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October 18, 2010 – “The treatment of obesity is essential, but the main strategy to be forcefully deployed is prevention,” says Dr.D Véronique Déry, one of the speakers at 1er Symposium of the JA DeSève Research Chair in Nutrition1, held recently in Montreal.
In Canada alone, almost 9 million people are considered obese. In Quebec, 1 in 4 children or adolescents struggle with an overweight problem and 1 in 10 children who suffer from obesity.
Véronique Déry, who is Associate Director General of the Agency for the Assessment of Technologies and Methods of Intervention in Health (AETMIS), believes that strong and robust prevention strategies must be set up in all spheres of health. society, in partnership with all circles (family, school, community, political, economic, scientific, etc.).
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Dr Jean-Michel Borys
This is the approach favored by the endocrinologist, Jean-Michel Borys, when he co-founded, in France, the childhood obesity prevention program EPODE (Together Prevent Childhood Obesity) in 2004. ” The major challenges are to find a place of coordination and a link between politicians, scientists, institutional bodies, economic actors, those who work in the field, the media and the population. But, it is impossible to implement a prevention strategy for the populations, without political will, ”he maintains.
Focus on lifestyle habits rather than weight
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DD Véronique Déry
The DD Déry specifies, however, that the emphasis should not be on weight. “If weight is the goal, we’re not going to get out of it. There is a risk that we will seek more perverse effects than the expected positive effects, she warns. Rather, we must focus on adopting healthy lifestyle habits, for example better management of eating behaviors. “
The Dr Borys adds that the best combination is to combine awareness with field intervention if we want to have a real impact on improving people’s lifestyles. “It should be noted that it is during childhood and old age that people are more sensitive to prevention messages,” he recalls.
“In Quebec, we have the government action plan to promote healthy lifestyles and prevent weight-related problems 2006-2012. There is talk of a second part of this plan, because 2012 is coming soon. It is long-term and very intense work. It takes several people to get to work to meet the challenge ”, underlines the DD Véronique Déry.
But prevention should start before childhood and even birth, according to Émile Lévy, organizer of this symposium and research director of the Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition Unit of CHU Sainte-Justine. If, when pregnant, the mother consumes foods rich in omega-3s, vitamins and antioxidants, it will give her child better protection against diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease and even cancer, advance he does.
Can we treat obesity?
There are no quick fixes to treating obesity, but losing weight and managing eating behaviors can improve the health of obese people. “Obesity is a complex metabolic disease. But, a 5% to 10% decrease in body weight in adults would be associated with considerable effects in reducing the complications of risk factors for metabolic syndrome, ”says Dr.D Déry.
On the side of children and adolescents, recent studies that have been done on interventions and treatment with obese people demonstrate efficacy, but without necessarily correcting body weight. However, the DD Véronique Déry believes that we can take advantage of the child’s growth to modify his eating behaviors. “These studies show us that we can curb the problem. In fact, it is the intensity of the follow-up with the children that seems to demonstrate the success of these interventions, ”she concludes.
Our coverage of the Nutrition Symposium Excess weight: is it necessary to lose weight to be healthy? |
Carole Boulé – PasseportSanté.net
1. This first nutrition research symposium was organized by the CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center with the support of the French National Academy of Medicine.