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Comments

• [1] anonymous from NEW YORK CITY May 18, 2007 - 10:37AM

  How does Gina Kolata and all her studies account for the HUGE (pun not intended) rise in the numbers of obese people everywhere?

  
  
• [2] evelyn Labriola May 18, 2007 - 10:46AM

  has anyone ever done a study comparing weight of families who eat home cooked meals everyday with some exception and those who eat randomly ie take out (wether it;s expensive take out or deli)every day with some exception

  
  
• [3] anonymous from NEW YORK CITY May 18, 2007 - 11:03AM

  What Gina Kolata is saying is (at least this is what I got) that IF one eats healthfully, and exercises regualrly, THEN whatever weight one is at, is one's "natura' weight.

  
  
• [4] Starving Artists from NY May 18, 2007 - 11:04AM

  We tried to find a photo of the author, out of curiosity...we wondered if she was "thin"... the photo we found looked quite old...so we're still wondering...

  
  
• [5] jeapes May 18, 2007 - 04:52PM

  What Gina Kolada is not answering is whether people with obesity have a fulfilling, productive life? Modern medicine can keep a lot of people alive. Nobody is talking about the obsession with a perfect body shape. However how can anyone doubt that people who lead a healthy lifestyle (good diet and exercise) lead a much more productive and fulfilling life?

  
  
• [6] Amy May 21, 2007 - 03:59PM

  Gina's facts are very suspect. You can not dismiss the fact that obesity is much more prevalent than it used to be, and that this correlates with much larger portion size and much more sedentary lifestyles. Heart disease is plummeting due to improved medical care, not due to our larger sizes. This is not good science!

  
  
• [7] wag from New Jersey May 24, 2007 - 11:42PM

  I agree that this all seems kind of fishy. It was interesting to hear how in the interview Gina Kolata sidestepped the question about differing rates of obesity depending on socioeconomic status--crudely put, the poor tend to be fatter than the rich. We're not just talking here about differing positions within a relatively narrow range of "normal" weights. It's a matter of significantly higher rates of morbid obesity among the poor. Genetics alone can't explain this, unless you want to fall back on the social darwinian notion that the rich really are better than all the rest. So Gina ducked the question and veered off into an account of the origins of the Atkins diet. In general, she has a point--a person's weight does tend to hover within a certain range. But she pushes it much too far, excluding the possibility that diet, exercise and environment can reset the thermostat. But if it's next to impossible to break out of the confines of one's ideal weight, what on earth happened to Al Gore?