May 23, 2025 — The new MAHA (Making America Healthy Again) report on the health of American children is out and, in a word, things are terrible. In the words of the report, “it presents the stark reality of American children’s declining health.” We have a whole generation at risk because of toxic chemicals, ultra-processed food, unnecessary medical treatments, […]
May 15, 2025 — Who needs 164 pages of nutrition mumbo jumbo? The U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr, yesterday told the House Appropriations Committee he will be releasing a four-page document that sounds a lot like U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Dummies. He says it will be done by August: “We have until January, […]
March 23, 2025 — The campaign to Make America Healthy Again is cranking up with some eye-opening messaging. An early leader in this campaign turns out to be a burger chain, Steak ’n Shake. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. praised the chain last week for making french fries healthy again: “Congratulations @SteaknShake for being the […]
January 31, 2025 — For persons with obesity and prediabetes, one of the best ways to prevent diabetes onset is quite clear. Treat the obesity to reduce the excess adiposity. The Diabetes Prevention Program established this with a study in the NEJM way back in 2002. A prescription of diet and exercise could cut the risk of diabetes in […]
June 15, 2024 — For decades now, thinking about obesity that pits treatment against prevention has hampered efforts to “tackle” obesity. At the Boston Course in Obesity Medicine yesterday, ConscienHealth founder Ted Kyle examined this either/or thinking and suggested it is a mistake. In fact, it is becoming apparent that obesity care is a critical tool for prevention of […]
April 3, 2024 — We’re stuck. This assessment sums up frustration with efforts to reduce the harm of obesity and diabetes in public health. For many decades we have remained fixated on a paradigm that tells us obesity and diabetes are rising because our patterns of diet and exercise are all wrong. Writing in the Guardian, Amy McLennan tells […]
December 8, 2023 — Sounds great, looks great, not helpful. That’s how we would sum up the evidence for “fitspiration” social media posts and their influence on personal health. Oxford defines this genre as “a person or thing that serves as motivation for someone to sustain or improve health and fitness.” But a recent systematic review puts a harsher […]
October 8, 2023 — We have a problem with the health of America and it is fundamental. Chronic illness is killing too many of us too soon. It’s not getting better, either. Instead of helping with chronic illness, much of the response amounts to scolding the people who suffer with it. Much of the problem can be traced to […]
September 20, 2023 — Apparently big food is not scary enough. The Washington Post wants you to know that it’s really big tobacco that is selling you those noxious and addictive Teddy Grahams to destroy the health of your children. For this report, they rely on a paper by Tera Fazzino and colleagues. This continues a tradition of using […]
February 4, 2023 — In the realm of food, boogeymen come and go. But right now, the bad actor with staying power in global diets seems to be ultra-processed, industrially formulated, and hyper-marketed foods. What’s not to hate about them? There’s plenty of observational data, and even some good experimental data to make us suspicious. It gives us good […]
