Abstracts from the 7th UK Congress on Obesity 2022

Living with excess weight may negatively impact upon a person's quality of life alongside increasing their risks for developing chronic illnesses.In Northern Ireland (NI), evidence-based weight management services (WMS) are limited.Understanding motivations and experiences of adults living with excess weight regarding engagement with WMS, is an important step in designing appropriate public health interventions.A review of the literature and personal and public involvement and engagement (PPIE) shaped the development of an online, anonymous, cross-sectional questionnaire which ran between January-April 2022.It was advertised for NI-based adults aged 18 years plus, with experience of living with excess weight.It assessed previous experience with WMS and motivations for future WMS alongside socio-demographic characteristics.Opportunistic recruitment was used.Responses were analysed using descriptive statistics and significance testing as appropriate.A total of n = 228 responses were eligible for analysis.All participants had personal experience of living with overweight or obesity, with 81% viewing themselves as currently living with excess weight.One fifth were male (20.6%) and 99.6% reported white Caucasian ethnicity.Most participants fell between 35-54 years old (43.4%) and 67.9% reported a university degree or higher.Almost all (94.7%) had tried to reduce their weight independently; 76% had not sought help from WMS. Regarding weight-loss attempts, 12.4% reported maintaining weight loss (for more than one year) with the majority regaining some, all or more weight (73%).The majority (92.4%) of participants who would like to reduce their weight have not sought support from WMS (p < 0.01).The top-rated motivation for accessing a WMS was improved health.Whilst the majority of participants reported previous attempts to independently manage weight, engagement with WMS was limited in NI.Most respondents reported regaining weight lost and therefore future WMS focusing on health-gain (versus weightloss) and broader motivations may be more appropriate.