April 2, 2021 — A good friend once told us, “Obesity is not a disease. You can’t catch it.” We won’t deny that his comment reflects the feelings of many people. But on the facts, he was simply wrong. A new systematic review in the International Journal of Obesity tells us that, indeed, it is possible to catch obesity. […]
March 20, 2021 — Some time ago, the Beatles told us that money can’t buy us love. Now a new study from Molly Martin at Penn State suggests that it also may not buy a community less obesity. Martin is a researcher with a keen interest in social inequality, families, and child well-being. Her research examines data from a […]
March 8, 2021 — The overlap between systemic racism and obesity is unmistakable. Obesity is a condition that burdens the health of Black, Hispanic and Indigenous people more than others. It is a key factor that has made these communities more susceptible to severe symptoms and death from COVID-19. A new paper in the Journal of Internal Medicine offers […]
February 12, 2021 — Once again, we see the impulse rise to catastrophize obesity. A new study in BMC Public Health offers up a comparison of deaths due to smoking and adiposity. So naturally, this sparks splashy headlines. Obesity kills more than smoking! Scary stuff. But not terribly helpful. Because the subtext of this sort of hype is finger […]
February 8, 2021 — In the popular imagination, obesity is simple. Many people presume that the root cause is obvious. But the presumptions vary. Some like to blame the food industry – for junk food, too much sugar, and predatory marketing. In the UK, where weight bias is common, the NHS is blunt. “Obesity is generally caused by eating […]
January 3, 2021 — Food addiction is a concept that sticks to the popular psyche. Yet it remains scientifically controversial. True believers will tell you that eating addictive food “lights up” parts of the brain involved in addiction. But then, just about anything that brings a person pleasure does that. So this is not an especially persuasive argument to […]
December 23, 2020 — China is going to eliminate food waste and fight obesity in a single stroke of regulation. How, you ask? Operation Empty Plate will expand into law. China will make it a crime to promote food waste, including overeating. The hilarity of naive efforts to regulate food marketing never disappoints. Stiff Fines for Bad Marketing Right […]
December 17, 2020 — A furious debate rages on. Are we meant to get half of our food energy from carbs? So naturally, this was a key theme of debates about dietary guidelines due soon from the USDA and HHS. But a quieter debate persists in the background. This is an ongoing discussion about the merits of the carbohydrate […]
November 25, 2020 — Implicit bias about obesity is a funny thing. In the middle of a conversation about it, someone tells us, “Sure, it’s biological. But you can’t just go eating burgers and fries all the time.” Invite people to share their thoughts about obesity and you get images of a mom gorging herself on a ridiculous burger. […]
November 19, 2020 — Bias about obesity is funny. Because some of the smartest people say the dumbest things when they aren’t thinking. That’s when implicit weight bias comes into view. For example, Governor Andrew Cuomo connected the dots yesterday between cheesecake, COVID, and obesity. But it’s pretty hard to figure out what in the world he was thinking. […]
