Abstract
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently issued two statements that 1) maintain that obesity causes diabetes and other expressions of the metabolic syndrome and 2) that imply obesity is the victim's fault. Both statements are incorrect and potentially harmful.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Data Availability
The only data involved are the direct statments from the CDC and these are cited.
References
Health effects of overweight and obesity [Internet]. [Atlanta]: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; [reviewed 2022 Sep 24; cited 2023 Aug 12]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/effects/index.html.
Pories WJ, Swanson MS, MacDonald KG, et al. Who would have thought it? An operation proves to be the most effective therapy for adult-onset diabetes mellitus. Ann Surg. 1995;222(3):33950. https://doi.org/10.1097/00000658-199509000-00011.discussion350-2.
Purnell JQ, Dewey EN, Laferrère B, et al. Diabetes remission status during seven-year follow-up of the longitudinal assessment of bariatric surgery study. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2021;106(3):774–88. https://doi.org/10.1210/clinem/dgaa849.
Causes of obesity [Internet]. [Atlanta]: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; [reviewed 2022 Mar 21; cited 2023 Aug 12]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/basics/causes.html.
Liang R, Feng X, Shi D, et al. Obesity modifies the association of environmental pyrethroid exposure with glucose homeostasis in the US general adults. Environ Pollut. 2023;328: 121671.
Cano-Sancho G, Warembourg C, Güil N, et al. Nutritional modulation of associations between prenatal exposure to persistent organic pollutants and childhood obesity: a prospective cohort study. Environ Health Perspect. 2023;131(3):37011.
Kowalczyk M, Piwowarski JP, Wardaszka A, et al. Application of in vitro models for studying the mechanisms underlying the obesogenic action of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) as food contaminants-a review. Int J Mol Sci. 2023;24(2):1083.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Ethics Approval
This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.
Informed Consent
Informed consent does not apply.
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare no competing interests.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Key Points
• Recent online statements by the CDC discuss causes and effects of obesity.
• These statements do not consider data from outcomes in bariatric surgery.
• Further, they imply that patients with obesity are to blame for excess weight.
• Patients deserve information regarding other potential obesogenic factors.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Miller, Z.C., Kang, B.K., Cooke, S.W. et al. The Obesity Epidemic Is Not the Victims’ Fault. OBES SURG 34, 688–689 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-023-06978-5
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-023-06978-5