Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2025 Nov;33(11):2029-2045.
doi: 10.1002/oby.70015. Epub 2025 Sep 18.

Precision Prevention, Diagnostics, and Treatment of Obesity: Pipedream or Reality?

Emily K Woolf  1 , Hanim E Diktas  1 , Andres Acosta  2 , John W Apolzan  1 , Jamy D Ard  3 , Kristen E Boyle  4 , Jack A Gilbert  5 , Peter T Katzmarzyk  1 , Paul J Laurienti  6 , Tim Lobstein  7 , Holly L Nicastro  8 , Jose M Ordovas  9 , Suzanne Phelan  10 , Leanne M Redman  1 , Brian E Roe  11 , Donna H Ryan  1 , Jacqueline M Stephens  1 , Deborah F Tate  12 , Caroline M Apovian  13 , Corby K Martin  1
Affiliations
Review

Precision Prevention, Diagnostics, and Treatment of Obesity: Pipedream or Reality?

Emily K Woolf et al. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2025 Nov.

Abstract

Precision medicine approaches have gained attention for their potential to more effectively manage obesity by tailoring diagnosis and treatment strategies to individual characteristics, including genetic background, phenotypes, metabolic profiles, and environmental exposures. The current review evaluates the evidence for precision medicine in weight management by summarizing the proceedings of a Pennington Biomedical Scientific Symposium titled "Precision Prevention, Diagnostics, and Treatment of Obesity: Pipedream or Reality?" This review discusses the extent to which we can classify and predict obesity risk based on individual-level factors; whether we have the diagnostic capability to prospectively identify people who will benefit most from specific interventions; whether prospective trials demonstrate superior prevention and treatment of obesity when precision approaches are applied; and whether evidence is sufficient to guide policy decisions. Expert opinions were presented on the current evidence of precision medicine for obesity to collectively evaluate key barriers and opportunities for implementation of precision approaches in clinical and public health settings.

Keywords: obesity management; obesity prevention; precision medicine.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Unrelated to this work, S.P. reports a grant from WW International Inc. In addition, unrelated to this work, T.L. reports that the World Obesity Federation receives educational grants from several equipment and pharmaceutical companies. All other authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1 |
FIGURE 1 |
Population-based medicine to personalize health involves precision prevention, diagnosis, treatment, policy, and additional unknown factors that provide a comprehensive understanding for effective precision medicine. RCTs, randomized controlled trials.
FIGURE 2 |
FIGURE 2 |
Traditional obesity treatments reliably promote weight loss, though weight regain frequently follows, resulting in limited long-term weight loss and maintenance. Precision obesity treatment posits that individual-level factors need to be considered in the diagnosis and prescription of treatments. Considering these individual-level factors, it is proposed to lead to more frequently successful weight loss and long-term maintenance, an area where the value of precision medicine is highly understudied.
FIGURE 3 |
FIGURE 3 |
Overview of the current evidence for precision prevention, diagnostics, and treatment of obesity, as well as potential future steps for research and clinical practice.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Stubbs J, Whybrow S, Teixeira P, et al. , “Problems in Identifying Predictors and Correlates of Weight Loss and Maintenance: Implications for Weight Control Therapies Based on Behaviour Change,” Obesity Reviews 12 (2011): 688–708. - PubMed
    1. Yanovski SZ and Yanovski JA, “Long-Term Drug Treatment for Obesity: A Systematic and Clinical Review,” JAMA 311 (2014): 74–86. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Dent R, McPherson R, and Harper M-E, “Factors Affecting Weight Loss Variability in Obesity,” Metabolism 113 (2020): 154388. - PubMed
    1. Cifuentes L, Hurtado A, Eckel-Passow J, and Acosta A, “Precision Medicine for Obesity,” Digestive Disease Interventions 5 (2021): 239–248. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Loos RJF and Yeo GSH, “The Genetics of Obesity: From Discovery to Biology,” Nature Reviews. Genetics 23 (2022): 120–133. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources