Healthy eating is important for all Canadians, regardless of body size, weight or health condition. Key messages from Canada’s Food Guide for Healthy Eating can be used as a foundation for nutrition and food-related education (Figure 1). Use evidence-based nutrition resources to give your patients nutr...
Pharmacological treatments are an effective and scalable approach to treating obesity. As with any chronic disease, such as type 2 diabetes (T2DM) or hypertension, pharmacotherapy is an important pillar in the management of obesity.
The focus of obesity management should be the improvement of health para...
Policy makers developing obesity policies should assess and reflect on their own attitudes and beliefs related to obesity.
Public health policy makers should avoid using stigmatizing language and images. It is well established that shaming does not change behaviours. In fact, shaming can increase the lik...
Obesity is a heterogeneous disease that can develop via slow and steady weight gain over an extended period, or from rapid bursts of weight gain.
Regular assessments of body weight are needed to catch early weight gain. Use the Edmonton Obesity Staging System to evaluate if the patient has obesity.
Clini...
Be aware of the links between mental illness and obesity, and ensure you manage the weight gain side-effects of medications used in the treatment of mental illness.
Be aware that mental illness can impact obesity management efforts, and screen patients for potential mental illnesses that need to be a...
Regular physical activity induces a wide range of health benefits in adults across all BMI categories, even in the absence of weight loss.
Aerobic and resistance exercise can favour the maintenance or improvements in cardiorespiratory fitness, mobility, strength and muscle mass during weight management...
All obesity management interventions involve behaviour on the part of the individual living with obesity (e.g., eating, activity, medication adherence), so behavioural change supports should be incorporated into all obesity management plans. This requires a shift in the patient-provider relationship from...
Bariatric surgery should be considered for patients with severe obesity (body mass index (BMI) ≥ 35 kg/m2) and obesity-related diseases, or BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2 without obesity-related diseases.
Bariatric surgery could be considered for patients with obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) with severe obesity-related d...
The management of obesity through technological means has shown benefits in recent years. These include treatment and follow-up strategies delivered through portable devices (e.g., mobile phones), web-based platforms (e.g., websites) and wearable tracking devices (e.g., pedometers).
Technology-based inte...
This chapter addresses the management of weight related to three phases of a woman’s reproductive years – preconception, during pregnancy and postpartum – for adult women with obesity. Although these reproductive periods are addressed separately, it is important to consider that these phases re...
