NYT article: Weight Loss Drugs vs. Ultra-Processed Food

Very interesting. I have a couple friends that have lost significant amounts of weight on the GLP-1 meds. I'll have to ask them if their tastes have changed. I know mine changed after having gastric bypass surgery. I can't tolerate packaged sweet treats like ho hos or twinkies, etc. either (mentioned in the article). They leave a weird film in my mouth and taste of chemicals. I do crave healthier foods-but I grew up in an ingredients house with very little packaged food used. I have always been a vegetable lover. It was interesting to me the people they studied seemed to crave fresh produce, but most of it mentioned was fruit.

That's horrible and frustrating. I watched a Sanjay Gupta special on CNN that talked about Ozempic and similar meds. I have also listened to his podcast and I believe he had one of the doctors on an episode that was in the TV special. That doctor says that obesity is a disease and my understanding was that he was implying that people don't have any control over that. I don't think it is that simple. The experts are seeing that these meds can have positive impacts on various health issues, which is great. But I think we need to have a better understanding of how people get to the point that they need these meds to begin with. That is not to blame people, but to look at why we have more people with issues like obesity, behavioral and mental health disorders, etc now than we did in the past. I think it likely comes down to food and environmental factors but we need to know details of that. Are our bodies not getting what they need to naturally increase the hormones that we need to regulate these issues? If so, why? The answer is less processed food, not even more hyper-processed food.

Very interesting. I'm just now starting to experience taste change with my latest increase on Mounjaro. I take it for diabetes but would Love to lose some weight on it as well.

Two things I've noticed so far is that I am full much faster and meals I used to love don't interest me anymore. I haven't really noticed anything around processed or fast food yet but it wouldn't surprise me if I lost my taste for those as well. My brain still thinks I'll enjoy the meals I've made but after a few bites, I'm done.

Very interesting article, thank you for sharing!

Was all of that because of Michelle Obama or other changes during that time and since?

That was a truly interesting article. It talks about big food vs. big pharma, two industries that are all sorts of underhanded. I have a love of Ho-Ho's that goes back for decades. Though I haven't had one in several years.  Since I don't eat 99% of food, because I can't I might not be the best person to weigh in here.  However, I feed a family and I wish that they had grown up with much healthier food.  Produce shouldn't be an alternative.  It should be the focus point of a meal w/protein.

That so many people have a diet of processed food is a sad fact of life in this country. It's interesting that other countries like France have a much "smaller" population, but they eat butter, cream, etc. Perhaps the difference is due to the fact that they use fresh ingredients and smaller portions. The low calorie/reduced fat stuff is loaded w/chemicals and I wonder about the damage that processed foods are doing to our bodies?

I'm most interested to find out the long term effects of the weight loss drugs. Over time will they prove to be a miracle drug or will we find out that they cause significant damage to the body? It scares me that big food and big pharma might start working together. If we start eating produce and lean proteins more than junk then companies lose money or go out of business. Likewise, if cures happen for disease then big pharma is out of business. We're crash test dummies.

Very interesting read. I have read something in the past month or so sort of saying the same thing. I can't remember where I read it but it was basically saying you know how when you eat a Lay's potato chip and you can't eat just one? Well, you can't. The Big Food scientists are figuring out how to make those items even more addicting. I am a savory person more than a sweet person. But I do like those Little Debbie Christmas Trees, not gonna lie. Are they good for me, do anything for me? Nope, not one bit. But at 9pm, when I remember the spot I hid them, I will grab one before I grab an apple. And yes, I do hide them from myself and it usually is a game I win. However, I am an emotional eater. Addicts of some sort run in our family's DNA.

I have been wanting to think on the use of GLP-1s but the cost is keeping me away. What I do know is when I eat correctly and for me that is whole foods, I feel better. When I work very hard to not have fast food for lunch, I see a difference on the scales and the way my clothes fit. Then I hit a wall and I break and reach for the Christmas tree. Or the Oreos that DH must have in the house. I really need to tell him those need to stay in his office. I am really good if I don't see it, I won't crave or eat it.

My autoimmune issues have taught me a lot of my aches, pains, etc will flare with foods I eat. I have wondered for a very long time if our eating (the US) habits and the foods that are out there have contributed to the rise in the health crisis. Not just the obesity factor. But general overall health. And knowing that the Big Food industry is actively doing what they are doing to the food truly makes me believe they are walking hand in hand with big pharma. You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours kind of thing. I have discussed with my rheumatologist alternate things to get off some of my meds for my fibro. He is 1000% behind getting off as much many as possible. Unless there is no alternative for the need.

