A health professional from Deakin University has called for a re-think of
obesity treatment and prevention.
Professor Boyd Swinburn has said that the focus should switch from identifying the reason for the obesity epidemic to coming up with effective solutions to the condition.
An overhaul of the eating habits of individuals and development of policy to bring about a change in food behaviour was urged.
Professor Boyd Swinburn commented: "For an individual person, we know the causes of weight gain over time include the obesogenic environment, genetic predisposition, and increasing age - none of which can be influenced by the health professional trying to help the person lose weight."
He added that on a more general level, there is no incentive for food producers to promote the consumption of fewer calories so the change in attitudes will not be driven from there.
Obesity is considered by many health officials as the most worrying public health issue facing the world and is the single greatest cause of preventable deaths across the globe.
