In a keynote speech delivering the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada Lecture at the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress 2007, obesity expert Dr. Jean-Pierre Després stated that we need to change how we look at obesity, stop obsessing on weight and BMI and, above all, redefine the proper clinical use of weight loss drugs.

“Some obese people are healthy yet others, with the same amount of body fat, will have heart disease or diabetes. There are simple ways to tell the difference but health professionals are not yet using basic tools to identify who is at greatest risk.”

• Dr. Jean Pierre Déspres, director of research at the Laval Hospital Research Centre and scientific director of the International Chair on Cardiometabolic Risk at University Laval and professor, department of social and preventive medicine at University Laval