The Endocrine Society: Honestly Seeking Answers About Obesity

Obesity rates started soaring almost four decades ago. Multiple presidents and surgeons general have called for action to address it. You might think we would have an answer by now to the most basic question: why? But we don’t. And this week, the Endocrine Society presented the facts in a scientific statement. It calls for a deeper commitment to seeking answers about obesity and its root causes.

Presumptions Are Not Good Enough

Food is the primary agent causing the disease of obesity, said the World Obesity Federation in a recent position statement. It concedes that other factors may play a role. But it insists that the primary problem lies with the food supply. We have too much food with high energy density, laden with fat and sugar.

Unfortunately, the facts are not cooperating with this simple assessment.

The Endocrine Society does a fine job in its scientific statement, pointing out that our knowledge of how obesity develops is not nearly so definitive:

Unlike most other endocrine disorders, we have a very limited understanding of its [obesity’s] pathogenesis, despite decades of research and billions of dollars spent each year on its treatment.

The authors, led by Michael Schwartz, provide a rather complete accounting of the current state of knowledge about the roots of obesity. They focus upon the core problem: how the body regulates fat mass and how that process gets disrupted.

Many Factors Beyond Food and Physical Activity

Many environmental factors contribute to disrupting this essential process for storing energy to survive. Diet plays a role. So does physical activity. And so does a whole range of environmental factors ranging from pollution to social and economic stressors. But the fact remains that the precise causes for obesity and its rising prevalence remain unknown.

So while we take prudent steps to promote good nutrition and physical activity, we should not fool ourselves. Those efforts, by themselves have done little, or perhaps nothing, to reduce the burden of obesity. Before we can have a real impact, we need a better understanding of what causes obesity.

Kudos to the Endocrine Society for leadership in calling for needed research – for honestly seeking answers about obesity. It’s the only path for finding real solutions.

Click here for the scientific statement and here for more from MedicalXpress.

Fiddlehead Question, photograph © U.S. Fish and Wildlife Northeast Region / flickr

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June 28, 2017