Archive for January, 2018

A Bumper Crop of False Promises about Weight and Health

January 11, 2018 — We shouldn’t be surprised. In this season, both hucksters and health reporters are burying us in false promises about weight and health. The advertisements for dietary supplements are annoying enough. We keep our finger on the mute button. And we can filter tabloid headlines about Kerry Katona’s protein injections out of our news feed. But […]

The Odd Symbiosis Between Nutrition Activists and Big Food

January 10, 2018 — Consumers eat for good health. They always have. It used to be that USDA was the primary focal point for telling us how to eat healthy. But now, nutrition activists have a prominent voice in setting the agenda for healthy eating. And in setting that agenda, they’re providing critical fuel for the marketing machinery of […]

Bariatric Surgery Can Protect Teen Hearts

January 9, 2018 — In severe obesity, teen hearts are at risk. High blood pressure, cholesterol, and type 2 diabetes can begin harming these young people early in life. But a new study published yesterday in Pediatrics confirms that bariatric surgery can resolve these risk factors for teens. An 85% Drop in Teens with ≥ 3 Risk Factors At the […]

Obesity Research as a Marketing Tool for 23andMe

January 8, 2018 — With much fanfare, 23andMe recently announced a massive study of the interaction between a person’s genetic profile and weight management. The company has recruited 100,000 customers with excess weight. The study will randomize those people to three different treatment strategies. One of the treatment groups will follow a low-carb diet. Another will cut animal fat and […]

Stand Up, Kids, Today We’re Going to Fight Obesity

January 7, 2018 — Jamie Oliver is back in the thick of things, fighting childhood obesity in the UK. Together with a charismatic TV doctor, Rangan Chatterjee, he’s proposing some simple solutions to the UK’s problem with childhood obesity. It’s time for kids to stand up in school, they say. Standing desks and better food will do the trick. […]

Obesity Care and Prevention: Best Available Evidence

January 6, 2018 — Evidence is a good thing, right? And when it comes to dealing with a wicked problem like obesity, we certainly advocate for following the evidence. Most people do. And yet, we often find controversies erupting about what the best available evidence tells us we should be doing. Evidence-Based Public Health More and more, we hear […]

Resolutions: Gratitude, Pride, and Compassion

January 5, 2018 — This young, new year marks a time of resolutions for many people. And many of those resolutions involve health and weight. But keeping them is not so easy. Psychology professor David DeSteno tells us that “willpower” won’t do it. He says that the “only way to keep your resolutions” is to cultivate gratitude, pride, and […]

Low Dieting Diets Dominate 2018 Best Diets

January 4, 2018 — In case you hadn’t noticed, the 2018 Best Diets feature is out. It’s great click bait for people feeling the weight of all those holiday celebrations. Not much has changed. But the picture is just a little sharper this year. The real news is that this best diets list is, at its heart, anti-dieting. A […]

Correlation, Causation, and Having a Gym Next Door

January 3, 2018 — “Having a gym nearby does help us to lose weight, suggests new research.” So says Medical News Today. This bit of classic click bait for weight loss season comes from Lancet Public Health. It’s an observational study of the correlation between a person’s risk of obesity and their home address. The authors found that people […]

An Unfortunate Blend of Obesity and Public Health Policies

January 2, 2018 — One of the problems facing public health is the framing of public health policies as obesity prevention strategies. Such policies may be good for broader population health outcomes but may not have an effect on obesity. Another problem facing public health is the failure to recognize that obesity is a complex chronic disease. No Simple […]