5 Things to Look for at ObesityWeek 2014
With less that a week before the start of ObesityWeek 2014 on November 2 in Boston, it’s time to start thinking about how to get the most out of this amazing week.
- Obesity Science. You can be sure of a rich supply of new basic research. Two distinct tracks are entirely devoted to obesity science — one on neuroscience and one on metabolism and physiology — run from Tuesday through Friday. New research on inflammation, adipocytes, brain function, energy balance, clinical neuroscience, nutritional biochemistry, brown fat, and more will be packed into these tracks. A number of symposia and key lectures will provide further perspective on the state of the art in the science of obesity.
- Bariatric Surgery. The brilliance of ObesityWeek is that it brings together everyone with a stake in obesity. The American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) will provide core content on the state of the art of bariatric surgery starting on Sunday. The top ten papers from ASMBS on bariatric surgery will be presented in two sessions on Tuesday. Then on Thursday are two more sessions with a deep dive into clinical and biological research on bariatric surgery.
- Obesity Medicine & Clinical Care. New research on medical, dietary, and physical therapy for obesity can be found in Track Three of the meeting, dedicated to intervention and clinical studies. In addition, ASMBS presents a review course for the Certified Bariatric Nursing exam and The Obesity Society (TOS) provides a review course for the American Board of Obesity Medicine exam.
- Public Health. In the Population Health Track, you will find abundant new information on obesity from a public health perspective: epidemiology, prevention research, disparities, and stigma. One highlight to note is a review of the prevention initiatives in Mexico, which may provide important insights for the rest of the world. Another worth noting is a keynote address by Rebecca Puhl, perhaps the world’s foremost expert on weight bias, stigma, and discrimination.
- Policy and Advocacy. The Obesity Action Coalition (OAC) will present the Your Weight Matters Boston event on Sunday at the opening of ObesityWeek. This inaugural community event will extend the reach of Obesity Week into the local region with consumer-oriented health education and empowerment. The TOS Advocacy Forum takes a careful look at translating evidence into policy on Monday. ASMBS will host two sessions on access to care. And multiple sessions through the week in the Policy Track (6) will examine some of the latest policy research and initiatives.
Click here to read more from Health Central. Click here for a media advisory on highlights of the week and here for the latest news on ObesityWeek 2014. Click here for the full schedule. And don’t forget to download the ObesityWeek 2014 app for your Android or Apple smartphone — you can find more information here.
Looking for Gators, photograph © katieb50 / flickr
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