Metabolic Health Expert Slams 60 Minutes Segment on Obesity Drug Semaglutide - aka Wegovy / Ozempic 

Tom - this was so fantastic. It’s too bad they didn’t consult you. 60M normally talks to “both sides” and I found it strange they didn’t do that in this segment.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for posting this rebuttal to the recent 60 minutes episode on obesity. That 60 minutes episode left me reeling and has been haunting me for two weeks. After watching it I was dumbfounded. What did I just see? What in the world was the intended take away supposed to be? I heard: obesity is hereditary. No matter what you do to lose weight, you will not be able to maintain it because your set point will override you efforts and you’ll inevitably regain all your weight back. The only way to fight that is to take this expensive miracle drug for the rest of your life but the mean old insurance companies won’t cover the cost for most people. Only rich people can access supplies of this wonder drug and they are hogging the less effective version intended for diabetics. WTH?! Was that supposed to be a helpful news segment or a pharmaceutical ad? It certainly wasn’t informative and helpful in any meaningful way. Why aren’t more people screeching about how horrible that segment was?! I’m so glad to have stumbled across your video to find a sane, logical, helpful rebuttal on this complex topic of obesity and metabolic syndrome. The 60 minutes news segment was truly crap! But I’m thrilled to have learned a new helpful acronym for that word and appreciated the reminder that we are not victims of our heredity and can employ strategic steps to combat obesity.

Thank you for making this. Your right of course. Never understood how doctors can say its genetics when Obesity is a relatively new problem. Its the food of course.

Thank you for this program. I watched that 60 minutes segmant completely aghast. When I was 100 plus lbs overweight, I ate when I wasn't hungry ALL THE TIME .

Some people are more genetically PRONE than others (e.g. a lower fat threshold, or more genetic tendency towards stress). So yeah, correcting the environment would prevent these generic tendencies from being expressed as strongly as they currently are. But there is definitely a genetic component. Largely agree with you on the rest.

I know the 60 minute segment did not discuss Monjauro. What are your thoughts on this vs Ozempic. Physicians still seem reluctant to prescribe it, yet in my research it appears to have less side effects. I would love your thoughts

She may have been well intentioned, she was also wrong and inventing facts and numbers not supported by the data. She's the worst type of med pro and amounted to medical negligence telling people nutri, exercise, etc were of little to no value and genetics accounted for obesity. How does anyone say that with her education and status with a straight face? The entire segment was seemingly written by the PR department of the pharma she's consulting for. Just shameful.

Thanks for this response. I found those interviews disturbing and highly indicative of conflicts of interest. This shit hurts Americans and throws fuel on the fire for not believing authorities on medicine in the US. Glad you’re not letting it slide.

Great video. I really enjoyed it. I'm curious what your opinion of Robert Lustig's work and specifically his assertion that different sugars have very different metabolic pathways in the body which leads to having very different effects on our health. He's someone I as a non medical professional have followed for a while as a legitimate source of accurate information with regard to nutrition, obesity and metabolic health.

Haven’t seen it yet but thanks for this. My clients have been talking to me about it

📢📢 preach it!!! That 15 minute commercial made me so mad - whew.

Only one way to solve these types of problems. Ban direct to consumer pharmaceutical advertising. Take the money away and the networks might grow themselves a pair.

I was also frustrated by the 60 minutes biased coverage for losing weight. Here is part of my feedback to CBS News. The foods you eat and WHEN you eat are the main factors in weight loss. The “genetic” link that Dr. Stanford suggests in not in your DNA, but in your family’s eating patterns that you inherited throughout your life. There is no physical “set point” for your weight - Your weight is “set” by your eating lifestyle, Sugar-laden foods and refined carbohydrates raise blood sugar which in turn raises insulin, the FAT-STORING hormone. Eating high-glycemic foods shunts the derived energy quickly into fat so that within a few hours you have little reserve energy to function, and you soon become hungry again eating more “carbs”. Our society “overfeeds” on pancakes, French toast, bagels, donuts, pasta, bread, noodles, boxed/sugared cereals, cookies, cakes, muffins, crackers, white rice, corn, white potatoes, ice cream, candy, and beverages such as beer, fruit juices, wine, liquor, and sodas. We should primarily eat “one-ingredient” foods like (organic) carrots, radishes, tomatoes, squash, celery, cucumbers, beets, spinach, kale, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussel sprouts, beans, sprouted seeds, onions, garlic, zucchini, avocados, nut meats and seeds, chicken, pork, beef, fish, yogurt, cheese, eggs, etc., but no mention of these nutrient-rich foods was made on your broadcast. The emphasis should not be that we need to restrict the calories, but we need to restrict the time-window in which we consume food, i.e., gradually strive limit your food consumption to 8-10 hours each day so that your system is not under constant demand to digest food. Give your body a 14-to-16-hour break to utilize the fat stores that the body has accumulated.

