Obesity an incurable disease?

Consequences for practical obesity therapy from Canada.

05/17/2013

People who suffer from obesity usually require a lifelong treatment. The prospect of complete healing would almost never exist. Prof. Dr. Arya Sharma from the University of Alberta, Edmonton in Canada. He defines obesity as a chronic progressive disease that, if left untreated, will worsen the state of health. However, there were also very overweight people who had no restrictions, risk factors or comorbidities and were completely healthy. At about 15 percent, Sharma estimates this non-primary treatment group as an exceptional group.

Sharma, one of the world's most renowned obesity researchers and therapists, shared his experience and knowledge with dieticians, nutritionists, physiotherapists and sports therapists as well as psychologists and psychotherapists at the 55th Federal Congress of the Association of Dieticians (VDD) and the 14th Annual Meeting of the Federal Association of Nutritionists (BDEM) in Wolfsburg. He appealed to about 1,500 professionals not to put weight as the primary target at the heart of the therapy. As long as one continues to look only at the pounds, patients and payers would always be disappointed in the end.

The logical conclusion of Sharma: There is no universal ideal or standard weight for obese people! Rather, it is about it, with each person concerned his personal „Best Weight“ to find out in the course of a long-term and interdisciplinary therapy. That could be a very high weight in the individual case. The primary goal of any obesity intervention for Sharma is to improve the quality of life and general condition of patients. Consequently, he considers a weight loss and stopping the progression as a true treatment success.

The German Network Adiposity - D.N.A., whose initiators include the organizing professional associations of the Wolfsburg Congress, welcomes Sharma's approach. He differs from the prevailing view in Germany on obesity as self-inflicted state, which can be regained with discipline and will power again. Sharma takes pressure from those affected and emphasizes the individual requirements and possibilities of the individual.

The German Network Adiposity - D.N.A. has been working since January 2013 to improve the treatment and care of morbidly overweight people. Sharma's very successful Canadian Obesity Network is not least a role model for the German Adiposity Network - D.N.A. (Pm)