Behavioral therapy in the treatment of pediatric obesity.

This article was designed to make a strong case for the importance of studying behavior and using behavioral therapy in the treatment of pediatric obesity. Behavioral treatments have been the most studied approaches to pediatric obesity, with great success. Six studies that provided long-term results are presented, and ideas for translating behavioral therapy into common pediatric practice are presented. Additional progress is needed to incorporate new findings in learning and behavioral neuroscience into clinical interventions and to integrate behavioral therapy with pharmacologic interventions and genetic predispositions and new advances in nutrition and exercise science.