Study included the largest-ever qualitative evaluation of the intragastric balloon patient experience

The findings were presented at the 8^th Canadian Obesity Summit in Whistler, Canada

NATICK, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Allurion, a company dedicated to ending obesity, has unveiled the findings of landmark behavioral science research that could pave the way for the expansion of text- and AI-based coaching.

The results of the study – conducted in the UK and the Netherlands by Dr. Paul Sacher, Allurion’s VP of Behavioral Science, and Dr. Emily Fulton, Allurion’s Director of Psychology – were presented at the 8^th Canadian Obesity Summit in Whistler, Canada.

The study evaluated a health coach-led, digital behavior change program delivered entirely by text-based messaging. It was designed to drive patient behavior change, improve wellbeing, and sustain weight loss.

The digital behavior change coaching intervention, offered alongside the Allurion Program, was integrated into Allurion’s Virtual Care Suite (VCS)*, providing a seamless patient experience. Coaches supported patients by delivering a proprietary, evidence-based behavior change program that was developed using an internationally recognized behavioral science framework. The coaching included advice on goal setting and action planning and support to manage the emotional challenges associated with weight loss. It also offered personalized weight, activity, and sleep tracking feedback.

The study, presented by Dr. Sacher, explored how patients responded to the text-based digital health coaching. Data demonstrated high patient acceptability, with 77% of patients agreeing that the coaching helped them reach their weight-loss goals and 80% of patients putting Allurion’s proprietary weight-loss actions into practice. Patients also reported improved eating (85%) and physical activity habits (83%), while 85% felt in control of their weight-loss journey. At 6 months, study participants had significantly improved psychological and mental wellbeing, critical for longer-term success.

The findings from this research have already been incorporated into the VCS. With the launch of My Daily Actions, patients and healthcare providers now have access to elements of the behavior change program from this landmark study.

The study also included the largest-ever qualitative evaluation of patients with an intragastric balloon, providing a deeper understanding of the experiences of this patient group. Allurion’s Behavioral Science Team conducted dozens of in-depth interviews with Allurion Program patients from across the UK and the Netherlands. “We gained invaluable insights into the patient experience, including expectations around treatment goals, mindset, attitudes, beliefs, support preferences, and barriers to change,” said Dr. Fulton. “Listening and responding to our patients’ needs is crucial for achieving our mission to end obesity.”

Patients reported that the Allurion Program, combined with the digital coaching program, helped them lose weight not only due to the reduced hunger and increased satiety resulting from the balloon, but also due to a “shifted mindset”. They reported more control over their eating, increased confidence, and a perceived ability to change their behavior.

“These promising research findings underpin current efforts at Allurion to harness Artificial Intelligence (AI) to further enhance the Virtual Care Suite” said Dr. Sacher.

“With the significant advances in AI natural language processing, I see potential in automating health-coaching functions to unlock the next generation of behavior change programs,” said Professor Regina Barzilay, Distinguished Professor for AI and Health at MIT’s School of Engineering and member of Allurion’s Scientific Advisory Board.

About Allurion

Allurion is dedicated to ending obesity. The Allurion Program is a weight-loss platform that combines the Allurion Gastric Balloon, the world’s first and only swallowable, procedure-less gastric balloon for weight loss, the Allurion Virtual Care Suite, including the Allurion Mobile App for consumers, Allurion Insights for healthcare providers featuring the Iris AI Platform, and the Allurion Connected Scale and Health Tracker devices.

* The Allurion Virtual Care Suite is also available to providers separately from the Allurion Program to help customize, monitor and manage weight-loss therapy for patients regardless of their treatment plan: gastric balloon, surgical, medical or nutritional.

For more information about Allurion and the Allurion Virtual Care Suite, please visit www.allurion.com.

Allurion is a trademark of Allurion Technologies, Inc. in the United States and countries around the world.

Contacts

Media
Cedric Damour
PR Manager
+33 7 84 21 02 20
cdamour@allurion.com

The event will be offered at NO COST to the community – and coaches can earn CEU credits from the NBHWC by joining the symposium and fill out a short questionnaire at the end of the event.

Building blocks to Happy & Healthy Humans!

This year’s theme is Building Blocks for Healthy and Happy Humans. Guided by leading experts from across the globe, they’ll unpack the science behind positive psychology, motivation, work-life balance, happiness and more as YourCoach.Health pioneers the Health Coaching Revolution, making health and wellness coaching a key component of global health.

