The International Study Action IO shows the discrepancy between the perception of service providers in healthcare and people who fight obesity. Scientists presented them at this year's European Congress for Obesity (ECO 2019) in Glasgow, Great Britain. The study was published in a magazine on diabetes, obesity and metabolism. One of the results of the study is that 71% of people are not interested in losing weight. In fact, only 7% of those surveyed indicate this, which makes a 10-fold difference.
Information about patients who fight obesity
Action IO is the largest study of its kind to investigate obstacles in weight loss from the perspective of people who want to combat obesity and medical staff. The study surveyed over 14,500 people with obesity and almost 2,800 health service providers from 11 countries. Action IO complements the valuable knowledge from previous studies published in 2017 in the USA and Canada.
Other important results of the study are that 81% of people with obesity are of the opinion that it is sole responsibility to lose weight. Only 51% of those surveyed have discussed their weight with their doctors in the past five years. However, this only happened after a significant delay of an average of six years from the time they started. The reporting on actual attempts to lose weight was also very different between the two groups. 81% stated that at least one serious one in the pastWeight loss reachedto have. Others reported that only 35% of the patients did this. However, the study also showed that 68% of patients fight obesity and want to have discussions about weight management during a doctor's appointment.
The data indicate that people with obesity are motivated to lose weight. In this regard, doctors have the opportunity to start earlier, effective conversations on weight reduction with minimal fear of insult. This is what the main author of the study, Professor Ian Caterson from Charles Perkins Center in Australia. With the triple approach, it is primarily that the doctor diagnoses the problem, discusses it with the patient and then searches for a solution together.
He adds: “The patient may not recognize the need to reduce overweight until it affects his health and supports the demand to address the topic of weight, even before such complications occur in connection with obesity. Our study also shows a global need for better information about the biological basis and the clinical management of obesity and for a more positive attitude when initiating such discussions and management. ” He summarizes: "We hope that these results can help to combat the barriers between people who combat obesity and to eliminate their health service providers and to promote more positive engagement in the treatment of overweight."
