April 5, 2023 — BMI is one of those topics in the obesity realm where many people agree in many ways. Yet it can inspire some passionate arguments. A prime example of these disagreements came right to the top of the workshop on BMI at the Roundtable on Obesity Solutions at the National Academies yesterday. In quick succession, we […]
March 5, 2023 — Defining obesity is a tricky enterprise for the simple reason that we are all easily fooled by appearances. But obesity is not a disease of size or appearance. It’s a disease of dysregulated adipose tissue. This fact doesn’t stop people from thinking – falsely – that they can size up a person’s metabolic health based […]
January 5, 2023 — One of the easy predictions to make for 2023 is that it will be a year of hot debates about obesity. We have plenty of hot topics to choose from, but one of the hottest is what to do with BMI. It is firmly planted in the landscape of discussions about obesity because it can […]
January 1, 2023 — While some of us slept last night, the calendar rolled us into the start of a whole new year. A clean slate with new challenges and opportunities. So what lies ahead? It’s impossible to know (as our review of 2022 predictions nicely shows), but that won’t stop us from offering our best guess. In that […]
December 24, 2022 — For some of us, gaining weight (especially at this time of year) is a metabolic curse. But there are individuals for whom gaining weight is a metabolic gift and, in fact, essential for surviving in good health. In this case, we are thinking about grizzly bears. These animals gain tremendous amounts of weight every year […]
November 5, 2022 — It’s been quite a week in San Diego and we hope that everyone is safely home or on their way. So with the wrap-up of OW2022 yesterday, here are a few thoughts we’ll take home with us from this remarkable week. 1. Pediatric Obesity Care Is Set to Leap Forward It’s hard to miss this […]
June 6, 2022 — It’s great sport or a great folly. Body mass index – BMI – is a simple measure and an easy target for so many people. It saves many people for many reasons from having to think about obesity. Clinicians who don’t want to think too hard about obesity might use BMI, mistakenly, all by itself, […]
May 18, 2022 — One of the important complications of obesity is NAFLD – non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Quite simply, this is a condition where unhealthy fat accumulates in the liver. It leads to inflammation and fibrosis, progressing to cirrhosis, liver cancer, or liver failure in severe cases. Often, it goes undetected until these more severe problems emerge. Because […]
April 19, 2022 — The problem with doing things to prolong your life is that all the extra years come at the end, when you’re old. Bob Mankoff captured this fundamental quandary in a New Yorker cartoon years ago. But the problem of managing health and risks remains on our minds nonetheless. So a new study in JAMA Network […]
April 17, 2022 — Obesity is a slur. This statement framed the opening to a recent symposium at the UC Berkeley School of Public health. The subject was weight inclusive public health. The goal was dialogue to address systemic anti-fatness and racism embedded in public health, medicine, and the food system. It’s a lot. On one hand a caricature of […]
