Obesity Declared a Disease. So, What Happens Next?

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., March 18, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In 2011, the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) Board of Directors declared obesity a disease state. And in 2013, the American Medical Association (AMA) agreed, approving an AACE-sponsored resolution on the floor of its House of Delegates. While many understood this to be a pivotal moment in the battle to curtail and reduce historic obesity rates, the question then most often heard was, "What happens next?"

This is what happens next: 

The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) and the American College of Endocrinology (ACE) will convene The AACE/ACE Consensus Conference on Obesity: Building an Evidence Base for Comprehensive Action on March 23-24, 2014 in Washington, D.C.  This conference is uniquely structured to consider research, information and opinions from all major stakeholders involved in the obesity arena.  Representatives from the physician community, public health experts, government policy makers, health care companies, medical research and educational communities, related medical societies and associations, pharmaceutical companies, and others will address the following five questions:

1) What is obesity?
2) What options are available for obesity management?
3) What is the optimal use of therapeutic modalities?
4) Can the optimal framework be cost effective?
5) What are the knowledge gaps and how can they be filled?

"It's clear that what we've been doing isn't working," states AACE President Dr. Jeffrey Mechanick, FACN, FACP, FACE, ECNU. "We need to change the paradigm of current obesity management through cross-platform interactions and allow real-world idea and solutions to emerge."

ACE President Dr. Daniel Einhorn, FACP, FACE, addressed the importance of the conference's diversity of participants. "Obesity is a complex disease, influenced by innumerable factors," he says. "We must create our evidence base with as much relevant input and diverse data as possible from the many and varying entities involved in obesity prevention and treatment."

Keynote addresses by Dr. Patrice Harris, of the American Medical Association Board of Trustees, Dr. John Foreyt, Director of the Behavioral Medicine Research Center at Baylor College of Medicine, and Mr. Lawrence Soler, CEO of childhood obesity non-profit A Partnership for a Healthier America (whose honorary chair is First Lady Michelle Obama) will open the meeting on Sunday, March 23. The conference proceedings will be published in a supplement to AACE's peer-reviewed, official journal Endocrine Practice. 

*At the conclusion of this conference, a consensus statement will be drafted and presented during a press conference at the National Press Club, Tuesday, March 25, 2014, 9:00 a.m. Breakfast will be available.

Media members may register for the two-day conference, at no cost, by clicking here:  http://aes.aace.com/meetings/37.

The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE)
The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) represents more than 6,500 endocrinologists in the United States and abroad. AACE is the largest association of clinical endocrinologists in the world. The majority of AACE members are certified in endocrinology, diabetes and metabolism and concentrate on the treatment of patients with endocrine and metabolic disorders including diabetes, thyroid disorders, osteoporosis, growth hormone deficiency, cholesterol disorders, hypertension and obesity. For more information, visit the AACE website at www.aace.com, become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/theaace or follow AACE on Twitter at @TheAACE.

About the American College of Endocrinology (ACE)
The American College of Endocrinology (ACE) is the educational, charitable and scientific arm of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE). ACE is the leader in advancing the care and prevention of endocrine and metabolic disorders by: providing professional education and reliable public health information; recognizing excellence in education, research and service; promoting clinical research and defining the future of Clinical Endocrinology. For more information about the College, visit www.aace.com/college. For more information about the endocrine system, visit the ACE-sponsored patient education website at www.empoweryourhealth.org become a fan on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/empoweryourhealth or follow AACE on Twitter at @ACE_Empower.

SOURCE American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists