People with obesity are constantly shamed and blamed for their chronic health condition. This is because many people - including doctors, policymakers, and others - do not understand that obesity is a disturbance of normal physiology. They see it as a simple lack of willpower, laziness, or a refusal to "eat less and move more".
But like all chronic health conditions, the root causes of obesity run much deeper. They can be genetic, psychological, sociocultural, economic and environmental. It is time we break the cycle of shame and blame and revaluate our approach for addressing this complex chronic disease that affects 8 million Australians.
While the heritability of obesity has been shown in twin studies and clinical practice, only a small percentage of patients have a purely genetic cause (eg leptin deficiency) or a purely medical cause (eg hypothalamic tumour) for their obesity.
For the majority of patients at genetic risk of developing obesity, environmental factors (physical, social and economic) facilitate weight gain.
Join us and organisations around the world for a new World Obesity Day on March 4, 2020, as we push for more comprehensive solutions, treatment and collective responsibility for addressing this global epidemic.
Together, we can address the far reaching personal, societal, and economic impacts of obesity.
Together we can create a healthier future.
Dr Rigas’ take home messages this World Obesity Day:
- people don't choose to develop obesity; therefore the shame and blame needs to stop!
- We need to shift the conversation from loss of weight to gain in health
- effective treatments such as anti-obesity medications and bariatric surgery do exist and may health improve your health and function
- I encourage people living with obesity or who have a strong family history of obesity to make an appointment with a GP who understands the science underlying obesity
Spread the word #worldobesityday
