This is a really neat and well-researched paper. If you're looking for the summary, the most likely contaminants contributing to the obesity epidemic as identi

This is a really neat and well-researched paper. If you're looking for the summary, the most likely contaminants contributing to the obesity epidemic as identified by the authors are: (1) antibiotics in livestock that accumulate in both food and water supplies, (2) Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) which are ubiquitous and hard to destroy and (3) Lithium in the water supply. The authors paint a convincing picture of why the obesity epidemic almost certainly is a result of environmental contaminants. This includes, but is not limited to (weakest to strongest, IMO); - The research on modern diets showing they're most ineffectual - Animals are getting predictably fatter at the same rates as humans in urban areas, and this is increasing - The concept of lipostasis: human bodies having a set point of fat storage and the research around it - Historically population BMI grew very slowly, starting at around 23, to suddenly ramp up unabated around the 1970s-80s - Areas further away from primary watersheds (where water can pick up more contaminants) tend to have higher population BMIs as a function of distance traveled from watershed - Lithium production was basically nonexistent until the 50s and spiked in the 70s-80s - Lithium is directly correlated with weight gain (primary research provided) and areas with water testing higher in Lithium have higher population BMIs ... and a lot more. It's worth a read. I think anybody that's overweight should still index heavily on diet and exercise (even if there's a contaminant, it seems unavoidable), but it's interesting.