Are new weight-loss drugs prompting Shumpterian 'creative destruction' that will have a significant impact on the under-lying logic of consumer-focussed capitalism?
It seems that these drugs not only suppress appetite for food, they also surpass cravings much more widely.
As our current form of capitalism is built on the continuing fulfilment of consumer demand for non-necessities will a decline in such demand lead to a shift in economic patterns & organisation?
From decreased obesity levels to less money spent on food, there’s little doubting the impact weight-loss drugs have had on the world. But there are drawbacks to using GLP-1s. @ has more:
The regulars at the gym I go to twice a week have noticed no real new year resolution driven surge of new members this year... and we wondered why?
Our best guess was the impact of weight-loss drugs; giving people a different route rather than gym training, to pushing weight loss as a news year commitment.
Not sure if that accounts for all of the absence(s) but it is very noticeable this year compared to others.
For decades, psychologists have been trying to understand why it is that diets so often fail. One potential reason is that diets often involve strict food rules, such as avoiding the foods you enjoy, which can actually trigger cravings. @ has more, including evidence-based strategies that are more effective:
A new study, published by the BMJ suggests that the effects of weight-loss drugs last less that two years after cessation of use, with patients (users) regaining weight.
For the pharmaceutical firms this is, of course, good news as it means once people are hooked in to the treatment they'll continue use, but bad news for health sector budgets as it suggests an ongoing financial commitment for many (all) patients prescribed the drugs.
While some people are taking Ozempic (and other weight loss drugs) for purely medical reasons... the promotion of the hyper-thin as a norm for women looks more like a return to the disciplining of females via body-shaming rather than any empowerment through weight loss.
Its almost like the patriarchy saw body positivity as a threat to its power & (pretty swiftly) came up with a new weapon to promote anxiety in the war against women's independence & happens.
A glimmer of good news on the health front: Researchers in China have discovered that intermittent calorie restriction leads to significant changes both in the gut and the brain, which may open up new options for maintaining a healthy weight. @ has more:
Good morning/afternoon/evening/night to you, depending on where you are, and when you see this #NewstodonFriday thread! Here’s our weekly selection of stories from indie media outlets on everything from a holier-than-thou Texas legislator to an incredible scientific treatment that may have cured a little boy of a genetic illness. Plus, housing scams, Grok’s obsession with South Africa, and a word from The Boss. We love independent media, and we hope you’ll share these stories far and wide, comment (we’d love to see your recommendations for the best things you’ve read/watched/heard this week). And if you can afford to, please donate your money to these brilliant sites.⤵️
“Am I the last fat person in America?” asks
@damemagazine’s Kate Bernyk. She writes about the rise of weight-loss drugs like Ozempic, the message that delivers to fat people — ”Your body is a mistake, and now there’s finally a way to fix it,” — and why she doesn’t want to take medication to change her size. “The idea of eliminating any kind of body should terrify us — not just because it’s wrong, but because it’s unimaginative,” she writes.
Scientists may have identified a way to naturally regulate blood sugar levels and sugar cravings in a similar fashion to drugs like Ozempic. By increasing the abundance of a gut microbe in diabetic mice, researchers in China showed they can "orchestrate the secretion of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1),” a hormone that is naturally produced by the body and helps regulate blood sugar levels and feelings of fullness. @ScienceAlert has more: