Genetics, economics, environment, psychology and government policies have all played roles in why, as a nation, the United States has for a generation been getting heavier. No surprise then, that controlling weight needs to be about much more than just diet and exercise. “My job is to build a specialty program that deals with medical weight management, providing a long-term care model to treat obesity as the disease it is,’’ said Dr. Jamy Ard, co-director of the new adult Weight Management Center at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center and leader of two non-surgical weight-control programs. Ard’s approach is shared by the leaders of other weight-control programs at Wake Forest Baptist, including those for children and older adults. All of these programs stress education—not just for the people facing weight issues, but for their families, too – and long-term commitment to changed habits in addition to healthier diet and exercise practices. Some people view bariatric surgery as a ...
Interested in public health and conservation methods and prevention of chronic diseases such as diabetes, cholesterol, practical advice to quit smoking and alcohol, and weight loss in healthy ways without loss