Presentation Description: If weight loss were as simple as ELMM (Eat Less, Move More) street, the world would be skinny.  Unfortunately, it is the nightmare on ELMM street belief, the belief that weight loss is about individual willpower that fuels societal attitudes towards obesity and weight management.  While these attitudes may hold reality television contestants in good standing, in actual reality settings, they tend to lead to frustration, struggle, suffering and ultimately, defeat.  Given the relationship between adult obesity and various forms of cancer, and given the fact that 75% of obese adolescents will continue to be obese adults, clearly, ensuring we do our utmost to help manage the weights of our young patients with cancer is crucial. So, do you treat the parents, the child, or both?  Is it about one particular style of eating?  What’s more important, exercise or food?  What’s a realistic goal?  How do you counsel without risking body image or food relationship issues?  This presentation explored the answers to these questions and more.

Speaker:

Yoni Freedhoff, MD, CCFP, Dip ABBM
Founder and Medical Director
Bariatric Medical Institute
Assistant Professor, Family Medicine
University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON