Talk:Obesity/Archive 5

message: This section under the history header needs to be deleted.  The consensus amoung archaeologists it that these figurines represent pregnant women and not women who are obese.  I've done a significant amount of work on the subject, and the whole paragraph contains misleading if not totally inaccurate information.  I can provide scholarly references if requested. Sp1391 20:29, 22 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Venus figurines 

message: I visited this definition a few weeks ago and it had a LOVELY Renaissance painting of an obese man.  I came back today and was very sad to see that painting gone.  What happened to it?  How can we get it back?
:I replaced it with a scientific illustration of obesity.  If anyone still wants to use this painting in some 'cultural' section, here it is, with the original caption.--Pharos 18:51, 10 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Missing painting 

message: As support for the contemporary negative view of obesity, gluttony (as one of the seven deadly sins) is mentioned as a view that overeating is evil.  The seven deadly sins are not a modern invention, and this claim contradicts what is said in the previous ("History") section about obesity being seen as a status symbol during the "early modern period in European cultures."  It's possible that the seven deadly sins, in this case, were part of a class division, pitting the lower classes against the aristocrats (hence the presence of greed/avarice in addition to gluttony).  If this is true, though, the early modern period cannot be said to have had a single (positive) attitude toward obesity.
Ignoscient 18:56, 25 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  "Contemporary culture" section 

message: This article would do well to go into some of the details surrounding the reasons why America has much higher obesity rates than Europe. Part of it could do with poorer diet but it seems to also be closely linked to the fact that most modern US cities are built like sprawling car parks. It is basically impossible to get anything substantial done without a car. Much older European cities do not suffer from this poor lack of planning and the lifestyle choices that go with it.
Jarwulf 18:36, 10 April 2003 (UTC)
thread_title:  America vs Europe 

message: This article, when it talks about public health policy, has a very American perspective. It would benefit from  also having a more international perspective, such as some European or Australian ideas about public health policy.
Civil liberty taking precedence over social responsibilities seems to be very American to me. (Paul, 1/5/7)
I made significant changes to this section. Public health and policy responses to obesity should be spun off into an entirely separate article. They are complex and entirely different from the overly clinical and biologic approach in the main article on obesity. pihp 02:33, 13 May 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Public Health Policy

message: Has anyone seen the academic ref for those results made public by the UK Peninsula Med School and Oxford? I can't stand it when researchers run to the media before their paper is accessible to colleagues. JFW | T@lk 13:50, 13 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: FTO gene

message: After reading this article for a research project, I noticed much of the article sounds quite hostile. Not politically incorrect, simply negative towards obese people in many ways. Any thoughts on the use of the term 'obese' instead of simply 'fat'? MDAmp 14:41, 13 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Obesity is a well-defined medical term.  Fat is not; indeed very many people called "fat" do not have the medical condition of obesity.  Do you have any other specific concerns about the tone of the article?--Pharos 19:29, 15 April 2007 (UTC)

text: Adding to this, I looked through the article myself and only in the popular culture (where the use of the slang term fat is defintely relavant) and one usage in environmental factors, I cannot see the use of the word "fat" where obese should replace it. - Boochan 17:44, 17 April 2007 (UTC)

text: Is it wikipedia's responsibility to be hostile towards anything?  Especially something in which it's own article states the relationship with morbidity may not be direct, instead both conditions stemming from other factors(i.e., inactivity)
75.40.158.23 20:56, 28 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Society generally regards obesity as harmful, for various reasons, and thus much of the public discourse is focused around it as a social ill. That much of the article refers to it as a problem only seems appropriate in light of this. Having said that, the article probably could benefit from noting some of the opposing views (e.g. Paul Campos's work) on the subject; some prominent folks do believe public health concerns about obesity are overhyped/misguided. --Soultaco 21:57, 4 May 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: That society regards obesity as harmful is certainly understandable; I believe most obese individuals regard their condition as harmful.  The real questions is, since there is no effective treatment for obesity, how should obese individuals be looked upon by greater society.  71.214.71.222 06:39, 17 July 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Haven't you heard of diets? Ian 13:05, 1 September 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Diets?  Oh yes, that fabulous treatment program that works long-term, what, 5% of the time?? (per NIH).  Seeing as how half the population is reported to be on a "diet", obesity must not be a problem in the US, right? 71.214.90.4 00:33, 5 September 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Hostility?

message: "To illustrate, an obese 40 year old who carries 100 lb of adipose tissue has only consumed about 25 more calories per day than he has burned on average - or the equivalent of an apple every three days. In comparison a very lean 40-year-old who carries only 15 lb of body fat will have exceeded his daily energy expenditure by about four calories a day - the equivalent of an apple every 18 days." -- I don't think this calculation makes any sense, if you eat more, your metabolism will change, so it's not like "if I ate one additional apple every three days, I would be obese now". If you weight 100 lb more, you will burn different amount of energy (I would say more, but apart from making it harder to move fat also protects body heat). I suggest removing this paragraph. Cosmi 23:48, 16 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Calculations concerning overeating 

message: This article severly lacks photographs of the most important subject matter when it comes to obesity, which is a photo of an obese human. JayKeaton 02:09, 17 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: If you check the history there has been a fairly controversial history on photos on the article. I myself have some obesity photos (I myself, as explained earlier in the article am very obese) on the Commons, but I don't want to appear that I'm pushing my own pictures onto articles. - Boochan 08:52, 17 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: And the picture of the chair (with no context) isn't helping the article. At the very least I think It need to be said that the oversized chair is found in the Bariatrics department, not placed everywhere in the hospital.--205.158.231.42 14:04, 17 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: True, this article needs a picture of a semi-naked obese man/woman to demonstrate exactly what obesity is. Christopher Connor 20:44, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I say go for it.  Best would be just an obese person standing against a white background with no clutter.  Whether to cover the pubic area or face is up to you.  Joie de Vivre 21:50, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I am up for it, but I am only going to do it if requested by sufficient people on the article. I have a picture already on the commons, but I don't believe its a very good one. - Boochan 13:36, 4 May 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I do not understand the constant push for a photo of an obese person.  It appears to me that at least several of the posters advocating such a photo are merely doing so to demean obese individuals in general (such as the person who could not figure out that a picture of Porky Pig might be offensive).  This article already has a diagram illustrating overweight and obese body types, along with the painting of the Tuscan General.  I do not see or notice any requests for photos of someone with late-stage AIDS in that article, nor does the article on breast cancer have a photo of a naked woman showing the effect of cancer.  To view a photo of a naked obese person may be interesting, entertaining, or humorous to some, but to many individuals struggling to overcome obesity and living in a society where discrimination against the obese is pervasive, such a photo would be simply mean-spirited and hurtful.   206.169.172.212 16:18, 17 May 2007 (UTC)

text: That's exactly what the illustration at the beginning of the article is for. 206.169.172.212 00:23, 17 July 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Photos

message: Should we have a separate article for the social aspects of overweight/obesity?  This stuff seems sort of out of place in a medical article.--Pharos 21:07, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: It's not really a medical article. It is meant to approach the problem from all angles - medical, aesthetic, social, political etc. JFW | T@lk 21:19, 16 May 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I'm not sure it makes sense to have an "all angles" approach to an article on a recognized disease (see all of the medical codes at the top of the article ).  Besides, the social aspects aren't really about obesity per se, but cover overweight as well.--Pharos 05:12, 22 May 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  A thought... 

message: I think this is an interesting article from the New York Times with information could be added into the article.  It's basically about the causes, genetics or social?
Found from here: http://scienceblogs.com/purepedantry/2007/05/how_genetic_is_obesity.php
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/08/health/08fat.html
Another interesting one, about slim people who still may be at risk of 'fat' diseases because they store fat differently:
http://www.thestar.com/News/article/212660 —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 99.245.173.200 (talk) 02:58, 11 May 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Articles about genetics and obesity 

message: "<I>A common stereotype is the obese character who has a warm and dependable personality, but equally common is the obese vicious bully. (Dudley Dursley from the Harry Potter book series is a perfect example of this.)</i>"
i think that is inappropriate. i could name a few better examples then that fillup character from harry snotter. (eric Cartman, nelson Muntz)· Lygophile has spoken 04:57, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  bully example 

