KU co-sponsors local conference that looks for answers to obesity epidemic

LAWRENCE -- Nationally renowned experts in the field of the prevention and treatment of obesity, diabetes and heart disease will gather in Overland Park to share their knowledge with local and regional health care professionals at the Metabolic Syndrome Conference, 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sept. 11 through 13 at the Sheraton Overland Park Hotel at the Convention Center, 6100 College Blvd.

The conference is co-sponsored by the University of Kansas and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. Media are invited to attend.

The registration deadline is Aug. 29, but applications will be accepted until the conference is full.

"Obesity is a multifaceted disease and one which is causing a public health epidemic for our communities," said Joseph E. Donnelly, director of the Center for Physical Activity and Weight Management at KU. "We have brought experts from across the country to Kansas City who will share their ideas and research on how to impact this crisis and its associated conditions, diabetes and heart disease."

The metabolic syndrome is a scientific term that refers to the conditions that tend to accompany obesity, such as hypertension, high cholesterol, heart disease and diabetes.

Some of the topics that will be covered at the conference include the impact of community design on physical activity and health; the impact of physical activity on obesity and cardiovascular disease; action plans for states on how to promote physical activity; and steps to a healthier United States.

Notable Speakers

Please contact Kim Johnson at (785) 864-0797 or kim@ku.edu for information regarding speaking times and scheduling interviews.

Steven N. Blair, president and CEO, Cooper Institute, Dallas; Kansas native

Karen Donato, coordinator, National Heart Lung and Blood Institute Obesity Education Initiative, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Md.

Mark Fenton, physical activity program manager, University of North Carolina's Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center; host of "America's Walking" on PBS Television

James O. Hill, director of the Center for Human Nutrition; director of Colorado Clinical Nutrition Research Unit; professor of pediatrics and medicine, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver; creator of "Colorado on the Move" and "America on the Move" physical activity based programs

Bruce Leonard, public health consultant, president of "AIM2010, Americans in Motion," Lawrenceville, Ga.

Ann Taubenheim, coordinator, Women's Heart Health Education Initiative, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, Office of Prevention, Education and Control, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Md.; coordinator of "The Red Dress Project," on display at Halls Crown Center, Sept. 11-21

Dr. Frank Vinicor, director of diabetes for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; director of World Health Organization Collaborating Center in Diabetes; associate professor of medicine, Emory University, Atlanta

Dr. Eric C. Westman, associate professor of medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, N.C.; key researcher for the Atkins Foundation

Michael B. Zemel, professor of nutrition and medicine, director, the Nutrition Institute, University of Tennessee, Knoxville; lead researcher on the effects of dairy