Free Republic

A record number of doctors applied to be certified to treat obesity this year amid the soaring popularity of weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Nearly 1,900 doctors signed up for the annual exam this October, the medical board behind the test said, which was a 50 percent increase compared to the previous year. Passing the exam distinguishes doctors as competent in treating obese patients and could set them on A path to rake in higher salaries. It comes after official data showed a record 40 percent of adults are now obese in three states — West Virginia, Louisiana and...

A weight-loss drug has been proven to also reduce the risk of a stroke or heart attack, according to a new trial. The makers of Wegovy, Novo Nordisk, say its latest study shows it cuts risk of a cardiovascular event in overweight people with heart disease by a fifth. The firm hailed it a "landmark trial", saying it would change the way obesity is regarded and treated. While the findings still have to be fully reviewed, experts agreed the results were potentially significant. The injection is popular in places like the US, and was approved for weight loss in the...

Brione Ramsey-Brooks hasn’t played a down for the TCU Horned Frogs yet, but he just might be their most famous player at the start of the new college football year. Ramsey-Brooks, standing at 6-feet-5-inches, and weighing 455 pounds, has been taking social media by storm with his shocking size and highlights from high school play that just seems unfair. Nicknamed "Big Bubba," the South Oak Cliff High School, Texas, recruit is set for his freshman season at TCU, where he hopes to compete for a spot on the offensive line. ~snip~ Ramsey-Brooks was rated a three-star recruit by 247Sports, ranking...

Chris Stewart, 37, used to drink 12 cans of Mountain Dew a day and eat large McDonald’s meals for lunch — until he saw a photo of himself at his dad’s funeral that made him feel “sick.” “Who is going to carry my casket?” Stewart recalled to SWNS. “I thought if I didn’t change something I’m going to die.” The Illinois forklift driver weighed 400 pounds at his heaviest, wearing a size 5XL. He would consume two cans of Mountain Dew each morning when he woke up and two McDonald’s cheeseburgers, a McChicken sandwich and fries for lunch.

Dr. Jordan B. Peterson and Dr. Peter Attia discuss healthspan, lifespan, obesity, the profound difference simple changes can make, diseases such as cancer and diabetes, and realistic ways you can actively work toward a higher quality of life. Dr. Peter Attia is a renowned physician and longevity expert, specializing in metabolic health and performance optimization. With a background in mechanical engineering and a medical degree from Stanford University School of Medicine, Dr. Attia brings the principles of Medicine 3.0 to patients with the goal of lengthening their lifespan and simultaneously improving their healthspan. Through his podcast, "The Drive," and his...

The traditional body mass index (BMI) measure may have misclassified millions of Americans as not having obesity, according to National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data. Among over 9,700 adults identified as having obesity according to total body fat percentage estimates using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) scans, the BMI measure only accurately classified 47%, reported Aayush Visaria, MD, MPH, of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, New Jersey, at ENDO 2023opens in a new tab or window, the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society. When ruling out obesity, BMI and DEXA measures were congruent 95% of...

Obesity has been previously linked to an increased risk of cancer, but most studies have not differentiated the risks between male and female patients. A study takes a closer look at this connection. The investigators report that both overall fat accumulation and fat distribution in different parts of the body confer different cancer risks depending on sex. Additionally, the risks vary across cancer types, like colorectal, esophageal, and liver cancer. The investigators used data from the UK Biobank, a cross-sectional cohort of 500,000 U.K. residents aged between 37 and 73 who were recruited between 2006 and 2010 and then followed...

Researchers have uncovered the molecular structure of Uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1), a protein instrumental in the burning of calories in brown fat tissue, often referred to as ‘good fat’. The essential molecular details discovered could aid in the development of therapeutics to activate UCP1 artificially, thus enabling the burning of excess calories and potentially combating obesity and diabetes. Scientists have discovered the molecular structure of the protein UCP1, crucial to calorie burning in ‘good’ brown fat tissue. This breakthrough, providing detailed molecular insights, could enable the development of treatments that artificially activate UCP1, thus burning off excess calories to combat...

Former President Donald Trump has announced his plan to “address the sharp rise in chronic illnesses and health problems” across the United States, including the establishment of a Presidential Commission of independent minds to investigate what is causing America’s “decades-long increase in chronic illnesses.” "In recent decades, there has been an unexplained and alarming growth in the prevalence of chronic illnesses and health problems, especially in children. We’ve seen a stunning rise in autism, auto-immune disorders, obesity, infertility, serious allergies, and respiratory challenges. It is time to ask: What is going on?" "Is it the food that they eat? The...

A popular obesity drug has been found to restore the function of immune cells that target cancer, regardless of whether people lost weight with the treatment. A small trial led by a team of Irish researchers investigated whether semaglutide, a drug used to treat type 2 diabetes, could also help ease problems with cellular metabolism in people with obesity which may explain their higher rates of cancer and infections. Weight loss was only ever an unexpected side effect of the drug, which diabetic patients use to keep their blood sugar levels in check. It works by imitating a gut hormone...