message: There is currently data from the physicians' health study cohort which looked at 99 253 male doctors for approximately 5.7 years.  It showed that men with a greater BMI were significantly more likely to report a history of hypertension, diabetes, and high cholesterol. They also consumed less alcohol and were less physically active than men with a lower index. 
Men with a BMI less than 20.0 had a relative risk of death of 0.88 (95% confidence interval 0.56 to 1.40) compared with men with indices 22.5-24.9. Men in the overweight range—with indices 25.0-29.9—had a relative risk of death of 1.20 (1.05 to 1.38) compared with men with a normal BMI (less than 25.0). The relative risk of death in men with a BMI 30.0-34.9 was 1.45 (1.10 to 1.91), rising to 1.62 (1.12 to 2.35) in men with an index greater than 35.0. 
I suggest that this merits inclusion?
Reference:
:Being overweight, as well as being obese, increases risk of death, according to a long term follow-up study of nearly 100 000 male doctors. International Journal of Obesity. 2007 doi= 10.1038/sj.ijo.0803564
:BMJ 2007;334:607 doi=10.1136/bmj.39160.651157 (news summary)
--Gak 05:00, 22 May 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Mortality

message: The following was added to the article:
====Experimental====
There has been some interest in developing the Narcolepsy drug modafinil (Provigil) as an anti-obesity drug. 
:A few studies have indicated that modafinil may have an appetite reducing effect on some people, leading to weight loss.Efficacy and Safety of Modafinil Film-Coated Tablets in Children and Adolescents 
:In experimental studies, the appetite reducing effect of modafinil appears to be similar or better than that of amphetamines, but, unlike amphetamines, the dose of modafinil that is effective at decreasing food intake does not significantly increase heart rate. 
:An article published in the Annals of Clinical Psychiatry, presented the case of a 280 pound patient (BMI= 35.52) who lost 40 pounds over the course of a year on Modafinil (to 30.44 BMI). After three years, his weight stabilized at a 50 pound weight loss(29.59 BMI). The authors conclude that placebo controlled studies should be conducted on using Modafinil as a weight loss agent. 
This is all fascinating, but modafinil is not registered for this indication, not recommended (yet) in any professional guidelines, and only one of a legion of drugs that has been investigated - from amphetamines to zonisamide. I strongly suggest we don't devote too much time to experimental data until well-designed large phase III studies with realistic end points have been conducted. Otherwise this article is likely to get flooded. JFW | T@lk 05:52, 30 May 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Modafinil

message: There has been some interest in developing the Narcolepsy drug modafinil (Provigil) as an anti-obesity drug. 
:A few studies have indicated that modafinil may have an appetite reducing effect on some people, leading to weight loss.Efficacy and Safety of Modafinil Film-Coated Tablets in Children and Adolescents 
:In experimental studies, the appetite reducing effect of modafinil appears to be similar or better than that of amphetamines, but, unlike amphetamines, the dose of modafinil that is effective at decreasing food intake does not significantly increase heart rate. 
:An article published in the Annals of Clinical Psychiatry, presented the case of a 280 pound patient (BMI= 35.52) who lost 40 pounds over the course of a year on Modafinil (to 30.44 BMI). After three years, his weight stabilized at a 50 pound weight loss(29.59 BMI). The authors conclude that placebo controlled studies should be conducted on using Modafinil as a weight loss agent. 
This is all fascinating, but modafinil is not registered for this indication, not recommended (yet) in any professional guidelines, and only one of a legion of drugs that has been investigated - from amphetamines to zonisamide. I strongly suggest we don't devote too much time to experimental data until well-designed large phase III studies with realistic end points have been conducted. Otherwise this article is likely to get flooded. JFW | T@lk 05:52, 30 May 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Experimental