I used to love to cook and then just hit the blahs. I do love it when I know it will be enjoyed and eaten. The past couple of months, I am getting a bit of spark back. I am hoping that 2025 is the year I take me back.

scrapmaven I am making small baby steps now. I love the cheerleader that you are. There are holidays and a wedding between now and the end of the year. I will do the best I can on the days I can. I am hoping that 2025 is the no excuses year for me. I have a rower, a stationary bike, a walking pad, weights and 2 dogs that need walking. I make the excuses every.dang.day!

jeremysgirl are you sure your DH and my DH are not somehow in the same gene pool? The exact thing will happen at dinner for us. He feels there must always be a meat and some starchy veggie on the plate. I will do broccoli and it is like a toddler made his plate. Just enough for me to see he has some. I am like you. There really is no veggie that I have tried that I don't like. I love love roasted brussels sprouts. That is an ABSOLUTELY no touch for DH. For me, I need to learn how to make my veggies seem substantial. I know how the whole protein numbers stuff work out. You are right that it is a old fashioned mind set of what used to be thought of as "good for you" as to what we now know works out better for you. I really to be more on my game for breakfast and have it ready to grab from the fridge. Get in my rut and stay in it. So let's cheer each other on!!

So I have a confession to make - after posting some long post here a while back about how I wouldn't use semaglutide (though I've never criticized others for doing so), on impulse, I signed up with a company that does weight loss with compounded semaglutide.

I'm currently on week 7 and have lost 13 lbs.

What is relevant to this conversation: yes, I'm eating a lot less. Like there is no point in taking me to a restaurant. Snack food? No interest. I'm very worried about losing muscle, though, so I eat a lot of protein, and the easiest way to get that is through protein shakes and bars. I do my best to buy ones that don't contain more additives than they need to, but there's no getting around that these are highly processed foods. I supplement those with simple whole foods - usually just protein like salmon or chicken and a veggie or fruit. But there's no denying that I am now consuming more highly processed food each day than I have in years.

I'm sure it would be better for me to find whole food ways to get adequate nutrition, but honestly I can't eat enough real food in one day to get the amount of protein and fiber I'm supposed to have. Another problem is that I'm tired. Exhausted, actually. I assume this is because I'm not eating "enough" (I am tracking and average about 1000 calories per day) but I cannot eat more. The exhaustion has also made working out very difficult as I simply don't have the energy for it. And it means that food preparation, which takes both forethought and physical energy, is difficult. I'm hoping this phase of tiredness will pass because I can't imagine spending the rest of my life like this.

I don't know what the answer is. I haven't been a real consumer of Big Food for years, so they're not feeling any pinch from me continuing not to buy their products. It seems to me that if they want to reel in the Ozempic crowd, the best thing they can do is make high-quality products that deliver maximum nutritional benefit with the least volume.

It will eventually pass, your body isn't used to this yet. I only use a maintenance dose of tirzepatide now and it's definitely different than in the beginning. I feel great and have energy. The first probably six months I was adjusting, losing weight, couldn't eat, sometimes felt dizzy and had to make sure I was staying hydrated. Sometimes all I could take in in a day was a hard boiled egg and Gatorade. That passes. I ended up losing 52 lbs and backed off on the dose because I was getting too skinny and looking drawn.

I maintain my weight between 115-120 now (I'm 5'2") and got my usual healthy look back, and no one tells me I'm "too skinny" anymore or asks if I'm ok. Lol

You're fighting biology here, plus convenience is a huge factor. Biologically we are programmed to consume fat and sugar because we evolved, like pretty much all wild animals, to either feast or famine.

Nowadays, it is all too easy for us to feast, and famine in this country isn't really a thing for most of us. It's very easy to eat things we don't need to stay alive. Vegetables give us vitamins but very little caloric rewards for the effort, so naturally, we don't tend to overeat those. Instead we go to sugar and fat. Protein in the form of meat is also societally programmed into us as being needed for a "complete meal". But historically, only rich people or people who could hunt freely ate meat every day.

No one is making anyone eat anything, it's a human choice. You can certainly choose to eat a plum instead of a Christmas Tree cake. But do you want to? That's up to you. (Personally, I hate those Christmas Tree cakes, but I'm not wild about plums either)

Whenever I see articles blaming "big food" on making people sick and fat, I wonder why we're not pointing out that we all have a choice in what we feed ourselves and our children. No one is making us eat McDonald's and HoHos. I think it's obvious that this things aren't good for us. They taught us that back in the 70s and 80s in school (remember Mr Goodbody?).

I grew up eating healthy foods because that's what my mom preferred. Didn't stop me from becoming a lifelong McDonald's lover though. I like one half of a crispy chicken and a diet Coke for lunch and I don't want anyone telling me I can't, and that's one thing I'm sure Trump
will protect from RFK 😁