Posts Tagged ‘stress’

World Obesity Day arrives today in a moment when the world feels inflamed. Headlines with images of conflict and human suffering suggest whole regions spinning into chaos. In this context, concerns about the global harm of obesity can seem disconnected from realities of the day. It is not. In fact, the global harms of obesity […]

This day (the American Fourth of July holiday) has us thinking more about liberty in America than obesity. So, as we read current news reports and think about the words inscribed on the Statue of Liberty, we cannot help wondering if it isn’t time to retire this relic. These words currently land with a thud: […]

“Poor diet is the leading cause of mortality in the U.S. due to the direct relationship with diet-related chronic diseases,” write Emily Matthews and Emma Kurnat-Thoma for Frontiers in Public Health. At the top of the list of “diet-related chronic diseases” is obesity, because it leads to so many other chronic health problems, disability, and […]

In dealing with health policy related to obesity for nearly two decades, the stubborn persistence of health disparities has been one of the most frustrating issues. On the opening day of Nutrition 2024, an impressive series of new studies reminded us of an important contributor to those disparities. Keeping people guessing about their food security […]

We see a trend in New Year’s resolutions. People seem to be moving from grandiose to doable. The emphasis in much of what we read is on real impact instead of great ambitions. So in that spirit, we have one for you that everyone can keep: don’t be a jerk. Not even when it might […]

“We have found a way to soothe the pain of living in this society by stimulating the reward pathway with unhealthy foods just as people do with alcohol and drugs.” This blunt obserservation landed in our inbox with a thud from obesity scientist and clinician Caroline Apovian last week. A counterbalance to the optimistic talk […]

Yes, we are ready for a little lot more peace and goodwill in this world we have filled lately with too much pain and strife. Thousands of children dying in a war of retribution, famine, gun violence, mistrust, and animosity. It is all simply too much to bear at times. But we have options. “The […]

New surveillance data from the U.S. Defense Health Agency tells us that the pandemic brought a large jump in diabetes, obesity, and eating disorders in the military. Between 2018 and 2021, the prevalence of obesity rose from 16 percent to 19 percent. The incidence of type 2 diabetes jumped by 25 percent and new cases […]

Boredom is unpleasant for a reason – our brain wants action from us. It is a signal that, whatever we’re doing, something isn’t right. We’re not engaged with it or we’re not finding meaning in it. We need to change course. So one way or another, we will respond to that discomfort prompting us for […]

When we wrote recently about stress as an important factor in rising obesity, the natural question popped up. Hasn’t stress always been with us? And of course it has been. But it turns out that it’s pretty easy to find indications that stress is indeed increasing in parallel with obesity. In fact, the American Psychological […]