4 ms·

I realize obesity is a major problem, but so is neuroticism about health, weight, and diet. I agree with the nagging feeling that using a drug to address hunge

by throwaway19972 2y ago

I realize obesity is a major problem, but so is neuroticism about health, weight, and diet. I agree with the nagging feeling that using a drug to address hunger is likely to have negative consequences for some people. EDIT: obsession -> neuroticism

ykonstant 2y ago
> I realize obesity is a major problem, but so is obsession about health and weight. The scales of the two problems are not even remotely comparable.
- throwaway19972 2y ago
  I don't think this is true at all. Peoples' obsession with solving obesity as a cure-all for human health deserves pushback. There's also a concerning degree of moralizing it that has no place in our culture but has taken firm root.
  - sodality2 2y ago
    In 1990, no US state had more than 20% obesity. In 2018, no US state had less than 20% obesity. [0]: https://obesity.procon.org/us-obesity-levels-by-state/ https://obesity.procon.org/us-obesity-levels-by-state/ and https://stateofchildhoodobesity.org/data-by-policy/ https://stateofchildhoodobesity.org/data-by-policy/ Obesity has been linked to a huge number of health harms and they've been known for decades. [1]: https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/obesity-health-consequences-of-being-overweight https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/obe... and https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/weight-management/adult-overweight-obesity/health-risks https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/weight-manageme... I think you may be right that there's room for nuance about obesity, especially moralization about it, but you simply cannot deny that it's a huge problem in the US
    - throwaway19972 2y ago
      > I think you may be right that there's room for nuance about obesity, especially moralization about it, but you simply cannot deny that it's a huge problem in the US Of course not. I just don't like how most conversations about health get subsumed into the much less productive conversation about how destructive obesity is.
      - consteval 2y ago
        I mean obesity slowly kills you. It's no different than being an alcoholic or a smoker. There's really no healthy way to be those things, the thing itself is destructive. The reality is, to me, obesity is born of addiction. Which is why ozempic is exciting. Because it's not a solution that relies on moralizing or fatphobia or shaming.

ykonstant 2y ago

> I realize obesity is a major problem, but so is obsession about health and weight. The scales of the two problems are not even remotely comparable.

throwaway19972 2y ago
I don't think this is true at all. Peoples' obsession with solving obesity as a cure-all for human health deserves pushback. There's also a concerning degree of moralizing it that has no place in our culture but has taken firm root.
- sodality2 2y ago
  In 1990, no US state had more than 20% obesity. In 2018, no US state had less than 20% obesity. [0]: https://obesity.procon.org/us-obesity-levels-by-state/ https://obesity.procon.org/us-obesity-levels-by-state/ and https://stateofchildhoodobesity.org/data-by-policy/ https://stateofchildhoodobesity.org/data-by-policy/ Obesity has been linked to a huge number of health harms and they've been known for decades. [1]: https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/obesity-health-consequences-of-being-overweight https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/obe... and https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/weight-management/adult-overweight-obesity/health-risks https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/weight-manageme... I think you may be right that there's room for nuance about obesity, especially moralization about it, but you simply cannot deny that it's a huge problem in the US
  - throwaway19972 2y ago
    > I think you may be right that there's room for nuance about obesity, especially moralization about it, but you simply cannot deny that it's a huge problem in the US Of course not. I just don't like how most conversations about health get subsumed into the much less productive conversation about how destructive obesity is.
    - consteval 2y ago
      I mean obesity slowly kills you. It's no different than being an alcoholic or a smoker. There's really no healthy way to be those things, the thing itself is destructive. The reality is, to me, obesity is born of addiction. Which is why ozempic is exciting. Because it's not a solution that relies on moralizing or fatphobia or shaming.