message: Regarding:
Certain populations and individuals may be more prone to obesity than others, and the ability to take advantage of rare periods of abundance and use such abundance by storing energy efficiently may have been an evolutionary advantage in times when food was scarce. Individuals with greater adipose reserves were more likely to survive famine. This tendency to store fat is likely maladaptive in a society with adequate and stable food supplies.
Just-so stories should always be attributed to a source. Someone please cite and attribute this info Brentt 05:53, 10 June 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: This applies, mutatis mutandis, to the entire field of evolutionary psychology. JFW | T@lk 23:19, 2 July 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Just-so theories

message: The section on Therapy should start out explaining that there has been no effective, long-term treatment developed by the medical establishment to counter obesity without resorting to surgery. 206.169.172.212 17:35, 20 June 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Are there any effective, long-term treatments not developed by the "medical establishment"? What is your point in using that vaguely offensive term? JFW | T@lk 19:21, 15 July 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: The answer to your first question is no.  No effective treatment for obesity has been developed, period (except for bariatric surgery).  I made the comment for two reasons: to counter the oft-cited statement that it is "easy" to lose weight (such comments can be found in the dicsussion archives for this article), and that an obese person is simply unwilling/unmotivated/uneducated/etc. enough to implement the easy steps that it takes to lose weight; and second, to point out that the medical establishment is basicly advocating a treatment system that fails 95% to 98% of the time.  Now, that's offensive! 206.169.172.212 00:36, 17 July 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Except that surgery isn't a sure thing either.  Far to many surgeries end up with revisions for it to be considered a cure... or even an effective treatment.  In the end, the only cure or treament is lifestyle change. That's not to say such a change is easy, but it is the only effective long term solution to obesity...  and it has nothing to do with the medical establishment. Runwolf 14:13, 27 August 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: It may be that lifestyle change is a long term solution; however, it certainly is not effective - a method that fails 95% of the time cannot possibly be considered effective. 206.169.172.212 16:54, 12 September 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Not having the will power to not eat 6000 calories a day while doing nothing but watch tv can hardly be considered a failure on the part of the "treatment". If you fail to take the drugs prescribed to you by your doctor just because you dont like taking them, does that mean the doctor was wrong? Sheesh, there's something called being RESPONSIBLE for your own actions. 64.230.40.32 (talk) 14:43, 24 February 2008 (UTC)

text: I suggest an email to the medical establishment. JFW | T@lk 21:58, 17 July 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Treatment

message: Under enviromental conditions it said that a possible cause of obesity is that unlike in the 70's gas if affordable enough for anyone to drive anywhere. That's bullshit, gas is higher then i've ever seen it before, not to mention it's been alot higher a few months ago, that sentence is a lie, driving isn't even a little bit affordable. Maybe i should change that now. TostitosAreGross 02:05, 28 August 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: The statement is based on the inflation-adjusted price of gasoline. 71.214.90.4 22:19, 3 September 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: the inflation adjusted price of gasoline - in the united states, mind you - has been marginally the same since about 1900. obviously there have been some significant fluctuations, but longterm, its centerline is right about where it is now. as to the effect on obesity, it's not a valid claim, it's just pure speculation. a more reasonable argument could be made in terms of overall affluence, not on the cost of a particular commodity. otherwise, we could blame all obesity on cheap twinkies. Anastrophe 22:33, 3 September 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Affordable petrol? 

message: Even being overweight (BMI 25-29.9) is independently (and through blood pressure and cholesterol) linked to cardiovascular disease. The association is modest (17% increased risk, or 32% if hypertension/cholesterol are included) but cannot be ignored. This is based on a 21-study meta-analysis with 300,000 people included. URL. JFW | T@lk 21:33, 10 September 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: This of course in contrast to the Sorensen study that I recently removed after I discovered its significant criticism by Meir Stampfer. JFW | T@lk 21:34, 10 September 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Overweight 

message: Somehow someone has moved Obesity and the associated talk page to "Michael Gemmink". Looking at the user's own page where they say their own name is Mike, it strikes me that someone's gotten hold of the password for the account and performed this vandalism. Can someone with the appropriate access privileges correct this?
Defter dwain 16:04, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I have moved the pages back.  --Mysdaao talk 16:11, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: haha im sorry to michael gemmink and all you humorless wikifags but that made me laugh (i didnt vandalize it, but i find it funny that somebody did its totally LULZY and i give whoever did it 2 thumbs up while being butthumped (^_^8====Dd(^_O)b  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.188.247.253 (talk) 20:35, 27 October 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Vandalism 

