Work, weight, and wellness: the 3W program: a worksite obesity prevention and intervention trial.

OBJECTIVE: In this paper, we describe the aims, intervention, and design of the Work, Weight, and Wellness program, a group-randomized worksite obesity prevention and intervention trial being conducted at 31 hotels with 11,559 employees on the island of Oahu in Hawaii. We report baseline prevalence of overweight and obesity, and the distribution of BMI (kilograms per meter squared) across sex, race, and job categories. We also describe factors that have influenced intervention adoption and employee participation.

RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: The study's primary outcome is change in BMI among hotel employees over a 2-year intervention period. The intervention includes environmental and group components that target diet, physical activity, and weight management.

RESULTS: Men, Pacific Islanders, and individuals employed in managerial or facility maintenance roles had higher prevalence of obesity and higher mean BMI than women and individuals from other races or in other occupational categories.

DISCUSSION: These results may be helpful in guiding choices about the adoption or design of future worksite and community interventions addressing at-risk ethnically diverse populations and are especially relevant to the hotel industry and similar industries.