Globalisation:National Obesity Forum
Emma Patrick Christina McDonald Rachel Cunningham
http://www.nationalobesityforum.org.uk/
Contents
History
The National Obesity Forum was created in 2000 by a group of health professionals and is a registered charity (1109600).
The main aims of the NOF are to:
-Increase the public focus on obesity and develop more awareness about the health implications.
-To help educate more people on the topic of obesity and health from an earlier age.
-To encourage the Government to make tackling obesity a priority, in order to save the NHS money in future years.
The NOF is currently chaired by Dr David Haslam who took over in 2008.
Dr Colin Waine was the chairperson before this, from 2005-2008.
Dr Ian Campbell was the founder, and very first chair of the NOF, and quit in 2005.
Finances and Funding
Income for the NOF in 2009 was £297,930, with an output of £276,352, which was much higher than the finances for the previous year. In 2008, the NOF had its lowest income in four years, at £198,140, and expenditure exceeded this at £220,402. 2007 was the highest earning year in the past four years, with an income of £337,175 and an output of £227,456. In 2006, the income was £283,717 and the overall expenditure was higher at £380,892. [1]
The NOF website is funded by [Abbott Laboratories], [Sanofi-Aventis Ltd.] and [Roche].
A Front Group for the Pharmaceuticls Industry?
Views on tackling obesity
The National Obesity Forum advocate many ways of tackling obesity.
-They advise increasing activity levels, and put importance on making exercise ‘fun’ and easy by focussing on ordinary activities such as gardening, shopping, and sports.
-They also advise making a personal plan to suit each individual.
-They provide information on how to have a healthy diet and put importance on portion control.
- Advice is also given on 'positive thinking' and how this can impact a person's ability to lose weight.
The NOF also back more drastic and often risky means of weight loss, including; very low calorie diets, medication, meal replacements, and even surgery.
With regards to weight loss medication (or 'Anti-Obesity Medication), the NOF mention two specific drugs - Sibutramine(Reductil) and Orlistat(Alli).
One of these drugs - Orlistat - was actually the first 'over the counter' weight loss drug available, and was produced by Glaxosmithkline, which is one of the NOFs parter organisations. [2]
The NOF is highly funded by pharmaceutical companies, however, there have been disputes regarding whether weight loss medication actually works. Former President of the NOF, Dr Ian Campbell, resigned from his post after stating that the forum places too much importance on weight loss drugs, and not enough on putting measures in place to prevent obesity in the first place. Dr Campbell claimed that the forum had changed direction and did not have the same outlook as it did when it began.
[3]
The NOF seem to contradict themselves when they provide weightloss recommendations. For example, on their website, advice is given on how to lose weight sensibly, and how following a 'fad diet' is wrong and ineffective in the long term. They describe a 'fad diet' as one which:
-recommends strange quantities of one food e.g. grapefruit, meat, eggs, cabbage -promotes magical foods to 'burn' fat -suggests rigid menus, limiting food choices -advises food should only be eaten in certain combinations -suggests rapid weight loss of more than two pounds per week -doesn't address barriers to losing weight -doesn't advise people with medical conditions to seek medical advice before starting a diet [4]
However, some of these descriptions are actually describe the very low calorie diets (VLCD) which the NOF advise and are affiliated with. Plans such as 'Slim Fast' and 'Lighter Life' claim to make a client lose a large amount of weight in a relatively short period of time, yet the NOF appear to be against rapid weight loss. Also, many of the VLCD plans which the NOF are affiliated with also provide a rigid menu and cut out many foods, something which the NOF also seem to disapprove of. There appears to be a conflict of interest here, where the NOF both encourage and discourage VLCDs.
NOF Conference
The NOF’s conferences take place every year and claim to be discussing obesity and the ways in which obesity are being tackled. The NOF’s conferences have been running for 10 years as of October 2010. The two conferences that have been looked at are the 2009 conference and the 2010 conference Both conferences are said to be aimed at certain people in certain professions. The professions that both conferences are aimed at are all Healthcare Professionals including Government Representatives, Policy Makers, Healthcare Promotion Specialists, Health Information Services, Food, Pharmaceutical & Leisure Industries and the Media[5]
Contact Information
Address:
First Floor
6a Gordon Road
Nottingham
NG2 5LN
Telephone:
0115 846 2109
Fax:
0115 846 2329
Email:
info@nof.uk.com
Website:
Notes
- ↑ Charity Commission "Financial Summary" accessed 9 November 2010
- ↑ Orlistat, "Overweight and Obese Treatment - GlaxoSmithKline Receieves European Commission to Market Alli", Orlistat, 21 January 2009, accessed 19 October 2010
- ↑ The Guardian, "Obesity Group Founder Quits in Row Over Drug Firms' Cash", accessed 1 November 2010
- ↑ National Obesity Forum, "Doing it Yourself" accessed 14 November 2010
- ↑ "Our Conference", NOF Website, accessed on 1st November 2010