message: The final paragraph of the Social Determinants section references the recent (and highly publicized) paper in the New England Journal of Medicine regarding social causes of obesity.  The paragraph says that "people risked being obese if their friends, siblings or spouse were."  While this statement may be true, it is not the main conclusion of the study.  The study in fact goes further and shows that a person's risk of becoming obese  increases if a friend, sibling, or spouse becomes obese first.  The study showed a causal effect rather than just that obese people tend to have obese friends.  A small difference in wording, but a huge difference in meaning.  I would make the change myself but I don't have an account and the page is protected.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 132.183.2.165 (talk) 15:59, 18 September 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  NEJM paper reference in "Social Determinants" section 

message: I've added a illustrating image of G. K. Chesterton, who appeared to be rather fat in his later years. -The Bold Guy- 12:30, 30 September 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Image 

message: It gets a little old that on Wiki, where the "Do It Yourself" spirit is what makes it a Wiki, that Wikipedians "Doing it Themselves" is used against their contributions.  This arguments has been raised against my photography ("You took the photo, please don't keep inserting it") and now we have Jfdwolff using it against significant interviews as well.  This sort of argument is typically used by page owners, who want every addition vetted on a Talk page instead of the WP:BOLD move of having it put on themselves.
Regarding the interview: There are not many voices in the Fat Acceptance/BBW movement, but this is one.  A BBW who I met at the Tribeca Film Festival when I was there photographing for Wikipedia, Nerusskaya talks about what it means to be a 5'4, 313 pound woman in today's society, what issues there are for fat women today, the movement itself, the obesity epidemic in the United States, the sexuality of a BBW, and significant cultural issues.  She's a BBW doing a documentary on obese people.  This interview, done over at the Wikimedia sister project WikiNews, is entirely appropriate on the Cultural issues section of the Obesity page.  Instead of coming up with any sort of logical reason as to why it should not be included.  It is not against policy or guideline to include opinions of off-wiki people, especially when they flesh out the subject for our readers.  This isn't new, this isn't even pushing the limits of policy or guideline.  It's typical.  And it's also a perspective that people should hear.  --David Shankbone 12:36, 11 October 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: It also happens to be a good interview IMO, and a view that needs to be at least linked to from this article. It can't just be all "doom and gloom" articles when there are people around that actually accept it, especially an interview like hers where her opinion doesn't really sway either way.. shes just big, and likes it. - Boochan 13:31, 11 October 2007 (UTC)

text: DavidShankBone, I don't need to be lectured on Wiki spirit, but I find the interview a typical case of WP:UNDUE for this article. The fat acceptance movement is very small indeed, and you have yourself aknowledged that your interviewee is one of the very few voices. You are trying to sell as "news" what is actually an interview the impact of which has not been determined, and comes very close to WP:NOR. It may be a useful link on fat acceptance movement, but I urge you to remove it from this article. JFW | T@lk 15:48, 11 October 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I completely disagree.  There is not "one view" on fat acceptance, and if we are here to present all side of the coin on this project, having a documentary filmmaker who is herself a BBW, and stating that she has no problem with it, isn't NOR, it's NPOV.  We aren't here to denounce as "bad" that people are fat, we are here to give all sides of the picture.  The Fat Acceptance Movement is part of this article, and fleshing out what they believe to the reader only furthers the interests of this project and its goals, which are to educate.  You want to decide that it's a "small minority" view, but do you really know how small that minority is?  If so, please supply evidence that "Very few fat people accept their obesity."  Doing interview with people to flesh out the subjects we create only helps our efforts on here, especially when they are notable in some realm, or are doing notable things.  I just interviewed Senator Sam Brownback, who is running for President.  Doing these interviews with these people, if anything, is the best response we have to Citizendium.  We need to be fleshing these topics out more not less; Obesity, as a topic, is only served by not having it completely denounced, but showing that other people don't mind their obesity.  Frankly, it's surprising you take issue with what amounts to a small box leading to a sister project's work.  I encourage you to change your POV on this.  --David Shankbone 16:58, 11 October 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: And almost every issue on this page is addressed in that interview from a knowledgeable subject.  --David Shankbone 17:01, 11 October 2007 (UTC)

