Obesity

Obesity: Etiology, Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention is a comprehensive professional reference of weight management research and techniques. Featuring chapters from some of the world's top specialists in the field of weight control, it provides the most current and accurate information available today for treating obesity.

The textbook combines a literature review with practical applications, incorporating expert analysis and synthesis of obesity treatment and prevention. The book is an important resource that will prepare health professionals and clinicians to help patients of all ages manage this complex and pervasive disease.

Obesity: Etiology, Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention devotes an entire chapter to treating and preventing obesity in children and discusses other relevant topics:
- Nutrition therapy
- Physical activity
- Alternative therapies such as pharmacotherapy
- Promising trends in obesity treatment

In addition, graphs, tables, and chapter summaries make it easy for busy professionals to find and review key issues on the topic.

As obesity continues to increase at an alarming rate throughout the world, this reference provides practitioners with the latest insight into integrating physical activity, nutrition, psychology, and medicine to help obese patients manage their weight.

Ross Andersen, PhD, is associate director of fellowship training in the division of geriatric medicine at Johns Hopkins Medical Center. Since 1993, he has been conducting clinical trials examining the long-term effects of diet and exercise in helping people manage their weight. In addition, he has published several reports that have shaped current thinking about exercise for overweight individuals.

For 10 years Dr. Andersen operated community-based weight loss programs in health clubs, and he is the author of a book on how to implement weight loss programs in health club settings. He is a fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and a member of the North American Association for the Study of Obesity (NAASO). He earned his PhD in exercise physiology at Temple University in 1992. He was a visiting scholar at the Cooper Institute in 1996.

“This edited book is an outstanding resource for professionals interested in the causes, treatment, and prevention of obesity. Dr. Andersen assembled an expert team of scientists who provide up-to-date reviews of topics vital to those who want to understand the complex factors associated with obesity. This book offers a comprehensive study of important contributors to obesity, from genetic predisposition to environmental influences. Given the rising prevalence of obesity in the United States and other industrialized nations and the need to address this growing public health issue, this book comes at an opportune time. There is no other resource available that compiles such varied obesity-related topics in a coherent and comprehensive manner. I recommend this book to professionals and trainees alike.”

Deborah Rohm Young, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Kinesiology
University of Maryland

“We live in frightening times! As our society becomes more affluent, disease and affliction loom larger in our lives. In the case of obesity, we have reached epidemic proportions. Dr. Ross Andersen has edited and organized a masterful compendium concerning this public malady. It is my hope that clinicians and professionals globally will utilize the expert fact, prescription, and insight contained in this volume to effect positive changes and behaviors as they pertain to the roots, causes, and preventive measures regarding obesity.”

Ken Germano
Executive Director
American Council on Exercise

Obesity is an epidemic that demands a book to provide a knowledge base for the academician and a guide for the health and fitness practitioner. The answer is Obesity: Etiology, Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention. Ross Andersen, of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, assembled national and international experts for this mission. Their contributions amount to this state-of-the-art interdisciplinary treatise on obesity and overweight. Whether you are a clinician seeking practical strategies (e.g., measuring body composition in overweight persons, tailoring exercise prescription for obese individuals) or a scientist in need of a current review of the literature and insights on obesity-related topics (e.g., psychosocial aspects of obesity, genetic role of obesity), this book will be an invaluable resource. Obesity: Etiology, Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention covers it all. My students know that weight management is usually about calories in versus calories out, but they also know that it can be much more complicated. Obesity: Etiology, Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention will be especially useful to my senior and graduate students planning a career in any health-related field.”

Lymperis Perry Koziris, PhD, FACSM
NSCA-CPT, CSCS, ACSM-HFI, USAW L-1 Coach
Associate Professor
Department of Kinesiology, Health Promotion, and Recreation
University of North Texas