Introduction

Joylene John-Sowah
Pediatrics 2007;120;S163
DOI: 10.1542/peds.2007-2329H

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Introduction
Joylene John-Sowah, MD, MPH, Project Director
The American Medical Association, in collaboration with
the Department of Health and Human Services’ Health
Resources and Services Administration and the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, convened an expert
committee to develop recommendations on the assess-
ment, prevention, and treatment of child and youth
overweight and obesity.
In 1997, the Health Resources and Services Adminis-
tration convened the first expert committee to develop
recommendations on the evaluation and treatment of
child and youth obesity. At that time, few studies of this
problem had been conducted; therefore, the approaches
to evaluation and therapy were rarely evidence based.
Obesity in children and adolescents continues to repre-
sent one of the most frustrating and difficult conditions
to treat.
In February 2004, the American Medical Association
convened a second expert committee to guide the de-
velopment of 3 articles that would explore current evi-
dence-based science and form the basis of new recom-
mendations on the assessment, prevention, and
treatment of child and adolescent overweight and obe-
sity. Representatives from 15 national organizations
formed the second expert committee. The committee
used a multidisciplinary model and integrated ap-
proaches across disciplines. The conceptual framework is
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the chronic care model with the goal of achieving fam-
ily/self-management of childhood obesity.
The product is 4 articles, 1 on each of the aforemen-
tioned overview areas of the management of obesity and
1 overarching support document. The articles were writ-
ten by national experts in the field of childhood obesity
who were nominated jointly by the members of the
expert and steering committees.
Once the articles and the recommendations were fi-
nalized, the representatives took them back to the parent
organizations for endorsement. The following organiza-
tions have endorsed the recommendations:
● American Academy of Pediatrics
● American Dietetic Association
● National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
● Association of American Indian Physicians
● American Heart Association
● National Association of School Nurses
● American College of Sports Medicine
● The Obesity Society (formerly NAASO)
● The Endocrine Society
● American College of Preventive Medicine
● American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychia-
try
● National Medical Association
doi:10.1542/peds.2007-2329H
PEDIATRICS Volume 120, Number 3, December 2007 S163

Pediatrics 2007;120;S163
DOI: 10.1542/peds.2007-2329H
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Joylene John-Sowah
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