text: I do not deny the fat acceptance movement a place in the article, but I find an interview conducted by yourself less useful than a book, journal article or other source that doesn't smell of WP:NOR. Fleshing out topics is not the task of Wikipedia vs Citizendium. It is Wikipedia's task to be an encyclopedia. JFW | T@lk 18:45, 11 October 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: And that's exactly what we are all doing, and I don't think my contributions have taken away from Wikipedia's goal as an encyclopedia in the least.  The interview is good, it expounds upon the topic, it addresses the issue, and from someone within that movement.  --David Shankbone 22:13, 11 October 2007 (UTC)

text: Yes, she is discussing the Fat Acceptance Movement. I think a direct link to the interview is appropriate on the article Fat acceptance movement, but not on this article. As a medical student, I don't think an article like yours is appropriate for such a high-profile general topic. If people are going to be interested in this, let's put a link on Fat acceptance movement. My arguements are of the slippery slope-type: we can't have links to Wikinews interviews all over Wikipedia. If anyone is interested in news, they'll click the category-box. If anyone is interested in fat acceptance, they'll click on that wikilink and should be directed to the interview through that article. I agree with promoting Wikinews as a Wikinewsie, but as a Wikipedian I think this is trivial, so I disagree. BTW I have no idea what "obfuscates" means. It would be better if more people weighed in on this discussion though. --Steven Fruitsmaak (Reply) 21:28, 13 November 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I'm leery of trying to head off problems that are not problems, and we currently don't have a problem with an over-abundance of Wikinews links.  Let's address issues when they become issues.  Just because a link is appropriate in one place does not mean it is inappropriate in other contexts, including on the Obesity article under the "cultural" section.  --David Shankbone 21:36, 13 November 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Interview 

message: It should be added in the article that in Mali and South Africa, obesity is not seen as unattrative or unhealthy. See the article on Mali and South Africa article. In the USA, the perspective on obesity too is altering. Please include this in the article.
Thanks,
81.246.139.218 11:36, 24 October 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I agree we should discuss some African (and other) cultures where obesity is seen as an ideal.  The idea that "In the USA, the perspective on obesity too is altering" seems like a non sequitur, though.--Pharos 20:53, 27 October 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Obesity as attractive image in , South Africa 

message: I added a cleanup template to the history section. I think most people who read it will agree it is rather unclear and could do with some rewording to remove the awkwardness.- Moshe Constantine Hassan Al-Silverburg | Talk 07:23, 29 October 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  History section 

message: I have added more pictures (that have been uploaded for a while for User:MalcolmGin's body morphology project) to the obesity category on Wikimedia Commons. I'm quite sure one of these pictures should be suitable for placement in this article. Yes, to those who may have seen me before here tout a picture 1 to 2 years ago, I have many pictures uploaded for a long time now for these specific purposes that are in use. - Boochan 12:41, 30 October 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: What should those pictures be showing? I think we need some graphs showing the relationship between obesity and mortality. More cartoons probably detract. JFW | T@lk 07:10, 7 November 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  FYI, If we need pics. 

message: Cause-specific mortality in JAMA out this week. JFW | T@lk 07:10, 7 November 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Flegal

message: Chendy added links to two newspaper articles, both covering a conference in 2006 where speakers made some headline-grabbing statements on the worldwide prevalence of obesity. What worries me is that we are linking to news articles that give no information at all on where these professors got their information from - guesswork, population studies etc. I would strongly suggest that we try to give academic citations for this kind of pronouncements. JFW | T@lk 06:51, 20 November 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: may contain the information we need. I'll read it at some point. JFW | T@lk 07:00, 20 November 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Some professor

message: Arch Surg - another study that indicates an excess of suicide after bariatric surgery. How odd. Amazing how little we know. I suspect the sudden changes in ghrelin etc do interesting things to the hypothalamus. JFW | T@lk 14:41, 2 December 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Suicide 

