On Episode 4 of the ACSH Science Dispatch Podcast, we examine the need for COVID boosters and the increasingly irrelevant concept of herd immunity. We then dive into an incendiary discussion about the social-justice-inspired effort to deny the dangers of obesity. Finally, is there a "cancel culture" in science?
obesity
On Episode 2 of the ACSH Science Dispatch Podcast, we examine New York City's now-defunct COVID vaccine mandate. Did it work, why or why not? We then dive into recent research showing that diet soda can help you safely lose weight, despite popular claims to the contrary.
New research suggests that vegan diets promote weight loss. There's a little bit more to the story, though.
As "fat acceptance" gains cultural traction, a growing coalition of health care providers and advice websites downplays the dangers of obesity to appease social justice activists. LiveStrong offers yet another example of the intellectual tap dancing this charade requires.
Can we get our obesity problem under control? In part one of this series, we saw that common policy responses to our expanding waistlines have failed. Let's now consider why these interventions tend to yield such disappointing results.
Many obesity experts argue that changing the public's "food environment" is the key to promoting widespread weight loss. This proposed solution is not backed by solid evidence.
Fat-acceptance advocates say medical terms like "obesity" and "overweight" stigmatize fat people and should be eliminated from our vocabulary. They're putting public health at risk to promote a misguided ideology.
Ordering diet soda significantly reduces the number of calories customers eat when they visit fast food restaurants, according to a recent study. The paper is an example of scientists reaching the right conclusion for the wrong reasons.
A new systematic review and meta-analysis suggests that drinks sweetened with sugar substitutes may promote weight loss. Could these results end the dispute over the benefits of diet soda? Let's take a closer look.
Perhaps you’re familiar with the sentiment about how a child's behavior is often transformed into how they act as an adult. A new study finds a connection between some early lifestyle and health choices and later-life concerns.
There is a campaign underway to discourage health care providers from weighing their patients unless it’s "medically necessary." Proponents of this effort are rightly concerned about the stigma often attached to obesity, but they're going about it the wrong way by minimizing the risks of being overweight.
Let us leave aside our obsession with COVID and consider two more significant health problems that have long plagued us, obesity and cardiometabolic disease resulting in hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. As a new review article suggests, “Adipose tissue lies at the center of these health problems….” Fat is more than something that insulates and gives our body a shape.