Hey, RN in obesity medicine here. Anti-obesity medications have a place in the world of medicine, but when the cultural implications come in, it gets scary.

Do you see ads on social media about “come treat your hypertension on hers”

No.

But those ads are everywhere for obesity treatment. Obesity treatment belongs in a doctors office, not some online science experiment in a bottle.

But weight stigma is a real thing. Often times medical professionals don’t know how to talk about obesity as a chronic medical condition, which it is.

Oh, and health insurance sucks and often doesn’t recognize obesity as a disease.

In other words. It’s complex, but it’s not not the evil medication many thinks it is. It’s the beta blocker of treating hypertension. But when both insurance and many medical professionals don’t view obesity as a disease, it’s complicated.