DISCOVERIES
WHY EVERYTHING YOU KNOW ABOUT WEIGHT LOSS IS WRONG
COMMENT
When it comes to fat, there’s no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach
Recently, I was interviewed by Steven Bartlett on the Diary Of A CEO podcast about my work on obesity. While I’ve done a gazillion previous podcasts, either as host or guest, this one stood out for three reasons: first, the interview was long-form and was released in its entirety; second, in addition to the audio recording, it was filmed with multiple cameras, and posted online; and third, the scale of the audience. I’m not sure how many listeners tuned in to the actual podcast, but at time of writing, 2.5 million(!!) people had viewed the ‘feature-length’ interview on YouTube.
What soon became clear was, of the millions that watched, many felt the need to comment loudly on social media (while tagging and @-ing me) on my appearance, vis-à-vis my expertise in obesity. I am, shall we say, not at my ‘fighting weight’, having gained more than four kilos during the past few COVID years. This, coupled with my sartorial error of appearing in a roll-neck sweater (although in my defence I was not expecting to be filmed), resulted in comments like, “Why would you trust a man with moobs about weight and nutrition?” Ouch.