Lifestyle changes don’t bring in tha big moneyyyy Tommmmyyyy

Wish my mother who constantly fat shames me would watch this. I am finally using Ozempic and actually don’t feel like I’m starving. I have always had fast gastric emptying. What I ate for dinner I poop out in the morning. Anyway this slows it down so I can control it.

LOVE the ccrahp! Printing it out on paper and putting in our kitchen!

How is insulin up only when necessary with these drugs????

I've noticed as I've aged and been through menopause, diets that used to work, don't work anymore. I've done Weight Watchers and Nutrisystem in the last 5 years. At most, I've been able to lose 7 or 8 pounds in the first month and then it slows or stops. I was diagnosed with Hashimotos in 2016 but have had hypothyroidism since my late 30s. I've put on about 40 extra stubborn pounds that I struggle with. I'm in my late 60s. I really think that obesity is a disease and isn't always a choice. There are so many health factors that can be culprits, aside from just bad food choices. I do think whole plant based foods can help and many have had success in weight loss and correcting other chronic diseases. It's way too complicated to have a one size fits all solution. I don't see a problem with anyone trying drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy or Mounjaro while also adopting better habits.

60 minutes selling out to pharma rather than helping people.

Agreed!! 100% diet and exercise with semaglutide if needed. Our food is so unhealthy,and full of excess free calories it's shameful. What the corporate food industry has done to the collective population should be seen as the greatest crime against humanity. Look at these 3rd world countries that have access to cheap high processed foods... they are obese too. We know exactly what the problem in SUGAR whether it's via high fructose corn syrup, molasses, or other derivatives of corn is cheap sugary filler that makes their product taste better when in actuality it's crappy food.

Ok. but does it work or not? Is it a fact that the drugs are showing results in patients who are taking the drugs for weight loss? I’ve only heard of very positive patient stories.

So.. I understand that people in the U.S. are eating bad food, which contributes to obesity. But some of us do actually have something going on with us genetically. My parents are skinny. But my mom eats a Costco box of hagen daz ice cream bars every couple days, sometimes a box a day. My dad puts a mountain of food on his plate. They are both thin. I, on the other hand.. I think the last time I ate fast food or ice cream was 20 years ago. My diet consists of zero sugar, only organic extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil, homemade kimchi, organic veggies, and to splurge? Maybe one week out of the month? Organic oranges. I am 5'1, 154 lbs. I walk my dog three times a day up hill for 30 minutes each walk. I need help. I have been dealing with my 1000-1200 a day calorie eating and staying active for decades, with no results. I have noticed that ALL my aunts and uncles are rail thin. And their many kids are obese as well. All my cousins. There is something going on, and it's not our fault. Btw.. my cousins who live overseas? Rail thin

Well spoken, Dr. Tom. I´m still looking forward to your book. When will it be on the market?

In minute 16 you talked about weaning off these drugs while supporting to increase lifestyle skills. Have you been able to do this with your own patients with out weight regain? Do you know of any published research on this idea?

Wish there was something like what you suggested and it was covered by insurance.

Great rebuttal!

Two questions : Why doesn’t semaglutide increase insulin chronically and if it does wouldn’t that increase risk of diabetes via insulin resistance ? Furthermore thoughts on semaglutide in process of being approved for children ( I think it’s disgusting)?

🤷 *Promosm*

But when you go off these drugs, you balloon out quickly.

While I agree with Dr. Rifai regarding the idea that genetics is not the cause of obesity (and also the 60 minutes article talking specifically about certain products), I was disappointed when he then launched into yet another patient blame game lecture about food consumption. Overlooked in the 60 minutes critique was its focus on the role of GLP-1 with calorie absorption and the newest medicines targeting the regulation of this mediator. Obesity must be framed in the context of a disregulated closed loop feedback system that encompasses all subsystems in the body. The gut doesn't randomly absorb calories, it does what it is told to do. Elsewhere I've heard that the brain controls the gut, but it is not a master regulator. The endocrine system controls glucose homeostasis, and disregulation of that closed loop system can affect obesity by telling the gut to absorb more calories then needing to stuff the extra glucose into fat to keep blood glucose levels normal (like a hoarder). Signals to the gut come from throughout the body, and the GLP-1 receptor is one key point that can be intercepted by medication. One thing still overlooked is the role of the immune system in the gut. Unlike all other subsystems in the body, which are designed not to change after puberty, the adaptive immune system is one system that is designed to change throughout one's lifetime. Problems that start after puberty may indicate interference by the adaptive immune system (auto-antibodies) into various closed loop subsystems, causing dysregulation that gives rise to chronic disease which cannot be cured by diet alone. Some have been known for a long time (thyroid antibodies, aChR antibodies), but many, many others are still undiscovered. While I do totally agree about a real need to eat healthier and do more physical activity, I disagree with the concept that drastic diets and hyper exercise programs can cure chronic disease.

