Chairman's Message

Dear Colleagues

The more I travel, the more it becomes clear that the public health challenge posed by global epidemic of obesity is growing faster that anyone previously imagined. While many developing countries continue to struggle with distressing levels of malnutrition, they are facing the reality that the chronic diseases traditionally associated with the developed world are now an even bigger problem for them.

In China last year I saw how this rapid transition was leading to predictable "lifestyle" health risks with high levels of childhood obesity and of adult overweight. The IOTF convened a special workshop on Asian BMI, held in Milan last June, where we were shown remarkable new data providing clear evidence of the impact of weight-related metabolic diseases occurring at much lower levels of BMI. With IASO and the WHO Western Pacific Region, the IOTF co-sponsored the report, launched in February by a steering group co-chaired by Prof Shuji Inoue and Paul Zimmet, which set out a new perspective to redefine obesity and its treatment for Asia and the Pacific. Adopting the proposed cut-off point of BMI 23 for overweight and BMI 25 for obesity in Asians highlights the remarkable increased risks above these levels and sets a new perspective on the weight related diseases burden in the world's population. IOTF is promoting a rigorous analysis of the different levels of risk at equivalent BMIs in ethnic groups and different
populations because it is fundamentally important to establish whether we are dealing with a predominantly environmental and therefore preventable susceptibility, or with genuine genetic differences.

This emphasizes the significance and urgency of the TaskForce's role in working towards wider awareness and action. I was in Beijing again in April to discuss how the IOTF can help develop a new supporting role in China. Already the IOTF has an "advanced guard" with Tim Gill, our scientific secretary, now established in his new role coordinating the IOTF's activities in the Asian and Pacific regions from a base in Australia.

In Latin America there is also a growing concern about the impact of overweight and obesity. Last September the IOTF supported the formation of a Latin American Obesity Task Force during the 4th congress in Buenos Aires and we will be supporting an obesity summit conference due to take place in Rio de Janeiro in June.

Within the Commonwealth countries there is a growing awareness of the need for action to deal with obesity. Health ministers who attended our briefing in Barbados are supportive of the practical proposals to hold IOTF pilot workshops in the Caribbean and Pacific to help develop effective prevention and management strategies using a new
handbook prepared by the IOTF.

Across Europe national obesity associations who signed up to the Milan Initiative have helped provide information for a Europe-wide analysis of prevalence data which will be presented at the European Congress in Antwerp. The Taskforce is also locked into the actions of NAASO in North America to ensure we maintain a truly global interaction.

With so much to be done on the world stage, the IOTF has successfully re-established its secretariat at its new headquarters in London. We thank everyone who has helped us in the past and are grateful for your continued support. We look forward to meeting the challenges this new century will bring.