We are excited to share just a small sampling of speakers/topics, including:

• Keynote from Dan Ariely, Duke University Professor, NYT Bestselling Author and Behavioral Science Expert
• ROI of Preventative Health with Margaret Moore and representatives from Salesforce and the Society of Human Resources
• Keynote from Saranne Rothberg, CEO of The ComedyCures Foundation & Stage IV Cancer Survivor
• The Future is Bright (of Health & Wellness Coaching) with Leigh-Ann Webster, Executive Director, NBHW
• Coaching Skills & Apprenticeship with Dominique Hodgin

YourCoach.Health announced that it will be expanding its services into corporate wellness, partnering with global organizations to deliver individualized, health coaching services to employees. YourCoach will use patent-pending technology and a dedicated health concierge to match the right coaches on its platform to employees from partner organizations.

Marina Borukhovich, Founder and CEO of YourCoach.Health, said:

Health coaches are increasingly occupying a critical role in the health care system that helps clients stay on track for their health goals where meaningful change takes place – beyond the doctor’s office. It’s been our mission to deliver the power of health coaching to the global population and this is a huge step towards achieving that goal.

Employees are assigned a concierge who, along with proprietary algorithms, helps to match enrolled individuals with a dedicated health coach based on their needs. The concierge checks in with them regularly throughout their health journey to ensure a premium experience. Coaches range in specialty, from intuitive eating experts to active aging specialists, many of whom are NBHWC-certified (National Board Health and Wellness Coaching), offering programs that are expressly tailored to each employee’s intended health outcomes.

Eugene Borukhovich, COO at YourCoach.Health, explained:

What truly sets us apart from competitors is that we’re providing companies with an individualized, holistic and effective approach to employee health, with support for every employee, from all walks of life and with all of their unique, evolving health goals. This is the next frontier in global health. If you’re a company that cares about investing in your employees, then you have to invest in their holistic health journey, not just their clinical care visits.

Health coaches will help guide employees in defining their goals, aligning on tactical strategies, tracking progress and providing support. The YourCoach platform will act as an employee’s Virtual Home for their health journey, integrating a suite of self-paced digital health solutions such as Happitech and HealthTunes as well as digital therapies that can be incorporated into coaching programs.

YourCoach.Health is also rolling out a revolutionary, gamified pricing model for practicing coaches on the platform, that incrementally decreases the cost of utilizing the platform based on how much they practice on the platform.

“We’re confident that this new pricing model will support our coaches in building their skills, increase the availability of health coaches for individual clients and employer partners on our platform and motivate coaches to succeed,” says Marina. “We’re cultivating a community of coaches who have demonstrated a dedication to their craft and are excited to provide them with even more opportunities to connect with clients through our new employer offering.”

About YourCoach.Health
YourCoach.Health is your virtual home for all things health and wellness coaching. Built for coaches, by a health coach, it’s a practice management platform and one-stop-solution for cultivating coaching and client relationships and achieving real and lasting wellness outcomes.

Our unique algorithms match dedicated, verified and practicing health & wellness coaches with employers who believe in providing their employees with the best possible care. Together, we’re working towards our mission to deliver the power of health coaching across the globe, creating Happy and Healthy Humans worldwide.

We have reached out to Marina Borukhovich, YourCoach Health CEO, and discussed the new opportunities for health coaching in this time of emergency.

M: Health Coaching, while still a nascent market globally and young in its scientific outcomes, is gaining incredible momentum. While the healthcare system is under tremendous pressure around the world, we strongly believe that as Health Coaches we can do our integral part to help our clients stay as physically, emotionally and mentally healthy, happy and in control as they possibly can be.

You have recently published the report “Health Coaching Industry Report: Aiding at the frontlines of health”, can you tell us something more?

M: We have decided to map out the health coaching industry and worked on this report to shed light into the current market qualitatively and, having had access to thousands of practicing coaches, we have also included our insights from the frontlines of the industry.
We have spoken to over 500 coaches and industry experts, we analyzed labour pools, resources shifts and certifications… at some point, we inspected the interfaces of Digital Therapeutics companies and health services and explored clinical trials past and present. The result is a wealth of knowledge that we are finally ready to share with the community.

Thank you Marina, and… let’s keep the conversation going. Download the report and share comments, thoughts and critical feedback with the YourCoach Health team.