Obesity is a modern societal phenomenon linked to several serious diseases and affects quality of life. The Center for Obesity Management operates within the Biomedical Center of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (BMC SAV), which, through its scientific team, investigates the causes and consequences of obesity. We study intervention options and provide comprehensive care to patients with obesity. We were the first in Slovakia to receive accreditation from the European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO). We presented the newly accredited Center for Obesity Management to the media on Wednesday, March 1, 2023, on the occasion of the 8th World Obesity Day in Slovakia (falling on March 4, 2023).
Those present at the BMC SAV, v. v. i., were welcomed by its Director General, Prof. Silvia Pastoreková. She highlighted the fact that the Center for Obesity Management now serves as a model system for comprehensive care, which can serve as an inspiration for other potential centers being established in Slovakia. “I am very proud that we are the place where such activity is taking place. The Center had the opportunity to operate with the support of structural funds, and today it is up to us to maintain and develop these conditions,” statedS. Pastoreková.
“Many people living with obesity face difficulties accessing healthcare, and many of them also face stigma and discrimination from society. Without adequate access to healthcare provided by trained professionals who are part of a multidisciplinary team, most people living with obesity are unable to achieve their health goals on their own. This is where there is room for positive change. This center offers us one way to make that happen,”
said Assoc. Prof. Ľubomíra Fábryová, EASO Vice President for the Central European Region, President of the Slovak Obesity Association (SOA), Chair of the Obesity Section of the Slovak Diabetes Society (OS SDS), and a specialist in diabetes mellitus, metabolic disorders, and nutrition. She also emphasized that there are already 150 such accredited centers across Europe.
Mission of the Center for Obesity Management
Our primary mission is the comprehensive management of patients with obesity, based on a holistic lifestyle intervention (nutrition, exercise, psychology) under the supervision of a physician and in collaboration with medical specialists (diabetologist, hepatologist, cardiologist, neurologist, orthopedist, endocrinologist, neurologist, pediatrician, surgeon…). The Center’s expected activities and outputs include research and results in the form of publications, as well as education in collaboration with universities (LFUK, SZU) and professional medical societies (SOA, OS SDS, SSVPL, and others).
EASO Accreditation
The accreditation of partner Obesity Management Centers is conducted in accordance with strict European and academic guidelines, thereby ensuring a network of high-quality and well-structured facilities. Research in the field of obesity has a history of over 20 years at the Slovak Academy of Sciences thanks to the Institute of Experimental Endocrinology (ÚEE) and the Institute of Clinical and Translational Research (ÚKTV) at the BMC SAV, v. v. i. The accreditation of the Center for Obesity Management here is the result of many years of multidisciplinary teamwork.
“Several research groups at the Institute of Experimental Endocrinology of the Biomedical Center of the Slovak Academy of Sciences have been and continue to be dedicated to researching the mechanisms underlying metabolic disorders and other consequences of obesity, using both animal and cellular models as well as clinical studies. We conducted the first intervention training study in sedentary adults with obesity from 2011 to 2013 thanks to support for our projects through grants from the European Federation for the Study of Diabetes. The results demonstrated clear health benefits of a regular dose of sufficiently intense physical activity and revealed several important mechanisms through which exercise improves health. “An open, inclusive approach and the education of volunteers have always been part of our work, combined with feedback in the form of results demonstrating the effects of exercise, which served as motivation for participants and a tangible return on their invested energy,” statesProf. Barbara Ukropcová of the Institute of Experimental Endocrinology, BMC SAV, v. v. i., founder and guarantor of the BMC SAV Center for Physical Activity, v. v. i., EASO guarantor for the Center for Obesity Management, and member of the committee of the Slovak Obesity Association.
"Nutrition and calorie intake play a key role in addressing obesity"
This is confirmed by nutrition specialists Assoc. Prof. Adela Penesová and Assoc. Prof. Peter Minárik, who have been treating patients with obesity at the Obesity Clinic of the BMC SAV, v. v. i., for several years. Diabetologist and obesity specialist Assoc. Prof. Adela Penesová from the Department of Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism at the BMC SAV, v. v. i., and president of the Slovak Association for Nutrition and Prevention, implements comprehensive interventions for patients with extreme obesity.
Exercise training programs for obese patients, led by experienced trainers and diagnosticians, are conducted at the BMC SAV Center for Physical Activity, a public research institution founded by Prof. Ukropcová and her colleagues in 2017. Lack of physical activity and low physical fitness significantly contribute to the development of obesity and its comorbidities, and increasing regular physical activity is associated with health benefits that are, to a certain extent, independent of weight loss.“We have also closely monitored the effectiveness of comprehensive lifestyle-modification programs (nutrition, exercise, psychology) within the clinical intervention studies of the Obesity project,” adds Prof. Ukropcová.
With support from the OPII project funded by the ERDF: Long-term strategic research on the prevention, intervention, and mechanisms of obesity and its comorbidities, ITMS 313011V344
