Wish or Truth: Can Digital Interventions Stop the Obesity Crisis?

More than 20 years have passed since WHO stated obesity as a disease and included obesity in the cluster of non-communicable diseases requiring prevention and management strategies at individual and societal levels. During that time, intensive research on the subject was performed. Still, the prevalence of obesity continues to rise in Western and developing countries, with an increasing burden on the healthcare systems. Much remains to be done to deliver relevant national plans for the prevention, management, and sustainable treatment of obesity. The recognition that obesity is a multifactorial, chronic, relapsing disease requiring long-term management with whole-system support makes it challenging to design successful and sustainable therapy modalities. This chapter explores the extent to which digital interventions can solve the problem of the obesity crisis. Technological advances like mobile health, wearable devices, and the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) offer emerging opportunities to improve quality and increase the success of obesity therapy. Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning algorithms (ML) are required for increasingly automated, personalized interventions and long-term patient support. With the complexity of the human body and its physiology, innovative personalized medicine approaches are summarized, including the microbiome, genetic and epigenetic factors, metabolomics, and clinical markers. Finally, the adoption of digital interventions in obesity care is critically reflected. Digital innovations combined with personalized medicine can potentially stop our pandemic of chronic diseases and obesity if applied effectively, efficiently, and patient-oriented.