Maynooth University's Kathleen Londsdale Institute for Human Health Research has just published research into the benefits of the popular obesity treatment drug, GLP-1. Previous research has found that people with obesity are at a greater risk of developing cancer, in part due to their anticancer immune cells—better known as the 'Natural Killer (NK)' cell—being rendered useless due to their disease. New research carried out by Dr. Andrew Hogan and his team has found that the popular, and gold-standard pharmacological treatment for obesity, Glucagon-like peptide (GLP-1) analogues, can actually restore the NK cell function in the body including its ability to...

As a growing number of overweight Americans clamor for Ozempic and Wegovy — drugs touted by celebrities and on TikTok to pare pounds — an even more powerful obesity medicine is poised to upend treatment. Tirzepatide, an Eli Lilly and Co. drug approved to treat type 2 diabetes under the brand name Mounjaro, helped people with the disease who were overweight or had obesity lose up to 16% of their body weight, or more than 34 pounds, over nearly 17 months, the company said on Thursday. The late-stage study of the drug for weight loss adds to earlier evidence that...

A plus-size travel social media influencer demanded that airlines better accommodate larger passengers when traveling. Jae’lynn Chaney from Vancouver, Washington, started the Change.org petition “Demand for the FAA to Protect Plus-Sized Customers,” detailing several demands to ensure larger passengers can fly without issues. … “The FAA must require all airlines to implement a clear customer-of-size policy that prioritizes the comfort and well-being of all passengers. This policy should include clear guidelines on accommodating larger passengers, such as providing larger seats, seat belt extenders, and alternative seating arrangements,” Chaney wrote in the petition. “All plus-size passengers should be provided with an...

Obesity is the single greatest barrier to recruitment in the American military today, and the problem is only getting worse.The Associated Press reported last week nearly 10,000 active-duty Army servicemembers emerged from the coronavirus lockdowns obese, “pushing the rate to nearly a quarter of the troops studied.” Major weight gains were also seen in the Navy and Marines. A pamphlet from the American Security Project (ASP) published last month raised the alarm over the nation’s runaway obesity epidemic jeopardizing national security. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 42 percent of the U.S. adult population was obese...

Being overweight may be physically changing the environment within people's joints, as new research suggests that obesity is promoting pro-inflammatory conditions which worsen arthritis. In a study, researchers have found that specific cells in the joint lining tissue (synovium) of patients with osteoarthritis are being changed due to factors associated with obesity. Previous research has shown that fat tissue that has been metabolically altered by obesity releases proteins called cytokines and adipokines, which are known to promote inflammation around the body. The newly published study observed that in cells taken from biopsies of arthritic joints, obesity also changes the environment...

According to a recent Pentagon study, the state of America’s youth is not conducive to military service. Via American Military News:A Pentagon study revealed that 77 percent of young Americans do not qualify for military service without a waiver due to being overweight, drug use, or mental or physical problems.“When considering youth disqualified for one reason alone, the most prevalent disqualification rates are overweight (11 percent), drug and alcohol abuse (8 percent), and medical/physical health (7 percent),” the Pentagon’s 2020 Qualified Military Available Study of Americans between the ages of 17 and 24 read.Where are the Public Health™ authorities? They...

A new study in the journal Nature Medicine analyzes longitudinal and cross-sectional changes in blood analytes associated with variations in body mass index (BMI). The prevalence of obesity has been increasing over the past four decades among adolescents, adults, and children throughout the world. Several studies have reported obesity to be a major risk factor for multiple chronic diseases such as metabolic syndrome (MetS), type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), cardiovascular disease (CVD), and certain types of cancer. Even 5% weight loss among obese individuals can improve metabolic and cardiovascular health, as well as reduce the risk for obesity-related chronic diseases....

More than half of the global population will be overweight or obese by 2035 if action is not taken on the issue, according to a new report. The World Obesity Foundation released its fifth annual atlas on the global status of obesity this week, predicting that 51 percent of the global population — about 4 billion people — will be obese or overweight in 12 years. The report also said that from 2020 to 2035, the share of the world’s population considered to be obese will increase from 14 to 24 percent. In 2020, 38 percent of the world population...

The study carried out by Rambam researchers found that there is no connection between the amount of insulin in children and their tendency to obesity.Carbohydrates have taken a lot of flak in recent years, but they are not all bad and are not necessarily responsible for causing obesity, according to a new study at Rambam Healthcare Campus in Haifa. Simple carbs like white bread, pasta and rice, corn syrup and all types of sugar – whose beneficial nutrients have been eliminated – are digested quickly. The study was conducted by Rambam researchers led by Dr. Rana Halloun, a senior...

More than half of the world's population will be overweight or obese by 2035 without significant action, according to a new report. The World Obesity Federation's 2023 atlas predicts that 51% of the world, or more than 4 billion people, will be obese or overweight within the next 12 years. Rates of obesity are rising particularly quickly among children and in lower income countries, the report found.