Clinical Management of Overweight and Obesity

These guidelines make recommendations regarding the management of individuals with a body mass index greater than 25.0 kg/m² and cover all age groups, from children to the elderly, as well as various patient subsets. A range of measures to yield health benefits are set out, including healthy eating plans, increased physical activity, and behavioral modifications to help patients to manage obesity. In addition, recommendations are made on the use of bariatric surgery and the new antiobesity drugs. Throughout the process of developing the recommendations, every attempt was made to ensure use of a rigorous, evidence-based approach.  The guidelines are promoted by the Italian Society of Obesity (SIO) and were formulated in compliance with a prespecified process overseen by a steering committee. They are intended for use by a wide range of clinicians, including general practitioners, primary health care nurses, and primary health care professionals, and will hopefully prove of value in combating the obesity epidemic not only in Italy but across Europe and elsewhere in the world.                                        

Paolo Sbraccia, M.D, Ph.D. is Full Professor of Internal Medicine in the Department of Systems Medicine of the University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Chief of the Internal Medicine Unit and Obesity Center (EASO accredited Collaborating Centre for Obesity Management) at the University Hospital Policlinico Tor Vergata, Director of the Specialization School in Internal Medicine, and Chairman of the Undergraduate Course in Dietetics.

He was (2006-2010) member of the Board of Directors of the Italian Diabetes Society (SID) and he is now President of the Italian Society of Obesity (S.I.O.).

In 2011, on behalf of SIO, he coordinated the Steering Committee for the Italian Guidelines for the Management of Obesity.

He is member of the Editorial Board of 'Eating and weight disorders' and 'Internal and Emergency Medicine' and ad hoc reviewer of various scientific journals (Diabetologia; Diabetes/Metabolism Research and Reviews; Journal of Endocrinological Investigation; European Journal of Endocrinology, Clinical Endocrinology, Aging, PLoS One, Nutrition Metabolism and Cardiovascular Diseases). He is also Co-Director of the official Journal of the Italian Diabetes Society 'Il Diabete'.

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