Your Doctor Said WHAT?

Get ready for an eye-opening episode of the Keep the Weight Off Podcast this week! Dr. Angela and Marchelle take a deep dive into the shocking biases and misconceptions surrounding obesity in the healthcare industry. 🩺💼

 
Here's a sneak peek of what you'll learn:

🔍 Uncovering the heartbreaking story of a patient facing judgment and prejudice from medical professionals.
🧠 Understanding the science behind obesity as a chronic progressive metabolic disease.
💡 Exploring the Joint International Consensus Statement for Ending the Stigma of Obesity and its crucial insights.
🚫 Confronting bias head-on and advocating for compassionate, informed healthcare practices.
🌟 Finding hope and support in a community that understands the complexities of weight management.

Remember, you're not alone in your journey. Let's challenge misconceptions together and pave the way for a healthier, more inclusive future.

Stay empowered, stay informed, and keep fighting the good fight!

Episode Highlights:

(04:53) Obesity kills 300, 000 people every year in the United States alone, and it takes eight years off of our lives. Most people with obesity have spent a lifetime trying to diet and exercise their way out of it, and very few succeed using that strategy alone.

Is that because all of these people have massive character flaws and are really just lazy gluttons? Absolutely not. It's because obesity is a chronic, progressive, metabolic disease that in most cases cannot be fixed with willpower.

(08:44) The Joint International Consensus Statement for Ending the Stigma of Obesity was published in 2020. There are 2 important points in the section titled “The science of obesity versus misconceptions in the public narrative of obesity”:

1. “The assumption that body weight is entirely under volitional control and that voluntarily eating less and or exercising more can entirely prevent or reverse obesity is at odds with a definitive body of biological and clinical evidence developed over the last several decades”.

2. “Popular expressions such as energy in versus energy out, or calories in versus calories out are misleading because they inaccurately imply that body weight and or fat mass are solely influenced by the number of food calories ingested and the amount of energy burned through exercise. This narrative is not supported by evidence, and provides a foundation for popular, stigmatizing views that blame individual's lack of willpower for their obesity”.

(15:58) If you hear this sort of bias from your healthcare professional, you're not alone. Number one, obesity medicine professionals would never say these things. We understand that this is a terrible disease, and it's very difficult to keep it under control.

There are complex factors involved, including a processed food industry that is constantly advertising in your face all the time, your genetics, how early you were exposed to these toxic foods, and all kinds of social bias. There are so many factors going on that affect this disease and how it manifests. Not all of us but many of us understand that processed food is a drug, and so there's an addiction component to overcome too.