Overweight and the Metabolic Syndrome: From Bench to Bedside

Overweight and the Metabolic Syndrome will provide an overview of topics related to obesity, including associated health risks, childhood obesity, genetics, evaluation, treatment, behavioral strategies, and successes and failures in preventing obesity.

The body composition that underlies obesity and the metabolic syndrome is key to understanding the problem. The mechanisms by which energy balance is maintained is key to how the problem goes wrong. The metabolic syndrome is in part a consequence of central fat storage, but includes more issues such as insulin resistance, low levels of inflammation, and endothelial dysfunction. This volume will cover evaluation guidelines, different approaches to treatment, including diet, exercise, behavior, drugs, and surgery to deal with the current world-wide obesity epidemic.

Neuroendocrine Control of Food Intake.- Body Composition Assessment of Obesity.- Prevalence of Obesity and the Metabolic Syndrome.- The Genetic Contribution to Obesity.- Etiology of Obesity: The Problem of Maintaining Energy Balance.- Current Views of the Fat Cell as an Endocrine Cell: Lipotoxicity.- Ectopic Fat and the Metabolic Syndrome.- Abdominal Obesity and the Metabolic Syndrome.- The Problems of Childhood Obesity and the Metabolic Syndrome.- Evaluation of the Overweight and Obese Patient.- Dietary Approaches to Obesity and the Metabolic Syndrome.- Exercise as an Approach to Obesity and the Metabolic Syndrome.- Behavioral Strategies for Controlling Obesity.- Obesity Prevention.- Orlistat and Sibutramine in the Management of Obesity.- A Status of Drugs on the Horizon for Obesity and the Metabolic Syndrome—a Comprehensive Review 2005.- Surgical Treatment of the Overweight Patient.