Purpose

The 2011 symposium is focused on exploring factors that may play a role in the genesis of obesity including maternal, epigenetic and lifestyle factors, and understanding how they integrate, in order to develop comprehensive and effective, intervention and prevention strategies, targeting obesity and related chronic disease.

The goal of the symposium is to bring together researchers, professionals and practitioners interested in understanding maternal obesity and health, and the consequences of proper pre-pregnancy weight, diet and exercise on the outcomes in the child. The talks/speakers will provide guidance and recommendations related to diet, exercise and environment/lifestyle based on current research for pregnant women and their children to improve public health outcomes for obesity and related chronic disease.

Target Audience

Scientists, professionals and practitioners with an interest in a multi-disciplinary approach to intervention and prevention strategies targeting obesity with a focus on maternal and childhood obesity. This includes: researchers, M.D.s and D.O.s, registered nurses, nurse practitioners, physician's assistants, midwives, dietitians, nutritionists, health coaches, exercise physiologists, food industry, exercise/fitness industry and other allied health-care workers.

Objectives

Upon completion of this program, learners should be able to:

• Recognize the importance of the major factors associated with the origins of obesity and provide practical diet, exercise and lifestyle advice to mitigate obesity and related-chronic disease risk.
• Explain the role of physical activity in the prevention and treatment of obesity.
• Describe effects of prenatal stress in the intrauterine environment on the developing human embryo and fetus in relation to their body composition, metabolic function and obesity-risk later in life.
• Elaborate on the importance of maternal diet and exercise on gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), pregnancy outcome, fetal birth weight, maternal postpartum weight, breast-feeding and fetal chronic disease risk.
• List and describe factors from the prenatal, infancy, and early childhood periods that are associated with increasing the risk of overweight and obesity through the lifespan.
• Define fetal programming, and explain the role of pre-natal and post-natal, diet and physical activity, on epigenetic processes that occur during the prenatal, infancy, and early childhood periods, on long-term chronic disease risk.
• Discuss current recommendations for diet and exercise with regard to body weight management (pre-pregnancy, pregnancy and postpartum) for normal and overweight/obese mothers with and without gestational diabetes mellitus.

Speakers and Agenda

Click here to view the conference program.