New US study reveals key reasons why millions of people with obesity are not receiving adequate care

WASHINGTON, Oct. 31, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Few of the more than 90 million Americans¹ with obesity are seeking and receiving long-term obesity care, according to new data from the Awareness, Care and Treatment In Obesity Management (ACTION) Study published today in Obesity,² the official journal of The Obesity Society. Among the notable findings is that of the 71% of people with obesity who say they have spoken with a health care professional (HCP) about their weight in the past 5 years, only 55% report having been given a diagnosis of obesity and less than a quarter (24%) were offered follow-up care for this disease.² ACTION data will be presented through poster and symposia forums at ObesityWeek, currently in progress in Washington D.C.

Designed to identify key barriers to care from the perspective of people with obesity, HCPs and employers, the results of the ACTION Study can guide collaborative action to improve care, education and support for those who live with obesity.

"We in the health care community must ask why this epidemic is not being diagnosed and treated with the same urgency and focus as any other serious diseases?" said Dr. Lee Kaplan, director of the Obesity, Metabolism and Nutrition Institute at Massachusetts General Hospital, ACTION steering committee member and lead author of the study. "We need to fundamentally rethink obesity so that the public and health care community understand more about the biology, chronicity and overall health impact of this disease. Real progress can be achieved if we can overcome the entrenched mindsets that generate the barriers revealed by this study." 

Conducted with more than 3,500 participants spanning all three target groups, the ACTION Study reveals five key barriers to comprehensive care:

• people with obesity engage in several serious weight loss attempts but only a few are able to maintain the achieved weight loss;
• despite recognition of obesity as a disease, most people with obesity consider weight loss to be completely their own responsibility, which may prevent them from seeking help from their HCP;
• nearly half of people with obesity have not been given a formal diagnosis of obesity;
• the patient-provider dialogue about weight management is insufficient with limited follow-up; and
• employer wellness programs are not meeting the needs of people with obesity.

"The barriers identified in the study highlight opportunities to bridge gaps in understanding to facilitate true collaboration among all stakeholders," said study co-author and ACTION steering committee member Dr. Angela Golden, owner of a specialty obesity practice in Arizona. "Only by bridging these gaps will obesity care become integral to standard practice, whether in a health care or employment setting, and will people with obesity have the care and support needed to effectively treat their obesity."

About ACTION 
The "Awareness, Care and Treatment In Obesity Management" (ACTION) Study is the first U.S. nationwide study to investigate barriers to obesity management from the perspective of people with obesity, health care professionals and employers. In addition, the study aims to generate insights to guide collaborative action to improve obesity care, education and support. Sponsored by Novo Nordisk, the ACTION Study was led by a multi-disciplinary steering committee comprised of representatives from The Obesity Society, the Obesity Action Coalition, and the Integrated Benefits Institute, as well as obesity experts in the fields of primary care, endocrinology, psychology and nursing. The study involved more than 3,000 people with obesity, 600 health care professionals, and 150 employers in the United States. To learn more about the study, please visit www.ACTIONStudy.com.

About obesity 
Obesity is a chronic disease requiring long-term management.³ Complex and multifactorial in nature, obesity is influenced by genetic, physiological, environmental and psychological factors and is associated with many serious health consequences.^4,5 

The global increase in the prevalence of obesity is a public health issue that has severe cost implications to health care systems.^6,7 In the United States, approximately 38% of adults, or 92 million adults, live with obesity.¹ Despite the high prevalence of obesity, many people with obesity lack support in their efforts to lose weight and the disease remains substantially underdiagnosed and underreported.⁸

About Novo Nordisk 
Novo Nordisk is a global healthcare company with more than 90 years of innovation and leadership in diabetes care. This heritage has given us experience and capabilities that also enable us to help people with other serious chronic conditions: hemophilia, growth disorders and obesity. With U.S. headquarters in Plainsboro, N.J., Novo Nordisk Inc. has nearly 5,000 employees in the United States. For more information, visit novonordisk.us or follow us on Twitter: @novonordiskus.

¹ Obesity and overweight. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/obesity-overweight. htm. Updated June 13, 2016. Accessed August 21, 2017. 
² Kaplan LM, Golden A, Jinnett K, et al. Perceptions of Barriers to Effective Obesity Care: Results from the National ACTION Study. Obesity. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/oby.22054/full. 2017;0.1002/oby.22054 
³ American Medical Association House of Delegates. Recognition of obesity as a disease. Resolution 420 (A 13). http://www.npr.org/documents/2013/jun/ama-resolution-obesity.pdf. Received May 15, 2013. Accessed August 21, 2017.  
⁴ Wright SM, Aronne LJ. Causes of obesity. Abdom Imaging. 2012;37(5):730-732. 
⁵ Guh DP, Zhang W, Bansback N, et al. The incidence of co-morbidities related to obesity and overweight: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Public Health. 2009;9(88):1-20. 
⁶ World Health Organization. Fact sheet no. 311: obesity and overweight. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs311/en/. Updated June 2016. Accessed August 21, 2017. 
⁷ Cawley J, Meyerhoefer C. The medical care costs of obesity: an instrumental variables approach. J Health Economics. 2012;31(1):219-230. 
⁸ Crawford AG, Cote C, Couto J, et al. Prevalence of Obesity, Type II Diabetes Mellitus, Hyperlipidemia, and Hypertension in the United States: Findings from the GE Centricity Electronic Medical Record Database. Popul Health Manag. 2010;13:151–161.

Novo Nordisk is registered trademark of Novo Nordisk A/S. 
© 2017 Novo Nordisk   All rights reserved.   USA17SAM02847   October 2017

SOURCE Novo Nordisk