Fructose, a new paper proposes, is the pernicious little demon driving so many human metabolisms towards obesity.

A meta-analytic review of previous studies indicates that obese individuals have an increased risk of depression and that this relationship isn't just correlational -- obesity might be one of the causes of depression. The researchers argue that the increased occurrence of depression in the population in recent decades might be at least partly due to the increase in obesity. The study was published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research. ...

Report says giving semaglutide once a week gave ‘historically unprecedented’ results

Excess weight or obesity boosts risk of death by anywhere from 22% to 91%—significantly more than previously believed—while the mortality risk of being slightly underweight has likely been overestimated, according to new CU Boulder research. The findings, published Feb. 9 in the journal Population Studies, counter prevailing wisdom that excess weight boosts mortality risk only in extreme cases.

An Eli Lilly drug if approved for weight loss could become the best-selling drug of all time, but concerns are mounting about who will actually be able to afford it. Experts are confident that the drug, called tirzepatide, will be granted approval by the Food and Drug Administration sometime next year. If that’s the case, it would join two other popular — and expensive — recently approved weight loss drugs on the market, Wegovy and Saxenda, both from the drugmaker Novo Nordisk.

A series of five experiments reported that people tend to deny overweight individuals mental agency, but not experience. Heavier weight people are seen as less capable of controlling their own lives, thinking and acting autonomously. However, weight did not affect the level of experience ascribed to the person being assessed. The study was published in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin.

The drug could be a useful new tool for treating childhood obesity.

Scientists are searching far and wide for new tools in the battle against rising obesity rates, and lately a promising candidate has emerged from piles of purified sand. A new study has bolstered the potential of silica particles made from this material by showing how they block enzyme activity to hamper the body’s uptake of fats and sugars, while also hinting at the ideal design for the optimal anti-obesity effects.

UK data shows authoritarian or neglectful parenting linked to higher weight in children and adolescents

The study, titled Plant-based diet for obesity treatment, was published in this months issue of the journal Frontiers in Nutrition, and was epublished by the National Library of Medicine. It was conducted by researchers at the Universiti Brunei Darussalam in Brunei.

The actor Brendan Fraser has said playing the role of a severely obese man has taught him that those with similar bodies are “incredibly” strong people, both mentally and physically. The Whale, which premieres in competition at the Venice Film Festival on Sunday, has already generated buzz with speculation that it could be on the road to Oscar success.

Obesity in humans is a growing global phenomenon and is one of the greatest public health challenges we face today. Is is also true that the human-animal companion population is also increasing. Obesity in pets is a growing concern, and its increasing occurrence appears to be mirroring the trend observed in humans. The main reason …

Bristol study finds that for every five extra BMI units a woman’s risk of endometrial cancer increases by 88%

New research from Penn State found that children with positive, early interactions with their care givers — characterized by warmth, responsiveness, and a stimulating home environment — were at reduced risk of childhood obesity.

The study found overweight adults who habitually slept fewer than 6.5 hours a night were able to add an extra 1.2 hours of sleep after undergoing counselling to improve their sleeping habits. Sleeping for an extra hour each night can help people shave around 270 calories off their daily diet - the equivalent of three chocolate biscuits, new research has found.

One hormone we are seeing implicated more and more in obesity research goes by the name of leptin, and scientists continue to demonstrate how changing the way the body responds to it might lead to improved health. A new study has shown how targeting an enzyme within fat cells can alter sensitivity to leptin and in turn drive rapid weight loss in obese mice, while also improving overall metabolic health.

Do you have an anti-fat bias? Suppose you are shown a picture of two new coworkers, one thin and one overweight or obese: What judgments might you make about these two coworkers based on their body weight and body size? For instance, would they appear to you equally competent (i.e. dominant, skillful, intelligent, efficient) and warm (i.e. friendly, trustworthy, kind, helpful, sincere)?

Losing weight through exercise appears to be more difficult for obese people, research suggests. Initially, researchers thought that the total energy we spend in a day is the sum of energy expended due to activity (ranging from light gardening to running a marathon) and energy used for basic functioning (what keeps us ticking even when we are doing nothing, such as immune function and wound healing).

A drug approved for diabetes has now been shown to also help patients with diabetes lose on average 10 percent of their body weight, UT Southwestern reports in a landmark international study.

An overwhelming majority of people who have been hospitalized, needed a ventilator or died from Covid-19 have been overweight or obese, the CDC said.