The Philippine Association for the Study of Overweight and Obesity is firm in its commitment to not only educate physicians and other allied professionals but more importantly, to promote health by creating awareness and empowering the public with appropriate tools to help fight the obesity pandemic.

Young as it may still be, the fourteen years of PASOO history has achieved significant progress milestones with projects (like the WHIZ KIDS’ PROJECT, PYRAMID CHOICE, HEALTHY AND BALANCED FOOD PYRAMID, PHYSICAL ACTIVITY PYRAMID GUIDE, WELLNESS SUMMIT, WELLNESS SUMMER WORKSHOP- THE YOUTH EDITION) that have primarily focused on improving public awareness on basic and important facts about the national weight problem. The learning process may be slow, but I am certain that our efforts are worthwhile. What’s more, as teachers, we are learning from our patients too.

The 2007 WELLNESS SUMMIT gave us a better understanding of the epidemiological profile of the obese Filipino. It is surprising that the survey done during the summit revealed that more than fifty percent of the respondents learned for the first time that they were obese with cardiovascular risk factors. The survey also showed that Filipinos are obese because they are frequent eaters, eating mostly fat-laden fast food.

The 2007 WELLNESS SUMMER WORKSHOP – THE YOUTH EDITION taught us that parents believe that lack of time, will power and resources are the three major barriers for inactivity among children. Children feel that the lack of will power, energy and skills make them inactive. In the survey done during the workshop, respondents clearly pointed out that parents are their children’s primary role models and that children do what their parents do. About 65% of the respondents believe that parents are more effective than teachers in influencing the health-related behaviors of their children. This important information can help us plan how to best handle the burgeoning weight problems in our country.