From prevention to treatment? Obesity trends and management

Join us for a diverse event exploring how the rapid expansion of GLP-1 medications intersects with longer-term generational trends in obesity and weight loss.

About the event

The NHS England 10-year plan sets out a clear ambition to shift the healthcare system from treatment towards prevention.

However, the growth in use of GLP-1 medications suggests a growing reliance on obesity treatments after opportunities for prevention have passed.

This event will draw on new findings from the Centre for Longitudinal Studies at UCL, using data from the British birth cohort studies.

It will explore important questions about how prevention and treatment should be balanced in future obesity policy, commissioning, and service design.

The event will combine short presentations, an invited talk, and panel discussion with opportunities for networking and shared reflection on the implications for policy, practice, and future research.

What’s covered in the event?

Generational trends in healthy weight maintenance and lifetime experience of obesity.
Patterns and determinants of weight loss and other weight-change trajectories in a pre-GLP-1 era, highlighting who is (and is not) successfully losing weight.
How different weight-change patterns relate to economic inactivity and participation in the workforce.
Associations between weight trajectories and later-life health.

Who should attend?

Policymakers, public health professionals, NHS England colleagues, third sector leaders, clinicians, obesity experts, and researchers specialising in obesity management and treatment.

Please note: This event is not open to individuals who are attending from industry or weight management providers.