How is Obesity treated

The FDA is calling the nation?s obesity problem an ?epidemic? and released a report in 2004 with goals and actions focusing on a campaign entitled, ?Calories Count.? Recommended actions include:
enhancing the food label to display calorie count more prominently and to use meaningful serving sizes
initiating a consumer education campaign focusing on the "Calories Count" message
encouraging restaurants to provide nutritional information to consumers
stepping up enforcement actions concerning accuracy of food labels
revising FDA guidance for developing drugs to treat obesity
working cooperatively with other government agencies, non-profits, industry, and academia on obesity research

Obesity is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Weight loss reduces risk factors for complications associated with the excess weight, including diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. There are several treatment options for the management of overweight and obese individuals, including diet therapy, changes in physical activity, behavioral therapy, drug therapy, surgery and a combination of these.

The initial goal of weight loss therapy is to decrease body weight by about 10%. Once this goal is met, then further weight loss can be attempted. This weight loss will not occur overnight, but you can see a difference over mere weeks if you stay with your program. Once the weight is lost, maintenance of the loss needs to be implemented to ensure that the weight stays off.