Obesity Research and Prevention (Video)

Dr. Robert Baron explores current strategies for treating obesity, emphasizing evidence-based approaches to diagnosis, lifestyle change, medication, and long-term weight maintenance. He explains the limitations of body mass index (BMI) as a diagnostic tool and highlights the importance of assessing both excess fat and its health consequences. He reviews dietary principles, including calorie reduction, avoiding added sugars, and the importance of sustainable habits over specific diet types. He also discusses the role of physical activity—particularly strength training—for preserving muscle and improving long-term outcomes. Baron evaluates weight loss medications such as semaglutide and tirzepatide, noting their benefits, side effects, and the need for continued use to maintain weight loss. [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 40757]

Having a skilled primary care clinician will go a long way to maintaining your health and wellness. Join Dr. Diana Thiara as she explores weight loss and healthy living. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 39571]

Having a skilled primary care clinician will go a long way to maintaining your health and wellness. Join Dr. Diana Thiara as she explores weight loss and healthy living. From understanding the basics of BMI to the complexities of various weight loss methods, Dr. Thiara's insights will guide you through a comprehensive journey. Whether you're looking to shed some pounds, maintain a healthy lifestyle, or simply broaden your knowledge, her expertise covers dietary choices, surgical options, exercise routines, and even mental well-being. You'll also learn about personalized weight loss plans, the impact of genetics on weight, and how to make sustainable lifestyle changes. Drawing on her extensive experience and backed by the latest scientific research, Dr. Thiara offers a fresh and approachable perspective on weight management. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 38795]

What we eat -- and don’t eat -- is directly related to our health. Poor diets lead to poor health outcomes, including cancer. Dr. Donald Abrams, integrative oncologist at UCSF Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, is an expert on nutrition and cancer. Dr. Abrams says you can never overstate how important the food we eat is to our health. In this excerpt Dr. Abrams discusses the role body fat plays in the production of insulin. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 38815]

Millions attempt some form of diet yet only a small fraction achieve permanent weight loss. Neuroscientist and writer Darya Rose discusses the power of habits as a much needed alternative to dieting. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 37532]

An increasing number of scientific studies suggest that food, like drugs or alcohol, can have addictive qualities. Ashley E. Mason, PhD, explores how the reward system, located inside the human nervous system, can unduly affect people's appetite. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 36913]

Marion Nestle, Goddard Professor in the Department of Nutrition at New York University, discusses the U.S. food industry being in a highly competitive environment where profits are paramount and public health is not a priority. Series: "Excerpts" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 36753]

Ashley Gearhardt describes significant differences between natural food and the modern food environment and how the human brain could be affected. Gearhardt developed the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS) to operationalize addictive-like eating behaviors, which has recently been linked with more frequent binge eating episodes in clinical populations, increased prevalence of obesity and patterns of neural activation implicated in other addictive behaviors. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Show ID: 36381]

Obesity is at the root of silent epidemics such as type 2 diabetes and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Laura Schmidt explores the causes and solutions, taking lessons from tobacco: reducing the availability of harmful substances reduces consumption, thereby reducing harms to health. She talks about the UCSF Healthy Beverage Initiative and the effects it has had on employee health. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 35586]

Four leaders in food policy and law discuss troubling trends of food insecurity, poor diet, chronic disease and obesity along with novel strategies that can be implemented locally and globally. Panelists: Kelly Brownell, Duke University; Laura Schmidt, UCSF; Allison Korn, UCLA; Breanna Hawkins, LA Food Policy Council. Moderated by Emilie Aguirre, Resnick Program for Food Law and Policy at UCLA Law. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33241]

Katie Ferraro, registered dietitian at the UCSF School of Nursing, discusses the consequences of fat-free trends. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 34446]

