January 7, 2021 — This has become too common in recent years. We find ourselves parsing the difference between misinformation and a lie. We all have plenty of fresh examples. But the one on our mind comes to us from reporting by the Washington Post. Yesterday, Alexandra Ellerbeck reported that COVID-19 vaccines might be less effective for people with […]
January 6, 2021 — When you’ve got something to sell and you know in your heart that it’s really great, you’ve got a problem. The temptation to oversell can be tough to resist. In health promotion, exercise is an obvious example. Over at the New York Times, Gretchen Reynolds is a huge fan. She writes the Phys Ed series […]
December 30, 2020 — This happens only once every five years. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, along with Health and Human Services, issued new dietary guidelines yesterday. This is big news, but the reporting on it is pretty slim. In the 2020 guidelines for eating, we have some gains and some gaps in translating science into policy. In keeping […]
December 16, 2020 — Right now, if you search Google for COVID vaccine obesity, the top result will be a story from Nature that says the vaccine might not work well for people with obesity. But the truth is quite different. Because yesterday, FDA released data on the Moderna vaccine, and it works quite well, even in people with […]
December 12, 2020 — Sometimes an idea firmly plants itself in the popular imagination. Once there, it takes root and persists like a weed. It simply will not die. So it is with the idea that exercise is an excellent tool for weight loss. This is a lie that won’t die. A Nice Little Study Gretchen Reynolds at the […]
December 9, 2020 — Contrary to headline-grabbing speculation, data on the Pfizer COVID vaccine tell us it works equally well in people whether or not they have obesity. These data come from detailed briefing documents on the vaccine released yesterday by FDA. Up until now, the information on COVID vaccines has been sparse – mostly press releases and speculation. […]
November 27, 2020 — It’s time for a shift in media narratives about obesity in Western Australia. So says the Health Consumers Council of Western Australia, in concert with the government there. The HCC is a nonprofit voice of the health consumer. It works across many health issues to ensure people have a say in health policy. HCC listened […]
November 12, 2020 — The American College of Cardiology is serving up anti-inflammatory food. Dig in! In a press release earlier this month, the College told us that an anti-inflammatory diet can lower heart disease and stroke risk. It sounds great, but if you read the press release, you’ll find that these studies are all about modest correlations. Not […]
October 4, 2020 — The talk about obesity in the UK is drifting away from a full and constructive view. Instead, it has moved toward a more narrow view of personal responsibility. These findings come from a new analysis by Paul Baker and colleagues. Over ten years following the landmark Foresight Report, reporting about obesity in the British press […]
October 3, 2020 — Coronavirus fatigue. Many people were tired of thinking constantly about this virus until our president seized our attention on Friday with the news that he has it. Suddenly we have renewed energy for this subject. And one sidebar to this topic is the president’s risk for severe symptoms. “Trump is 74, male and obese,” says […]
