NEWS

Follow the accumulating evidence and observations that shape our view of health policy and obesity

OW2024: Five Thoughts We’re Taking Home from ObesityWeek

November 7, 2024 — We have a lot to think about. Well over 3,000 people spent the better part of the week absorbing new science and insights into obesity – not to mention a momentous election. So as everyone sets about the task of catching up with routines, here is a quick take on five thoughts about what we’re […]

OW2024: Insights for Delivering Obesity Care at Scale

November 6, 2024 — Are we ready for delivering obesity care at the scale necessary to have a meaningful effect on population health? Given the current situation with drug pricing and problems with health insurance, it is easy to think not. But at ObesityWeek in San Antonio, we see people who look past those barriers and find ways to […]

OW2024: Chronic Care for This Chronic Disease Is Compelling

November 5, 2024 — This should not be so hard. New research at ObesityWeek 2024 tells us that chronic care for the chronic disease is truly compelling. Specifically, we are talking about the results of three years of treatment with tirzepatide presented yesterday from the SURMOUNT-1 study. In this study of more than a thousand adults with pre-diabetes, three […]

OW2024: Tripping or Tipping Toward Equity in Obesity Care?

November 4, 2024 — From the Presidential Plenary at ObesityWeek, a primary issue standing in the way of progress is quite clear. Are we tipping toward equity in obesity care, or are we tripping over it? Tipping Toward Progress The argument for progress comes from putting the lived experience of obesity on stage to dominate the opening plenary for […]

OW2024: Is Obesity Becoming The New Hypertension?

November 3, 2024 — With the opening of ObesityWeek 2024, it’s worth stopping to consider the radically different situation for obesity medicine today in comparison to a few years ago. Obesity is becoming the new hypertension, says Lou Aronne. He called for it in 2017 and now it’s coming true. Aronne is a past president of the Obesity Society […]

OW2024: The Expanding Scope of GLP-1 Therapy Benefits

November 2, 2024 — As we travel to San Antonio for ObesityWeek 2024 (OW2024) one of the principal threads we want to explore is the expanding scope of GLP-1 therapy benefits. The narrative is a moving target. We won’t have the abstracts in hand for another day. But news this week makes it clear that we have barely gotten […]

Will Shutting Out Fast Food Reduce Childhood Obesity?

November 1, 2024 — A new study in Obesity caught our attention with a claim that “restricting fast food outlets in areas with a high concentration of such outlets as part of a package of policies to reduce childhood obesity may help to reduce prevalence and inequalities.” So we looked a little closer and found a different story in […]

Impressive 10-Year Outcomes for Metabolic Surgery in Teens

October 31, 2024 — The eternal question about medical and surgical treatment for obesity in young persons is all about long-term outcomes. Will the net effect of highly effective treatment actually be to make their lives better? An impressive new analysis of ten-year outcomes for metabolic surgery in teens offers excellent insight. A Landmark Publication The Teen-LABS (Longitudinal Assessment […]

Five Things to Seek Out at ObesityWeek 2024 in San Antonio

October 30, 2024 — November is upon us and thus, so is ObesityWeek 2024 in San Antonio. This has been a year of radical change in the environment for obesity research, prevention, and care. So as we peruse the program for this meeting, it comes across as a year for consolidating the understanding of this disease and transformative options […]

Leaving Doctors in the Dark About Patients with Obesity

October 29, 2024 — In some ways, it is nothing new. The medical needs of people living with obesity have been dismissed seemingly forever. But at the same time it is shocking to learn of Merck – a highly respected pharmaceutical firm – leaving doctors in the dark by choice about how one of their drugs acts differently in […]