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This volume brings together an array of leading experts to discuss the causes and consequences of obesity today and present a comprehensive framework for treatment. Following on the success of the editors' earlier influential volume, Obesity: Theory and Therapy, the Handbook reflects tremendous recent advances in research and practice. It is uniquely structured not only to offer a comprehensive review of the knowledge base, but also to guide the user through the entire process of planning and delivering clinical services. Cohesive and up-to-date, the book will help mental health, medical, and allied health practitioners provide the best possible care to obese patients.

Reviewing the nature and scope of the current obesity epidemic, the volume first examines the role of the "toxic environment" and presents exciting recent discoveries about the neural and hormonal factors involved in regulating body weight. Chapters then provide readily applicable, empirically based guidelines for assessing the health risks associated with an individual's excess weight and identifying possible mood or eating disorders, including the newly defined night eating syndrome. Next, treatment algorithms are supplied to facilitate selection of the most appropriate interventions, ranging from self-help for individuals who are only slightly overweight, to surgery for those who are extremely obese. Other approaches described and evaluated include diet, physical activity, behavior modification, and pharmacotherapy. The Handbook also addresses cultural issues in treatment, as well as strategies for maintaining weight loss over time. Special topics covered include improving self-esteem and body image in overweight individuals, treatment of childhood obesity, service provision in the primary care setting, and the need for preventive interventions and policy initiatives.

This timely and practical resource will be of value to a broad audience, including psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, counselors, dietitians, exercise specialists, nurses, and primary care physicians, as well as students and researchers in these fields. It will also serve as a core graduate-level text.

"Wadden and Stunkard have assembled a distinguished set of contributors to provide state-of-the-art coverage of the clinical assessment and treatment of obese patients. The book will be invaluable to practitioners and researchers alike. It offers an unflinching yet balanced examination of what we know and do not know about managing obesity, including important new perspectives on prevention and environmental factors. A critical analysis of the evidence is blended with a constructive and compassionate approach to understanding and helping obese individuals with the full array of problems they experience. Clinicians will find a wealth of practical information and sound advice on how best to treat their patients. I know of no better source of information for anyone involved in the study and treatment of obesity."--G. Terence Wilson, PhD, Chair, Department of Psychology, Rutgers University

"This book brings it all together for anyone interested in understanding the disease of obesity and how to prevent and treat it. The chapters are clear and easy to read, and are written by the top experts in the field. This is a 'must-have' book for researchers and clinicians, and a great textbook for courses on weight management."--James O. Hill, PhD, Director, Center for Human Nutrition, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center

"This outstanding handbook will be useful to students and clinical practitioners alike. Broad in scope, the book covers a range of useful topics in the treatment of childhood and adult obesity. The distinguished team of authors also addresses such foundational areas as obesity prevalence, complications, etiology, and weight loss effects. This is an important book for anyone involved in the evaluation, treatment, and monitoring of obese patients."--Steven B. Heymsfield, MD, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons; Obesity Research Center, St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center, New York, NY

Thomas A. Wadden, PhD, is Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, where he is also Director of the Weight and Eating Disorders Program. He received his AB from Brown University and his doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Wadden has published over 150 scientific papers and is the coeditor of two books. He has investigated the treatment of obesity by several methods, including behavior modification, very-low-calorie diets, exercise, pharmacotherapy, and surgery. He serves on the National Task Force for the Prevention and Treatment of Obesity and on the Council of the North American Association for the Study of Obesity.

Albert J. Stunkard, MD, is Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, where in 1957 he founded the Obesity Research Group (now the Weight and Eating Disorders Program). He received his BS from Yale University and his MD from Columbia University. Dr. Stunkard is the author of nearly 400 publications, primarily in the field of obesity, and his research has been supported for 40 years by the National Institutes of Health. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine and serves on the editorial boards of seven journals in the fields of nutrition and behavioral medicine.