Dr. Scott Kahan is the Director of the National Center for Weight and Wellness. He is a physician trained in both clinical medicine and public health, and an internationally-recognized leader in the the fields of Preventive Medicine and Obesity Medicine.

Dr. Kahan received his undergraduate degree in bioengineering from Columbia University, his medical degree from the Medical College of Pennsylvania, and his Master’s of Public Health degree from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. He trained in Internal Medicine and completed a residency in Preventive Medicine at Johns Hopkins University, where he served as Chief Resident. He is Board Certified in Preventive Medicine, Obesity Medicine, and Clinical Nutrition. Dr. Kahan has served on the Faculties of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, George Washington University School of Medicine, George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, and the George Mason University Department of Nutrition and Food Studies.

In addition to his clinical practice, Dr. Kahan also works as a public health physician specializing in nutrition and obesity policy. He has served as the Director of the Strategies to Overcome and Prevent (S.T.O.P.) Obesity Alliance, a George Washington University-based coalition of nearly 100 organizations that drive innovative policies and practical strategies to address obesity.  He serves on the Board of Directors for the American Board of Obesity Medicine, a national, independent, non-profit organization that certifies specialist physicians in obesity medicine; The Obesity Society, the primary professional society for obesity research and practice, where he has also served as Chair of the Clinical Committee; and Playworks DC, a non-profit organization that teaches kids about life through play. He is a member of leadership committees at The Endocrine Society, The Obesity Society, the Obesity Medicine Foundation, and the American Diabetes Association.  He has co-authored clinical guidelines for obesity and diabetes treatment, including the ADA Standards of Care of Medical Care in Diabetes.

Dr. Kahan has advised the White House, several Surgeons General, members of the U.S. Congress, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and numerous governmental agencies, national and local advocacy groups and public health initiatives pertaining to obesity, nutrition, and chronic disease prevention. He has served on non-partisan healthcare panels at both the Democratic and Republican National Conventions. He has presented academic lectures at numerous Universities, including Harvard, Johns Hopkins, and Georgetown, and internationally, including the Royal College of Physicians. He teaches several courses on obesity, nutrition, public health, and health behavior change to medical students, graduate students, and undergraduate students. He created and teaches the first course devoted to obesity and nutrition at the George Washington University School of Medicine, as well as the first undergraduate course devoted to obesity at Johns Hopkins University. He has served as the Co-Director of the George Washington University Weight Management Program and the Associate Director of the Johns Hopkins Weight Management Center, as well as core faculty of the Johns Hopkins Preventive Medicine Residency Program.

He has written numerous academic been a columnist for The Huffington Post and has written articles in numerous newspapers and scientific journals. He often speaks at professional and public conferences and events, and is regular contributor to national and local media outlets, including USA Today, Washington Post, New York Times, CNN, C-SPAN, MSNBC, PBS, CBS radio, Fox News, Men’s Health, Self Magazine, The Atlantic, U.S. News and World Report, L.A. Times, and others.

He has published more than 100 scientific research articles, textbooks, and textbook chapters in the fields of medicine, nutrition, and public health, and he is the Editor-in-Chief of a series of medical texts that have been published internationally and translated into nine foreign languages.  He co-authored a nutrition handbook for physicians, which is distributed to medical students throughout North America. His most recent textbook, Health Behavior Change in Populations: The State of the Evidence and Roles for Key Stakeholders, published by Johns Hopkins University Press, is widely used in schools of public health and public policy. He serves as a scientific peer-reviewer for more than 50 academic journals and research organizations, including the National Institutes of Health.

Dr. Kahan has received numerous awards, including Clinician of the Year award (2017) by The Obesity Society, Healthcare Provider Advocate of the Year (2016) by the Obesity Action Coalition, the Patients’ Choice award as one of Washington DC’s best physicians (2010-2018), Outstanding Contribution Gratitude Award by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics’ Weight Management DPG, and he has been rated as the #1 Preventive Medicine physician in Washington, D.C. by rateMDs.com. He has also been named to the Medical College of Pennsylvania/Drexel University 40 Under 40 list, and he has been nominated for the Robert Wood Johnson Young Leader award.