title: How science thinks and practice acts: bridging the gap in weight management interventions for adolescents.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Adolescent obesity calls for evidence-based treatment approaches given its long-term physical and psychosocial consequences. However, research shows there are many problems in the translation of scientific evidence into practice.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to develop science- and practice-based recommendations for the planning of future adolescent weight management interventions.
  
  
  METHODS
  We performed (i) literature reviews on intervention studies targeting treatment of obesity in adolescents and Dutch clinical guidelines for obesity as well as practice-based documents and grey literature on treating obesity and delivering health programs for adolescents and (ii) semi-structured interviews with eight clinicians and four non-clinicians working in obesity treatment, management and prevention to explore perspectives on treating adolescent obesity and using evidence in practice.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After merging the results from the literature reviews and interviews, four issues emerged: (i) little reporting on theoretical models used in intervention studies, Dutch clinical guidelines and semi-structured interviews; (ii) inconsistency on age-specific considerations for treating obesity in adolescents in intervention studies and Dutch clinical guidelines; (iii) inconsistency on addressing the social nature of obesity in intervention studies and Dutch clinical guidelines and (iv) how professional responsibility should be divided is unclear from intervention studies, Dutch clinical guidelines and semi-structured interviews.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Joined action of science and practice is required for future interventions. Future interventions should include topics relevant to the stage of adolescence and give greater focus to the complex social nature of obesity. Lastly, practitioners can generate more practice-based evidence by starting their own practice-based research.
authors.affiliation: Division of Human Nutrition, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Swan
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bouwman
authors.forename: Nicole
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: de Roos
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koelen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001294:Attitude to Health; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006302:Health Services Research; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D009765:Obesity / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology