Managing And Preventing Obesity

Obesity is an increasing problem on a global scale, and strategies for its prevention involve experts from many disciplines including nutritionists, physicians, policy-makers and public health professionals. This book covers the latest advances in obesity development, management and prevention with specific focus on dietary interventions. Part one covers the development of obesity and key drivers for its continuation and increase. Part two looks at the role of specific dietary components in obesity management, and part three discusses the role of behavioural factors such as eating patterns in managing and preventing obesity. Part four focuses on structured dietary interventions for obesity treatment, and part five looks at public interventions and consumer issues. Reviews how different foods and diets can affect obesity management Examines various ways of preventing and treating obesity Explores how governments and industries are preventing and treating obesity

Obesity in all age groups, including children and adolescents, is a public health challenge across all settings. Obesity is now classified as a complex multifactorial chronic disease and not just a risk factor for other noncommunicable diseases and comorbidities. Recognizing the significance of primary health care for an effective and efficient response to the obesity epidemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) has developed guidance on how to build capacity in the health system to deliver health services for prevention and management of obesity across the life course. This policy brief discusses the challenges and opportunities for preventing obesity in children and adolescents, and providing health services to treat and manage those already living with obesity. It outlines possible interventions through the primary health care approach.

The World Health Organization estimates that there are 2.1 billion individuals with obesity globally. Nearly three quarters of adults in the United States are overweight or obese. The average individual with obesity cuts ten years off their life expectancy, yet less than 40% of physicians routinely counsel individuals concerning the adverse health consequences of obesity. Obesity Prevention and Treatment: A Practical Guide equips healthcare practitioners to include effective weight management counselling in the daily practice of medicine. Written by lifestyle medicine pioneer and cardiologist, Dr. James Rippe and obesity expert Dr. John Foreyt, this book provides evidence-based discussions of obesity and its metabolic consequences. A volume in the Lifestyle Medicine Series, it provides evidence-based information about the prevention and treatment of obesity through lifestyle measures, such as regular physical activity and sound nutrition, as well as the use of new medications or bariatric surgery available to assist in weight management. Provides a framework and practical strategies to assist practitioners in safe and effective treatments of obesity. Contains information explaining the relationship between obesity and increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, osteoarthritis, and other chronic conditions. Chapters begin with bulleted key points and conclude with a list of Clinical Applications. Written for practitioners at all levels, this user-friendly, evidence-based book on obesity prevention and treatment will be valuable to practitioners in general medicine or subspecialty practices.

Treatment of pediatric obesity, to date, has largely focused on lifestyle therapy. While lifestyle therapy is essential for obesity management, it is often insufficient, particularly for youth who have severe forms of the disease. Underlying the limitations of lifestyle therapy is the recognition that obesity is a biological disorder of the energy regulatory system and accordingly, to effectively manage obesity, the underpinning pathophysiology needs to be addressed. This pathophysiology can be targeted with more advanced therapies including anti-obesity medications and metabolic and bariatric surgery, two treatment strategies supported by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Written by leading experts in the field, A Practical Guide to Managing Pediatric Obesity is comprised of thirteen chapters, each including suggested protocols and case examples. The first chapter details the complex pathophysiology of obesity and sets the stage for why advanced therapies are critical for effective obesity management. Chapter two provides guidance on best practices for communicating with patients and families about obesity. The next three chapters provide direction on how to do a comprehensive patient assessment, and employ dietary and physical activity interventions. The heart of this guidebook is the chapter on pharmacological treatments, which details the mechanisms of action, research results, and recommendations for anti-obesity medication selection and monitoring outlined in a step-by-step fashion. Pre- and post-operative care for the pediatric bariatric surgery patient is detailed in the next chapter. Assessment and management of behavioral and psychological complications, type 2 diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, polycystic ovary syndrome, hypertension, and dyslipidemia are covered in the subsequent five chapters. Syndromic and monogenic obesity are discussed in the final chapter.

This report issues a call for urgent action to combat the growing epidemic of obesity, which now affects developing and industrialized countries alike. Adopting a public health approach, the report responds to both the enormity of health problems associated with obesity and the notorious difficulty of treating this complex, multifactorial disease. With these problems in mind, the report aims to help policy-makers introduce strategies for prevention and management that have the greatest chance of success. The importance of prevention as the most sensible strategy in developing countries, where obesity coexists with undernutrition, is repeatedly emphasized. Recommended lines of action, which reflect the consensus reached by 25 leading authorities, are based on a critical review of current scientific knowledge about the causes of obesity in both individuals and populations. While all causes are considered, major attention is given to behavioural and societal changes that have increased the energy density of diets, overwhelmed sophisticated regulatory systems that control appetite and maintain energy balance, and reduced physical activity. Specific topics discussed range from the importance of fat content in the food supply as a cause of population-wide obesity, through misconceptions about obesity held by both the medical profession and the public, to strategies for dealing with the alarming prevalence of obesity in children. "... the volume is clearly written, and carries a wealth of summary information that is likely to be invaluable for anyone interested in the public health aspects of obesity and fatness, be they students, practitioner or researcher." - Journal of Biosocial Science

Nearly one out of every three adults in America is obese and tens of millions of people in the United States are dieting at any one time. This has resulted in a weight-loss industry worth billions of dollars a year and growing. What are the long-term results of weight-loss programs? How can people sort through the many programs available and select one that is right for them? Weighing the Options strives to answer these questions. Despite widespread public concern about weight, few studies have examined the long-term results of weight-loss programs. One reason that evaluating obesity management is difficult is that no other treatment depends so much on an individual's own initiative and state of mind. Now, a distinguished group of experts assembled by the Institute of Medicine addresses this compelling issue. Weighing the Options presents criteria for evaluating treatment programs for obesity and explores what these criteria mean--to health care providers, program designers, researchers, and even overweight people seeking help. In presenting its criteria the authors offer a wealth of information about weight loss: how obesity is on the rise, what types of weight-loss programs are available, how to define obesity, how well we maintain weight loss, and what approaches and practices appear to be most successful. Information about weight-loss programs--their clients, staff qualifications, services, and success rates--necessary to make wise program choices is discussed in detail. The book examines how client demographics and characteristics--including health status, knowledge of weight-loss issues, and attitude toward weight and body image--affect which programs clients choose, how successful they are likely to be with their choices, and what this means for outcome measurement. Short- and long-term safety consequences of weight loss are discussed as well as clinical assessment of individual patients. The authors document the health risks of being overweight, summarizing data indicating that even a small weight loss reduces the risk of disease and depression and increases self-esteem. At the same time, weight loss has been associated with some poor outcomes, and the book discusses the implications for program evaluation. Prevention can be even more important than treatment. In Weighing the Options, programs for population groups, efforts targeted to specific groups at high risk for obesity, and prevention of further weight gain in obese individuals get special attention. This book provides detailed guidance on how the weight-loss industry can improve its programs to help people be more successful at long-term weight loss. And it provides consumers with tips on selecting a program that will improve their chances of permanently losing excess weight.

This guideline applies to patients age 2 years and older seen in primary care. The objective of this guideline is to prevent obesity and to guide weight management of overweight and obese patients.