The neuroendocrinology of obesity

The regulation of energy balance is enormously complex, with numerous genetic, hormonal, neural/behavioral, and societal influences. Although the current epidemic of obesity has its underpinnings in the changes in culture during the last half century, the role of the neuroendocrine system in the genesis of obesity is physiologically and therapeutically unavoidable. Increased understanding of this system has suggested organic etiologies (and therapies) for some rare and not-so-rare forms of obesity. With so many inputs, it is not implausible that dysfunction of other parts of this feedback system will be found to explain other forms of obesity in the future. Fortunately or unfortunately, diet and exercise remain the mainstays of obesity therapy. Most diet-exercise programs result in an acute 11-kg weight loss in adults; the question is whether it can be sustained without significant long-term behavior modification. In the European Sibutramine Trial of Obesity Reduction and Maintenance (STORM), 42% of treated patients dropped out; of those remaining, 77% of subjects lost more than 5% of initial body weight, but only 43% of these individuals maintained greater than 80% of this loss over 2 years. Could there be an organic component in persons who do not respond? Obesity pharmacotherapies sometimes have beneficial acute effects, but these effects are impermanent; discontinuation tends to result in a rebound weight gain, suggesting that the etiology of the obesity is still present. A useful guiding principle is that patients who do not respond to diet and exercise should undergo an initial medical evaluation, including assessments of birth weight, past medical history, weight history, family history, diet, exercise, and fasting insulin and thyroid levels. As the nosology of obesity improves, diagnostic efficiency and therapeutic success should increase, leading to a decrease in associated morbidity, mortality, and socioeconomic ramifications.