IOTF -The International Obesity Task Force- was originally
convened in 1995 by Professor Philip James to prepare the first
scientific research report on the global epidemic of obesity.
Subject to the scrutiny of eleven subcommittees and scores of
international experts, this report eventually served as a
working draft for the first WHO expert consultation on obesity
held in Geneva in 1997. The report established the criteria for
assessing obesity, and was distributed to all health ministers
at the World Health Assembly in 1998. Its eventual publication
as an official WHO Expert Technical Report in 2000 entitled ‘WHO
TRS 894 Obesity: Preventing and Managing the Global Epidemic’
marked a turning point in governments' acceptance of what was
described by WHO as "the biggest unrecognized public health
problem in the world". To cope with the numerous challenges this
initial report revealed, in 1998 IOTF established several
working parties as follows: The communications group, chaired by
Prof Stephan Rossner, promote