message: I added a short section on the last 5 years in the UK with regards to policies. Needless to say, several august bodies have now produced reports, but that doesn't mean the recommended policies are actually implemented.
I was in limbo whether to include a recent report by the fascinatingly named "Foresight / Horizon Scanning Centre" body (apparently supported by Sir David King) which more or less removed obesity from the sphere of personal responsibility with its conclusions on the multifactorial causes etc. Here's the URL for whoever is interested.
It is actually shocking that the same paragraph still does not provide any references about the American situation. Why are we not mentioning that Colorado has a very forward-thinking obesity policy and is actually the slimmest of the states? JFW | T@lk 23:47, 17 December 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  UK policy responses 

message: I have added HaslamJames, a reference to the 2005 Lancet seminar on obesity. The authors are the chair of the National Obesity Forum and a respected scientist, respectively. I am re-reading it and plan to work much of its content into the article, especially the presently very poor sections on epidemiology.
I'm not sure what else we could do to improve sections such as "history" and "popular culture". I have already left messages with the Sociology WikiProject to ask for assistance, but none was forthcoming. Any help would be appreciated. JFW | T@lk 19:57, 25 December 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Lancet review

message: The number of fat cells in the human body never increases, the individual cells simply get larger. This article states under Effects on health that "Health consequences are categorised as being the result of either increased fat mass (osteoarthritis, obstructive sleep apnea, social stigma) or increased number of fat cells (diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease)." The source referenced does not mention an increased number of fat cells, it only mentions enlargement of the cells.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.33.70.94 (talk) 02:09, 30 December 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Fat cells 

message: Shouldn't there be a separate section dealing specifically with Childhood obesity since there is an article on this very subject? A brief review of the topic should be added with a wikilink at top of section redirecting to full article --Phenylalanine (talk) 11:18, 7 January 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Separate section for [[Childhood obesity]] 

message: I want to vandalize it, can you please allow editing so this would be possible?  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.188.240.123 (talk) 17:31, 8 January 2008 (UTC)
replies: text: It's people like you who mess up carefully drafted content and generate more work for hardworking volunteers. Go away, troll. JFW | T@lk 11:01, 18 January 2008 (UTC)
thread_title: Please unlock this article

message: Mexico is currently the second most obese country in the world, but there is no inforamtion about it. I was wandering if anyone could add anything about it?
:Have a source? We can certainly mention it. JFW | T@lk 11:01, 18 January 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Obesity in Mexico 

message: In people with DVT/PE, obesity protects from death by 50%! I wonder where the confounder is - surely they have corrected for mortal illness that causes low BMI, such as cancer.  JFW | T@lk 11:01, 18 January 2008 (UTC)
thread_title: Protection from VTE

message: I'm surprised to see absolutely no mention of the role that high fructose corn syrup may play in the "obesity epidemic" in America.  Since other dietary causes are touched upon, including the whole carbohydrates versus fat (and protein) debate, I would expect this popular highly-refined sugar to receive more attention.  But I don't have citations and am lazy, so I'm not going to add it myself. :)   74.129.234.174 (talk) 22:07, 22 January 2008 (UTC)
replies: text: Source, please? I think we are underrepresenting dietary trends in this article, and I have been talking to  about this (on my talkpage). Much of this is an area of intense speculation, and having this discussed up-to-date here would be hopeful. JFW | T@lk 09:18, 1 February 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  High Fructose Corn Syrup 

message: The BMJ "head to head" this week is about whether the "obesity epidemic" is overrated. One of the disputants quotes , a nice editorial by Katherine Flegal discussing the terminology and the data. JFW | T@lk 09:18, 1 February 2008 (UTC)
thread_title: Epidemic?

message: A dingbat font called "Mannequin" contains images of females of diverse body weights. The black-and-white vector drawings are anatomically accurate, but much less provocative than photos would be.
The images are available online for free preview, and I (as the author of the font) can give permission for their use on wikipedia pages.
http://www.feelreal.org/fonticon/poster_weight.gif  —Preceding unsigned comment added by Oligopiste (talk • contribs) 16:51, 4 February 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Image gallery of female body weight