Thank you to our STOP Obesity Alliance members and partners for your dedicated efforts to improve obesity prevention and treatment this past year. Together, we have accomplished important work in many areas that align with our STOP goals:
- Lead innovation
- Strengthen systems of care for patients with overweight or obesity
- Convene diverse stakeholders to address issues related to the care of patients with overweight or obesity
- Define and catalyze an innovative research agenda for the care of patients with overweight and obesity
- Identify, implement, and evaluate strategies to increase physical activity for patients with obesity
- Reduce stigma to improve health outcomes
I am proud of the work of the collective STOP Obesity Alliance and of our individual and organizational members in furthering these goals. Yet we know there remains much work to be done. Data from the 2015-2016 National Health & Nutrition Examination Survey indicated that Obesity increased further in U.S. adults: 40% of adults (≥ 20 years old) now have obesity.
Highlighted below are many of the topics addressed in our 2017 newsletters – our observations on trends, gaps, innovations and opportunity. We expect these to remain important areas of inquiry and attention in the coming year and would appreciate your feedback. Please take a moment to review, reflect, and respond([email protected]) with your thoughts about consequential issues in obesity prevention and management that you would like to see featured in 2018.
January: Obesity in the Military
Failure to meet body composition standards increased by 70% from 1995-2008 and is now the top medical disqualifier among military applicants.
An estimated 30% of military youth, 45% of military spouses, and 72% of veterans are either overweight or have obesity.
Interventions that change the food and physical activity environments on the base and in the communities where service members reside would begin to address this problem.
March/November: Employee Wellness Initiatives That Work
Indirect costs of absenteeism and presenteeism associated with overweight and obesity among American workers may amount to more than $900 billion—$6,000 per employee—in annual lost productivity.
Cleveland Clinic and Safeway have demonstrated that well-designed employee wellness programs can significantly reduce obesity prevalence and reduce medical costs.
April: ACEs and Severe Obesity
Non-minority who experienced sexual and physical abuse during childhood were 2.5 (females) to 3.6 (males) times more likely to develop severe obesity in adulthood, compared to individuals with no history of abuse.
Screening and interventions to address childhood trauma can improve psychosocial functioning and weight-loss outcomes.
May: National Physical Activity & Sports Month
Adults with sedentary lifestyles cited not having a fellow participant (43%) and poor health (25%) as the top barriers to being active.
Exercise prescription written by health professionals encourages patients to become more physically active.
June: Obesity Care Competencies
More than 80% of providers indicated that no one in their practice was trained to deal with weight-related issues (unpublished STOP data).
New obesity care competencies outline essential knowledge and skills appropriate for the many types of health professionals engaged in obesity prevention and management.
July: Excessive Weight Gain in Early Adulthood
Between 18 and 55 years of age, 1 in 4 women and 1 in 8 men gained 44 pounds or more.
Adults who gained 44+ pounds during early to middle adulthood were 7 times more likely to develop type-II diabetes and 40% more likely to die prematurely.
Family-based behavioral treatments for obesity—where parent BMI change is an independent predictor of child BMI change—may be cost-effective strategies to reduce premature death & disease.
August/September: Improving Nutrition & Obesity Counseling
Only 1 in 4 physicians feel prepared to effectively counsel patients on healthy eating and physical activity.
Only one-quarter of medical schools offer a dedicated nutrition course.
Patients with obesity were 3 times more likely to attempt weight loss if they received weight-related advice from a healthcare professional.