Impact of a Culturally Sensitive Health Self-Empowerment Workshop Series on Health Behaviors/Lifestyles, Body Mass Index, and Blood Pressure of Culturally Diverse Overweight/Obese Adults

Objective. To examine the impact of the health self-empowerment theory-based, culturally sensitive Health Self-Empowerment (HSE) Workshop Series to Modify and Prevent Obesity on levels of health promoting (health-smart) behaviors, motivators of and barriers to these behaviors, health promoting lifestyle variables, and health status indicators (body mass index [BMI] and blood pressure) among a culturally diverse sample of overweight/obese adults from mostly low-income households. Design. A total of 153 overweight/obese adults participated in an immediate treatment (IT) group (n =100) or a waitlist control (WC) group (n = 53). Results. Post-intervention, the IT group compared with the WC group reported (a) significantly higher engagement in physical activity and healthy eating; (b) significantly less intake of calories. total fat, trans fat; saturated fat, sugar ; and added sugar; (c) significantly higher motivators for engaging in 2 of 4 specific health-smart behaviors; (d) significantly lower barriers to engaging in 3 of 4 specific health-smart behaviors; and (e) significantly lower BMI and systolic blood pressure. Conclusion. The HSE Workshop Series may be an effective intervention for treating and preventing obesity among diverse low-income adults-individuals who often perceive/experience limited power over their health. Health care providers, particularly physicians, have important health empowerment roles in this intervention.