OPINIONS OF OBESITY EXPERTS ON THE CAUSES AND TREATMENT OF OBESITY - A NEW SURVEY

A survey of opinions on the causes of and effectiveness for treatment of obesity was carried out on data provided by questionnaires from 57 physicians and scientists involved in obesity research, Responses were grouped by region (Europe, North America, and South America), gender, age (30-50 and over 50 years), and professional training (MD or PhD), Metabolic factors were considered the most important cause of obesity overall with physical inactivity only slightly behind, There were no gender differences, but the older group thought physical inactivity wa s a more important cause th an the younger group, Weight cycling overa ll was not considered very important, although it was significantly mo re important among the Ph.D. group. Low-fat diets were considered the most effective treatment, with the older group of respondents rating l ow-fat diet more highly than their younger colleagues, Exercise was vi ewed as a more important treatment among North Americans, and medicati ons as less in the treatment of obesity, All groups viewed serotonergi c and thermogenic drugs as the most effective treatments whose usefuln ess would increase during the next 10 years.