Summary of the 2000 Surgeon General's Listening Session: Toward a National Action Plan on Overweight and Obesity

Abstract

Objective: To provide insight into discussions at the Surgeon General's Listening Session, “Toward a National Action Plan on Overweight and Obesity,” and to complement The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity. Research Methods and Procedures: On December 7 and 8, 2000, representatives from federal, state, academic, and private sectors attended the Surgeon General's Listening Session and were given an opportunity to recommend what to include in a national plan to address overweight and obesity. The public was invited to comment during a corresponding public comment period. The Surgeon General's Listening Session was also broadcast on the Internet, allowing others to view the deliberations live or access the archived files. Significant discussion points from the Listening Session have been reviewed by representatives of the federal agencies and are the basis of this complementary document. Results: Examples of issues, strategies, and barriers to change are discussed within five thematic areas: schools, health care, family and community, worksite, and media. Suggested cooperative or collaborative actions for preventing and decreasing overweight and obesity are described. An annotated list of some programmatic partnerships is included. Discussion: The Surgeon General's Listening Session provided an opportunity for representatives from family and community groups, schools, the media, the health‐care environment, and worksites to become partners and to unite around the common goal of preventing and decreasing overweight and obesity. The combination of approaches from these perspectives offers a rich resource of opportunity to combat the public health epidemic of overweight and obesity.

Trends in professional advice to lose weight among obese adults, 1994 to 2000

“…20,21,[36][37][38][39][40] There is a need for reimbursement mechanisms that allow providers to give their patients sufficient weight reduction counseling and that link this counseling with reimbursement for intensive, evidence-based, behavioral interventions to lose weight. 28,34 Also, training in nutrition and exercise guidelines would give physicians a foundation for and perhaps a greater disposition toward addressing these problems with patients. Finally, given the difficulties in changing physician behavior, programs need to be developed that specifically target groups that are unlikely to be counseled regarding diet and exercise, and yet are at high risk for obesity or obesity-related chronic illnesses.…”

“…26 Patients are more likely to be counseled about health behaviors like diet and exercise if the visit is long 31 or if other risk factors are present. 27,[31][32][33] Physicians cite many factors, including lack of time during office visits, 27,28,30 inadequate training in preventive care, 27,28 no reimbursement for treatment and prevention, 28,34 and the belief that the advice would have little effect on patient behavior [27][28][29][30]35 as prominent barriers to counseling. However, studies reveal that patients counseled regarding their weight or strategies for improving diet and exercise are substantially more likely to report that they are working on these areas, 20,21,36,37 and may be more likely to lose weight.…”

Pre-pregnancy and pregnancy predictors of obesity

“…School prevention programmes should be comprehensive and ensure that the focus on obesity prevention does not increase the stigma associated with overweight or the risk of eating disorders (95).…”

Enabling the Nation's Schools to Help Prevent Heart Disease, Stroke, Cancer, COPD, Diabetes, and other Serious Health Problems

“…12 Surveys show that school administrators, parents, students, and the public at large want school health programs; 13,14 and businesses 15 and state legislatures 16 increasingly appreciate the benefits of these programs. Further, national plans to prevent obesity, 17 heart disease and stroke, 18 and cancer 19 articulate the need to help schools reduce risks as part of these plans. The Institute of Medicine has called for the U.S. to improve its school health programs, 20 as have the Surgeon General, 21 the Secretary of Education and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, 22,23 and Congress.…”