Variation in Physical Activity and Weight Loss by Demographic Characteristics among Participants in the National Diabetes Prevention Program

The National Diabetes Prevention Program lifestyle change program aims to prevent type 2 diabetes by promoting behavioral changes such as increased physical activity and improved nutrition, with a goal of losing ≥5% of body weight. We analyzed data from 2012-2019 from participants who reported weekly physical activity (PA) minutes and weight and who participated either in-person (N=127,092) or online (self-paced, asynchronous interactions with coach) (N=196,670). Among those retained through the core phase (16 sessions), average weekly PA minutes were higher among men than women (228 vs. 182 in-person and 277 vs. 204 online), higher for older than younger participants (210 vs. 187 vs. 164 in-person and 248 vs. 233 vs. 191 online for ≥65, 45-64, and 18-44 years), higher for those with lower BMI (213 vs. 184 in-person and 244 vs. 215 online for 23-29 BMI and ≥30 BMI) and varied by race/ethnicity (187 in-person and 183 online for non-Hispanic Black participants, 183 in-person and 207 online for Hispanic participants, and 198 in-person and 227 online for non-Hispanic White participants). Percent weight loss by session 16 was greater for men than women (6.0 vs. 5.2 in-person and 5.5 vs. 4.2 online), greater for older than younger participants (5.8 vs. 5.3 vs. 4.6 in-person and 5.5 vs. 4.7 vs. 4.0 online for ≥65, 45-64, and 18-44 years), greater for those with higher BMI (5.2 vs. 5.4 in-person and 4.4 vs. 4.6 online for 23-29 BMI and ≥30 BMI) and varied by race/ethnicity (3.8 in-person and 3.7 online for non-Hispanic Black participants, 4.4 in-person and 4.0 online for Hispanic participants, and 5.9 in-person and 4.8 online for non-Hispanic White participants). We found that participants with different demographic characteristics experience program successes differently despite similar time in the program, suggesting a need to understand the reasons for these differences and customize program delivery strategies to address them. Disclosure M.Cannon: None. B.Ng: None. E.Ely: None.