Weighty Matters, which won the 2007 Canadian Blog Award for Best Sci/Tech Blog, is a Blogger Blog of Note.
Yoni Freedhoff, a Canadian doctor, writes a lot about the role of advertising in our health, especially false or misleading claims in food advertising. He exposes the links between Health Canada's Food Guide and the food industry. He has testified about the Food Guide before the House of Commons, and has a lot of interesting things to say about it - almost all negative.
Dr Freedhoff also links to some excellent sites, such as Quackwatch, Center for Science in the Public Interest, the Cornell Food and Brand Labs (a terrific place), and the great Marion Nestle. You might know Nestle from Michael Moore's "Sicko". I've been reading her work, off and on, for many years. She's brilliant, and she's truly independent.
I don't agree with all of Freedhoff's perspectives: I especially think he overemphasizes weight as a measure of health, and has an unrealistic and unhealthy definition of obesity. But a critical eye towards the influence of corporate advertising on our eating habits - and thus, on our bodies and our health, the very core of our existence - is so important, and so welcome.
9 comments:
I was also pleased that Best Sci/Tech Blog was not about computers or gadgetry!
If you haven't checked it out already, CBC has a great radio program/podcast called "White Coat, Black Art" which addresses health care issues from a Doctor's standpoint. Dr. Brian Goldman covers topics such as medical futility, Cybercondriacs, Pelvic Exams, ongoing Doctor Testing, etc.
Definately worth a listen, and probably the second-best half-hour weekly show on CBC behind the amazingly entertaining "Age of Persuasion".
Sounds great. Too bad I'll never hear it, because it's on the radio. Oh well.
You can listen online at those links above, if you like.
Alas, it doesn't matter whether it comes to me via an actual radio or the internet, I just can't deal with sitting and listening to a whole radio show.
But I'm sure other readers will appreciate the link.
Given that I have not once in the history of my blogging defined obesity, I'm confused by your comments that my views therein are unhealthy and unrealistic.
Had you taken the time to email me to ask me about my views you would have learned that I do not espouse the utilization of BMI to define obesity, I do not utilize ideal weight tables and I encourage patients to live the healthiest lives that they can enjoy, not the healthiest lives they can tolerate, even if their end result weights don't meet traditional medical definitions of "healthy" or "normal".
As far as eating goes I believe that no foods should be forbidden and that there should be minimum numbers of calories consumed, but not maximums.
I do believe weight is a determinant of health as does an absolute wealth of medical literature.
I also believe that simply having weight to lose doen't mean you can't be healthy at a higher weight as fitness mitigates a tremendous amount of weight-related risk.
Long story short. Please feel free to disagree with my perspectives - certainly my blogging often involves disagreeing with others' perspectives. I do however take offense to you assuming you understand how I define obesity and would challenge you to explain to me how it is that my comments above would qualify as either unrealistic or unhealthy.
Yoni, I think my post about your blog is generally very friendly and supportive of your views. If I disagree with some of your perspectives, well, that's just a difference. You've ignored most of what I wrote.
There was no need to email you before I commented. Commenting on posts one finds in the blogosphere is standard and perfectly acceptable blogging etiquette. It's done all the time.
You've said on your blog that 70% of North Americans are overweight. That's where I derived your definition of obesity from. If you believe that 70% of North Americans are overweight, then I think your definition of "overweight" must be unhealthy.
And I personally feel you put too much emphasis on weight, but you have that in common with most people in our society, and certainly most doctors.
Why you're offended, that, I have no idea. If this is the most offensive post another blogger ever writes about you, consider yourself unusual and lucky.
Not offended by the post as a whole, offended that you've offered up "my definition of obesity and overweight" as unhealthy and unrealistic without asking me for my definition and without me ever commenting on it.
To some extent, I define my practice, my views and my blog on what I feel to be an extremely healthy and realistic means of viewing obesity and overweight - something that I think we would both agree are sorely lacking in much of the medical community.
So I agree, the bulk of your post was very nice and I'm always happy to have my words questioned and while more often than not I don't respond to other people's views of my views, when someone questions something I feel incredibly strongly about - I find it hard to resist a response.
I often respond to other people's posts about my blog, so I certainly understand. It just seemed that you had missed the forest for the trees.
To some extent, I define my practice, my views and my blog on what I feel to be an extremely healthy and realistic means of viewing obesity and overweight - something that I think we would both agree are sorely lacking in much of the medical community.
I don't know if it is or not. My exposure to the medical community is limited. I once had a doctor who placed far too much emphasis on weight, but I've had two very good doctors who look at the larger picture and factor fitness in more than the number on the scale. So I couldn't venture a guess as to what the medical community's views are.
I'm more interested in how our society as a whole views weight and body size. To the extent that doctors reflect the world they live in, then perhaps most doctors share the same problematic views. But I wouldn't know.
That still doesn't mean we agree on what constitutes overweight or obesity, or on the extent that weight affects health.
However, I do agree with most of what you write on your blog, and most of what you've written here, and I like your blog quite a lot.
And now that you know where I derived (what I called) your "definition" from, hopefully that's that. Thanks for stopping by.
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