogenes-eu.org

Our Woman of the Year superstar, Penny Melly, who lost a fabulous 10st 7.5lbs to scoop the title, appeared on GMTV on Wednesday morning and looked amazing!  She then went to the Ritz in London for a photo call which resulted in her featuring in yesterday's The Sun, Daily Mirror, Daily Express and Daily Star! 

You can read all about her and watch a video online on the Daily Mail website, The Sun, Daily Mirror, The Scotsman, Channel 4 News, AOL, Virgin Media, Teletext, MSN, Pruhealth and Fenland Today! Penny’s also appeared on BBC Essex Breakfast radio and Essex FM. And you can watch our super slideshow - celebrating competition winners from all over the country - right here.

Saturday 8th November saw the gorgeous and the glamorous gather at the ICC in Birmingham for the highlight of our Slimming World calendar, our annual awards ceremony.  This year’s host, alongside Margaret, was the delicious John Barrowman, who wowed the crowds with his charm and his singing ability, giving an impromptu performance of his new single.  The event celebrated the amazing achievements of our title winners throughout the year and introduced the 10 national finalists for Slimming World’s Woman of the Year competition 2008.

This year we were thrilled to have Women of the Year from all 4 corners of the UK:

• Woman of the Year for England: Penny Melly from the Westcliff on Sea group, who lost a fantastic 10st 7½lb with the support of her Consultant Pat Blake

• Woman of the Year for Ireland: Sinead Carlin who is a super 5st 9lb lighter thanks to the help from the Derry group and Consultant Clare McDaid 

• Woman of the Year for Scotland: Nancy Allan from the Bo’ness group, with an amazing weight loss of 10st 13½lb, helped by Consultant Joan Paterson

• Woman of the Year for Wales: Eileen McConnell from the Colwyn Bay group, who's celebrating a fabulous 9st 7lb weight loss with Consultant Debbie Vaughan

However there can only be one overall winner and the title of Slimming World’s Woman of the Year and after a nail-biting wait, the £5000 prize went to...

Penny Melly!
You can read Penny's story right here.

Congratulations to all our Woman of the Year superstars, and we'll bring you more news about Penny's success over the next few days.

Lucy Elkins writes in today’s Daily Mail: “Avoid oily fish, cut out all dairy foods, use more supplements”: it's the kind of advice that flies in the face of conventional thinking on healthy eating. Yet, amazingly, this is what I was told to do to improve my health by so-called 'dietary experts' on the internet. 

Having typed 'dietary advice' into a popular search engine, Lucy received over 100,000 listings and writes about the concern she has – and we share – about the unqualified advice (what she describes as ‘often wrong and sometimes dangerous’) that is given on many nutrition websites.

The Daily Telegraph are today reporting that an ‘Obesity gene’ boosts appetite (see pg8).  It reports that scientists have discovered a gene linked to obesity works by increasing the appetite. A study of more than 3,000 children, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism shows that those who had the gene – called FTO – were less likely to feel ‘full’ after eating than their classmates. People with two copies of the gene are on average 7lb heavier, and those with one gene are 3lb heavier than those without the gene.

Our research specialist, Dr James Stubbs, comments: “While your genes determine your biological makeup, it’s the environment that you live in and your lifestyle habits which determine the weight you gain. Only in a very minute number of cases can a genetic reason be found as the cause for weight gain. If you were found to have the gene variation, the advice would be to change your behaviour by eating healthily and doing regular exercise.

“As always Slimming World’s message is that the key to successful and long-term weight loss and maintenance is to make healthy habits a part of your everyday lifestyle. Research has also shown that the support that you receive at a Slimming World group plays a key role in boosting your confidence to make the changes”.

Shared eating and lifestyle habits which are passed down from parents to children have a much bigger effect on weight gain than biological make-up. There are the lucky few who don’t gain weight as easily, but the good news for those of us who do gain weight is that through Food Optimising, Image Therapy and Body Magic Slimming World offers all the support and techniques we need to help us to change our behaviour and lead a healthier lifestyle – whatever our genetic makeup!  And, of course, with Free Food - healthy, filling everyday foods - even the largest appetites can be satisfied without the worry of weight gain.

James joined Slimming World after 13 years at the Rowett Research Institute where he was Principle Scientific Officer. While there he conducted large-scale human trials into weight control and obesity.  Read James’ biography here.