The UCSF Industry Documents Library (IDL) now includes the Food Industry Documents Archive, a brand new collection of over 30,000 documents related to the food industry and its impact on public health. Find out more about these documents that highlight marketing, research, and policy strategies used by food companies and trade groups, and reveal the communications and connections between industry, academic, and regulatory organizations. Part 2. Series: "Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 34389]

The UCSF Industry Documents Library (IDL) now includes the Food Industry Documents Archive, a brand new collection of over 30,000 documents related to the food industry and its impact on public health. Find out more about these documents that highlight marketing, research, and policy strategies used by food companies and trade groups, and reveal the communications and connections between industry, academic, and regulatory organizations. Part 1. Series: "Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 34103]

John Balmes, MD, UCSF Professor, gives insight into how air pollution may impact obesity and metabolic health. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 34087]

Bruce Blumberg, PhD, UC Irvine Professor of Developmental and Cell Biology and leader in the field of "obesogens," discusses the role of exposures that disrupt our endocrine systems in the obesity epidemic. Obesogens are a chemicals that can interfere with hormones and can cause weight gain. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 34085]

Michele La Merrill, PhD, MPH, UC Davis Professor of Environmental Toxicology, discusses how calories are burned and whether some chemicals make it harder for us to burn calories and stay slim. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 34086]

Barbara Laraia, PhD, UC Berkeley, reveals why neighborhoods and stress have a major impact on obesity and pregnancy. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 34083]

Aric Prather, PhD, UCSF Professor and Co-Director of the Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study, and Treatment (COAST) discusses how social stressors and relationships can act like environmental toxins, a concept called the “social exposome." Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 34082]

An increasing number of scientific studies suggest that food, like drugs or alcohol, can have addictive qualities. Food addiction is a disease which causes loss of control over the ability to stop eating certain foods. Three people share their personal experiences and how they came through. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 33583]

Millions attempt some form of diet yet only a small fraction achieve permanent weight loss. Neuroscientists and science writers Sandra Aamodt and Darya Rose suggest what you should do instead. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 33595]

Kerri Boutelle, PhD, joins David Granet, M.D., F.A.C.S., F.A.A.P. to discuss eating habits that often result in obesity and the psychology behind it. Series: "Health Matters" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 33859]

The way food is described influences how it tastes and how much is eaten. Neuroscientist and science writer Darya Rose discusses how words influence experience. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 33819]

Expert panel explores the relation of food insecurity, stress and nutrition. Panelists: Janet Tomiyama, UCLA – The Stigma of Obesity; Deborah Cohen, RAND Corporation – Stress and Built Environments; Barbara Laraia, UC Berkeley – Food Insecurity During Pregnancy; Annie Gupta, UCLA – Stress, Food, and Reward System; Emeran Mayer, UCLA- Stress and Microbiome. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33237]

Cindy Leung explains the novel mechanism of stress in the relation between food insecurity and health. Food insecurity has direct negative effects on health from infancy into adulthood, most in importantly on cardiovascular health. Food insecurity is a also form of toxic stress that has negative psychological effects. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33236]

It is difficult to effectively manage our weight when the world around us is full of enticing and unhealthy options. Kerri Boutelle, PhD, joins David Granet, MD, to discuss how our minds become conditioned to overeat. Series: "Health Matters" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 33433]

Laura Schmidt moderates a dynamic discussion focused on UC, Cal State Universities and California community college efforts to meet needs of students and process required for researchers and institutions to create multilevel change. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33239]

Dr. Hilary Seligman, explains how food insecurity impacts blood sugar, heart health, hospital admissions and obesity. She looks the economic implications of food insecurity and explores good models for response. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33240]

Dr. Neal Baer is a pediatrician, researcher and director at UCLA’s Global Media Center for Social Impact. He explores what scientists, public health advocates, and policy makers must continue to do today to address obesity, food insecurity, and other public health challenges of our time. He also talks about the role big corporations have in the global obesity problem, and their economic benefit from creating goods that perpetuate the obesity problem. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33234]