Safe and effective! Let’s give it to the kids, too!

So is this drug basically an appetite suppressant?

I think your points are specious, and some of them completely misconstrue what the 60 Minutes brief actually said. True, it is settled science that an obese person cannot shed pounds without employing healthy lifestyle habits (eating, exercise); the problem is many obese people cannot shed substantial weight even when employing best practices for weight reduction, and many MANY more cannot adhere to best practices for an extended period of time -- and it's NOT about will power. If it were, why couldn't autism, bipolar disorder, amnesia and depression be cured that way too? Just stop making those sounds and pay attention; just stop your brain from doing that; just try harder to remember; just stop feeling sad and get your energy level up. Obesity is no more rooted in behavior than any of those and I am glad that medicine is FINALLY beginning to understand that and to realize that in cases of obesity, behavior is the outward manifestation of a complex brain disorder. If all it takes to stick to a healthy eating and exercise lifestyle is willpower and a strong desire to lose weight, why are long term success rates -- even for those on guided programs (including Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig and Nutri System) -- so low decade after decade despite all the information, convenient packaged foods, and support they provide to their participants? Do you think obese people don't truly want to shed pounds? What would be more convincing than your talk is if you would show us the multitude of clients the American College of Lifestyle Medicine has helped to shed weight and MAINTAIN their goal weight over an extended period of years. And BTW, are there any conflicts of interest in your endorsing that organization? Just asking to be fair. I don't doubt that your intentions are honorable, but doctors who think as you do regarding obesity are a MAJOR problem for morbidly obese people (like me) who NEED their doctor(s) to realize that calories in/calories out and exercise is an overly simplistic -- and demonstrably wrong and harmful -- solution to a very complex and multi-faceted disorder. And one of the doctors DID break down how the two drugs work but it was on 60 Minutes Overtime. The broadcast segment time is limited after all.

You talk too fast.

Holy smokes! I made it to minute 12:48 of your difficult to follow ramblings. Here’s why you’re (mostly) wrong … while it is a provocative and narrow view to say that obesity is entirely genetic, genetics does play the biggest role in determining how one’s endocrine system works. Yes, some people are obese because they consume a massive calorie surplus per day. But to say ‘calories in vs. calories out’ is the entire story is as myopic as the 60 Minutes piece. Where 60 Minutes really went wrong is trying to tackle the topic in under 14 minutes (I think it was). And yes, I think you were trying to make the point that the food industry is harming people with terrible ingredients (like sugar in everything). Too many people have non-working and damaged insulin (and other hormone) pathways. The ingredients that make up modern life - stress, multitasking, perfectionism, consumerism, hyper competitiveness, overconsumption and convenience - are making people sick, miserable and dysfunctional. On paper and in a perfect world, you’re probably correct, but we don’t live there. What is a viable and realistic solution to the obesity epidemic?? And how do we fix our hormones? Maybe semaglutide will help, maybe not, who can say for sure right now. People are desperate (not referring to celebrities) and reaching for an injection might be a better solution that jogging 1 more mile or self-soothing with another piece of cake.

Thankyou. Everything makes sense...I've found that the right state of mind is also essential ...absolutely essential! Some times it is difficult to be in that right frame of mind.

Dr. Rifai, thank you so much for getting the RIGHT INFORMATION out here. I subscribed to your RU-vid channel. I was on MOUNJARO until Dec 2022, when Lilly and FDA slapped the label of T2 use only, I was lucking enough to have a DR who prescribe OZ 1mg to me. Now, I've switched to OZ 1mg. I just turned 57 today (01/25), and I went from in Sept 2022 at 196 pds to 167 pds (01/25), and I feel fabulous! My food/healthy eating plan has been WW, and the GLP-1s have made it so much easier. I have TOTAL CONTROL of what comes into my home and what I stock in my kitchen, and I could not agree with you more. Yes, I totally agree that the GLP-1s have only been a 'tool' in my weight management toolbox. My insurance would not clear me, so on Mounjaro I had a savings card (now can no longer use), so I had to go to Canada for the OZ, and yes it's still expensive. My DR wants me to stay on until my BMI and BODY FAT are in safer %; yes they are still in the red-zone. So, I'll stay on from another couple months (give or take), then tapper down to a maintain with the drugs. If you like I can keep in touch on my progress. Be safe and take care!