Obesity in Context; What Is the Need for Assessment and Management of Obesity and Related Conditions

Abstract

It has been stated repeatedly that obesity is one of the most common disorders leading to severe medical complications, but also to social stigmatization. There is total agreement that in these days nobody wants to be fat and still the prevalence is increasing everywhere. Obesity is a multifaceted disease with both a genetic component and an environment association. This means that no single approach will suffice to combat the epidemic. So far numerous drugs have been tested and markedly but with modest long-term effects, leading to a situation where bariatric surgery is the only treatment option with reasonable, although not curing long-term results. However surgery remains a costly procedure and will remain limited to only a few severe obese individuals. In the end of the day prevention remains the tool everybody is hoping for, although so far the results are not impressive.

it is absolutely essential that a new generation of enthusiastic health care personnel can look at obesity prevention and treatment as a professional challenge