Kelly Brownell explores why research doesn’t get turned into policy and why perfect research may not create systemic change. He also explains why it is imperative for the growing population and for the environment that our research is effectively implemented to create change. Brownell is the Duke University Dean of the School of Public Policy. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33235]

Dr. David Ludwig, Professor of Pediatrics and Nutrition at Harvard Medical School, explains the connections between overeating, dieting, weight loss and weight gain. He debunks the popular myths about dieting by explaining how the body metabolizes and how sugar and fats are used as energy. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33238]

Best-selling author and UCSF endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig describes how the food industry adds sugar to food, which triggers an addictive response in the brain. Series: "UCTV Prime" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 32854]

Best-selling author and UCSF endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig describes how insoluble fiber is lost when food is processed by the food industry. Series: "UCTV Prime" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 32853]

The best-selling author and UCSF endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig explores how industry has contributed to a culture of addiction, depression and chronic disease. Always provocative, Lustig reveals the science that drives these states of mind and offers solutions we can use. Series: "Great Minds Gather Here" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 32572]

Best-selling author and UCSF endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig on the importance of individual responsibility in achieving health and happiness. Series: "UCTV Prime" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 32851]

Best-selling author and UCSF endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig on how insulin and insulin resistance are the driving factors in obesity and metabolic disease. Series: "UCTV Prime" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 32852]

Best-selling author and UCSF endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig explains how happiness and pleasure are achieved in different ways. Series: "UCTV Prime" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 32850]

Obesity is on the rise in the US. Dr. Alan Saltiel joins host Dr. David Granet to explore the function of the hormone Insulin and its relationship to Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes. Series: "Health Matters" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 32486]

Dr. Robert Baron, UCSF Professor of Medicine, demonstrates a practical method in determining a healthy serving size of food. The healthiest diet limit sugars, refined grains, and large amounts of saturated and trans fat. He advises to eat fruits and vegetables, healthy oils, whole grains, legumes and nuts. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 32422]

Dr. Robert Baron, UCSF Professor of Medicine, highlights the importance of switching to a whole grain diet. The healthiest diet limit sugars, refined grains, and large amounts of saturated and trans fat. He advises to eat fruits and vegetables, healthy oils, whole grains, legumes and nuts. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 32421]

Dr. Anisha Pastel works with communities to develop school and child-care based interventions and policies to prevent childhood obesity by encouraging healthy beverage intake. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 31674]

Childhood overweight is becoming evident in younger ages. Patricia Crawford and Lorrene Ritchie looks at what policies work to help prevent obesity and food addiction. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 31673]

Dr. Robert Lustig examines what is really addictive in food. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 31676]

Sugar consumption has long been linked with a host of chronic health problems, including obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Michael Roberts explores what that means for policy. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 31677]

New York Times reporter Anahad O’Connor sits down with former FDA commissioner Dr. David Kessler for discussion on the fat, sugar and salt in food that conditions us to eat more and changes our brain circuitry leading to obesity. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 31678]

Mark S. Gold, MD is a world renowned expert on addiction-related diseases and has worked to develop models for understanding the effects food on the brain and behavior. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 31670]

Keri Boutelle focuses on trying to change eating behavior by translating methods and knowledge from basic behavioral sciences. She explores the cognitive processes and neurobiological processes that will assist people who are overweight in eating less in today's environment. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 31672]

An internationally recognized expert in health communication science, Dr. Dean Schillinger focuses on literacy, health communication, and chronic disease prevention and management. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 31675]

Ashley Gearhardt developed the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS) to operationalize addictive-like eating behaviors, which has recently been linked with more frequent binge eating episodes in clinical populations, increased prevalence of obesity and patterns of neural activation implicated in other addictive behaviors. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 31671]

Laura Schmidt wraps up the Food and Addiction symposium. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 31679]

Elissa Epel and Janet Napolitano kick off the 2016 COAST SSEW symposium on food and addiction. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 31669]