In 2001, 23% of American adults were obese and the Surgeon General declared it a nationwide epidemic and a major public health problem.

By 2010 the FDA's "Healthy People Program" setup to tackle obesity reported failure, then 34% of adults were obese.

In 2013 no states had more than 35% obesity, the CDC reports.

Now 22 states have have more than 35% obesity.

Now 41.9 percent of adults have obesity, says Trust for America's Health.

Is that really all down to "companies are making tasty food" and not any kind of problem? Being surrounded by an extreme variety of tasty food 24/7 isn't only about the food, it's also about the surroundings. Advertising, billboards, TV, internet, apps, in-school vending machines. Vending machines, slogans, bright colours, targetting more impressionable and impulsive and weak willed subset of the population (children), or more time-stressed people (parents, people with two jobs), presenting food in association with bright colours, happy characters, happy situations, good life outcomes, yadda yadda, focusing on the positives (convenience) and downplaying the negatives (health).

> "I'm expecting the obesity problem to get addressed by a combination of making cities more walkable and normalizing semaglutide-like drugs to the point their use is as ordinary as popping a vitamin pill with breakfast. I'm curious to hear if you have different ideas."

National Institute for Clinical Excellence in the UK says about Semaglutide[5]: Side-effects For semaglutide; Common or very common: Appetite decreased (in patients with type 2 diabetes); burping; cholelithiasis; constipation; diarrhoea; fatigue; gastrointestinal discomfort; gastrointestinal disorders; hypoglycaemia (in combination with other antidiabetic drugs, in patients with type 2 diabetes); nausea; vomiting; weight decreased (in patients with type 2 diabetes). Uncommon: Pancreatitis acute; taste altered. Manufacturer advises to record the brand name and batch number after each administration. Patients and carers should be counselled on the effects on driving and performance of skilled tasks—increased risk of dizziness, particularly during the dose escalation period.

Drugs.com has worse "more common" side effects as well as those: Anxiety, blurred vision, chills, cold sweats, confusion, depression, fast heartbeat, fever, headache, large, hive-like swelling on the face, eyelids, lips, tongue, throat, hands, legs, feet, or sex organs. nightmares, slurred speach, trouble breathing.

Don't stop Coca Cola advertising, instead normalise taking drugs to try and counter the effects of drinking Coca Cola. It's a for-profit arms race, and our bodies are the battlefield. I'm in favour of more walkable cities though. I'm expecting it not to get addressed - restricting advertising is counter to the "everyone can advertise anything and it's up to you if you choose to buy it" norm, and I think it's partially not up to us and we are manipulatable, and that goes against the "I'm a free Human!" norm. I'm expecting a continuance of the "willpower, personal responsibility" useless sayings while the industry continues to get better and better at overcoming willpower, wearing down willpower, removing alternatives, normalization of deviance, lobbying.

[1] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-37846318

[2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4904092/

[3] https://www.tfah.org/report-details/state-of-obesity-2023/

[4] https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2023/p0922-adult-obesity....

[5] https://bnf.nice.org.uk/drugs/semaglutide/#handling-and-stor...

[6] https://www.drugs.com/sfx/semaglutide-side-effects.html