In a move that shows AAFP's dedication to improving Americans' health, the Academy has published a physician's guide to helping overweight patients. Practical Advice for Family Physicians to Help Overweight Patients calls for adding two key obesity measures -- body mass index and waist circumference -- to vital signs that are recorded at each office visit.
"We've become an 'oversized' nation due to decades of overeating and underexercising," said (then) President-elect Michael Fleming, M.D., of Shreveport, La., during a speech to the Congress of Delegates Sept. 30. "America's family physicians are committed to doing whatever we can to help our patients avoid the unhealthy consequences of being overweight."
The monograph, which was distributed to members who attended the Scientific Assembly Oct. 1 - 5, is available online at http://www.aafp.org/obesitymonograph.xml. It is scheduled to be mailed to all members later this fall. The monograph is supported in part by an educational grant from McNeil Nutritionals.
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