Lifestyle Internet-Based Intervention On Hypertensive Patients With Overweight Or Obesity

Hypertension and obesity or overweight related, even other associated comorbidities, involve a worrying public health problem. The evidence shows that healthy eating and regular physical exercise, monitored by different means (internet, face to face, exercise diaries), play an important prevention role to maintain health while ageing. In this way, Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have been demonstrated as a useful tool to promote health, working on barriers at the same time, such as low motivation and difficulties to maintain regular exercise or healthy eating habits. ICTs also allows to reach a wider audience at a lower cost, due to their good cost-benefit relationship and the possibility of increasing the efficiency of interventions. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the effects of a 3 months duration self-applied online program, composed of 9 modules focused on promoting healthy lifestyle habits (healthy eating and increased physical activity), on obese or overweight adults with hypertension. Participants will be recruited from a hypertension unit of a public hospital. These patients will be randomized allocated into two interventional groups: experimental group will receive audiovisual instructions from their hypertension specialist doctor, and the control group from a doctor outside the patient. Assessment will include: body composition (BMI), blood pressure, levels of physical activity, functional capacity, fall risk, and quality of life.

Inclusion criteria

• Hypertension
• Overweight or obesity (25 ≤ BMI ≤ 35 kg/m2)
• Aged between 18-75 years

Exclusion criteria

• Not having access to the Internet or lack of information about it.
• Treatment with more than 3 antihypertensive drugs.
• Meet the criteria of the DSM-IV-TR of a Food Disorder.
• Presenting some type of severe psychiatric disorder.
• Disability that prevents or hinders physical exercise.
• Receiving some treatment for weight loss.