A Tool to Separate the Wheat from the Chaff

The Voluntary Guidelines for Providers of Weight Loss

Products or Services

Mission

To promote sound guidance to the general public on strategies for achieving and

maintaining a healthy weight.

Partnership Principles

• Sensible and healthy guidelines

• Obesity is a serious disease with far-reaching health implications

• Excess weight is caused by a complex set of factors, and must be approached as such

• Sedentary lifestyle is a barrier to healthy weight management

Partnership Principles (cont’d)

• Calorie balance (calories in versus out)• Modest weight loss can reduce severity of

illness• Weight management involves lifetime

behavior modification• Medical, pharmacological, and surgical

interventions may be appropriate for some seriously obese individuals

• Consumers are entitled to accurate, reliable, and non-deceptive information about weight management methods

• The Partnership opposes discrimination, including that based on size or weight

• The Partnership does not endorse any particular products or programs

Partnership Principles (cont’d)

Partnership Materials

To encourage any provider of weight management services or products to provide accurate, objective information to consumers so that consumers can select a safe and effective method.

Purpose

Value of Guidelines to Providers

• Good business practice

• Increase trust of consumers/users

• Improve quality of care/treatment

Subscribing to the Guidelines is strictly

voluntary

Who Provides the Guidelines?

• Commercial weight loss programs• Manufacturers of weight loss

products and medications• Health professional

associations• Individual professionals

Extending the Message

• Print media

• Broadcast media

• Advertising agencies

• Public relations agencies

• Other groups