In a market inundated with a plethora of dietary supplements, imitation compounds, and highly processed foods, consumers are often left scratching their heads on what's truly beneficial for weight loss. Harvard experts have voiced concerns about the growing trend of companies exploiting the popularity of anti-obesity medications such as Ozempic, as reported by the Harvard Gazette. Companies seem to be capitalizing on the weight loss craze by pushing products that lack credible scientific backing, potentially harming public health.
"The diet culture-driven frenzy around Ozempic basically poured gasoline on the dumpster fire of predatory industries profiting off of weight stigma and bias," said S. Bryn Austin, a professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in a statement obtained by Harvard Gazette. The contentious issue begins with the high cost of anti-obesity drugs that can run patients between $900-$1,300 per month, prompting some to turn to less-reliable compounding pharmacies. These alternatives, not FDA approved, have stirred a spike in poison-control calls, increasing fifteen-fold since 2019, according to Austin.
The appeal of weight loss has also given rise to a storm of baseless claims by social media influencers about supplements and other compounds, misleading consumers to believe they can ditch pounds inexpensively. Among these are so-called "nature’s Ozempic" and "budget Ozempic" — basically, laxatives — which Austin has strongly denounced. “But using laxatives for weight loss is dangerous, and it can be deadly,” Austin told the Harvard Gazette.
Amid an environment that stigmatizes obesity, Fatima Cody Stanford, an obesity expert at Harvard Medical School, articulated a prevailing prejudice: "Obesity is a disease that you wear. If someone carries more adipose, we assume that they’re lazy," she explained to Harvard Gazette. This deep-set bias opens the door to an array of legal, social, and health implications for individuals dealing with obesity. Additionally, the processed food industry is adept at rebranding their products or creating new ones to fit the latest health trends, further complicating consumer choices.
With every new public health issue that arises from America's complex relationship with food and body image, industries are quick to react, profiting off quick-fix solutions. Uma Naidoo, director of nutritional and lifestyle psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital, pointed out how the food industry’s clever marketing strategies often obscure the true nature of the products people consume. “The food industry is so savvy. There are clever ways of not really informing the consumer of what they’re eating,” Naidoo remarked in the Harvard Gazette article. With nutritional labels that are less than transparent and processed foods designed to trigger cravings, the path to a healthier populace seems fraught with misinformation and exploitation.
