Rena Wing
· Professor of Psychiatry and Human BehaviorBrown University · Microbiology and Immunology
Active 1978–2026
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About
Rena R. Wing is a Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at Brown University, with a focus on behavioral treatment of obesity and its application to type II diabetes. She is renowned for her research on the health benefits of modest weight loss, having developed and implemented the lifestyle intervention used in the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP), a large-scale randomized controlled trial demonstrating that modest weight loss significantly reduces the risk of developing diabetes. Wing's work has shown that weight loss of approximately 14 pounds can reduce diabetes risk by 58%, providing compelling evidence of the health benefits of weight management. She is also the principal investigator at The Miriam Hospital for the Study of Health Outcomes of Weight Loss and chairs the ongoing Look AHEAD study, which examines the long-term health impacts of weight loss in individuals with type 2 diabetes. Her research extends to improving behavioral approaches to obesity, including strategies involving exercise goals, dietary structuring, involving spouses, financial incentives, and leveraging internet-based interventions. Wing has investigated key periods for weight gain prevention, such as childhood, pregnancy, and menopause, and has conducted clinical trials targeting these stages. She is a founder of the National Weight Control Registry, which tracks individuals who have successfully maintained significant weight loss, and her work includes studies on weight loss maintenance,…
Research topics
- Medicine
- Internal medicine
- Endocrinology
- Physical therapy
- Pediatrics
Selected publications
American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine · 2020 · 137 citations
Participants with OSA and type 2 diabetes mellitus receiving ILI for weight loss had reduced OSA severity at 10 years. No difference in OSA severity was present between ILI and DSE groups at 10 years. Improvement in OSA severity over the 10-year period with ILI was related to change in body weight, baseline AHI, and intervention independent of weight change.
Structured vs Self-Guided Multidomain Lifestyle Interventions for Global Cognitive Function
JAMA · 2025-07-28 · 132 citations
articleOpen accessImportance: Identifying new interventions to slow and prevent cognitive decline associated with dementia is critical. Nonpharmacological interventions targeting modifiable risk factors are promising, relatively low-cost, accessible, and safe approaches. Objective: To compare the effects of two 2-year lifestyle interventions on cognitive trajectory in older adults at risk of cognitive decline and dementia. Design, Setting, and Participants: Single-blind, multicenter randomized clinical trial enro…
Diabetes Care · 2021 · 98 citations
OBJECTIVE: To determine whether metformin or lifestyle modification can lower rates of all-cause and cause-specific mortality in the Diabetes Prevention Program and Diabetes Prevention Program Outcomes Study. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: From 1996 to 1999, 3,234 adults at high risk for type 2 diabetes were randomized to an intensive lifestyle intervention, masked metformin, or placebo. Placebo and lifestyle interventions stopped in 2001, and a modified lifestyle program was offered to everyone,…
Diabetes Care · 2020 · 72 citations
OBJECTIVE: Across the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) follow-up, cumulative diabetes incidence remained lower in the lifestyle compared with the placebo and metformin randomized groups and could not be explained by weight. Collection of self-reported physical activity (PA) (yearly) with cross-sectional objective PA (in follow-up) allowed for examination of PA and its long-term impact on diabetes prevention. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: = 1,793). Mixed models determined PA differences across tr…
Diabetes Care · 2022 · 29 citations
OBJECTIVE: To determine glycemic and nonglycemic risk factors that contribute to the presence of diabetic retinopathy (DR) before and after the onset of type 2 diabetes (T2D). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: During the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) and DPP Outcome Study (DPPOS), we performed fundus photography over time in adults at high risk for developing T2D, including after they developed diabetes. Fundus photographs were graded using the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) g…
Recent grants
NIH · $930k · 2012
Training in Behavioral and Preventative Medicine
NIH · $5.0M · 2006–2027
NIH · $4.4M · 2015
Frequent coauthors
- 333 shared
Suzanne Phelan
California Polytechnic State University
- 324 shared
J. Graham Thomas
- 304 shared
Dale S. Bond
Hartford Hospital
- 253 shared
James O. Hill
University of Alabama at Birmingham
- 236 shared
Elissa Jelalian
Providence College
- 231 shared
Jeanne M. McCaffery
- 229 shared
Hollie A. Raynor
Knoxville College
- 186 shared
Thomas A. Wadden
Labs
Not provided
Education
Ph.D., Psychiatry
Brown University
Awards & honors
- TOPS Award for Outstanding Achievement, North Atlantic Assoc…
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Dise…
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