1
00:00:13,060 --> 00:00:15,831
Sanchez: [ Breathing heavily ]
Five...

2
00:00:15,832 --> 00:00:18,235
six...

3
00:00:18,236 --> 00:00:19,806
seven...

4
00:00:19,807 --> 00:00:22,177
eight.

5
00:00:22,178 --> 00:00:37,842
♪

6
00:00:37,843 --> 00:00:40,079
Two...

7
00:00:40,080 --> 00:00:42,518
three.

8
00:00:42,519 --> 00:00:50,433
♪

9
00:00:50,434 --> 00:00:54,174
The earliest memory I have
as weight being a thing for me

10
00:00:54,175 --> 00:00:58,349
was being taken by my mom
to a class on Saturdays

11
00:00:58,350 --> 00:00:59,719
that was basically, like,

12
00:00:59,720 --> 00:01:03,226
a weight-management class
for kids.

13
00:01:07,134 --> 00:01:09,204
And I was probably 8 or 9.

14
00:01:13,146 --> 00:01:15,283
Luxmore: Taking up space
is definitely something

15
00:01:15,284 --> 00:01:19,157
that has been on my mind,
like, my whole life,

16
00:01:19,158 --> 00:01:22,765
just because my size
has significantly affected

17
00:01:22,766 --> 00:01:24,736
every aspect of my life.

18
00:01:24,737 --> 00:01:27,174
I was the big kid, definitely.

19
00:01:29,311 --> 00:01:31,916
Arrellin: I was little--
was a little girl,

20
00:01:31,917 --> 00:01:34,555
and then I started to, like,
gain weight.

21
00:01:34,556 --> 00:01:37,661
Something was obviously wrong.

22
00:01:37,662 --> 00:01:39,632
Sanchez: When I first heard of
GLP-1s,

23
00:01:39,633 --> 00:01:41,770
it sounded like this thing
in Hollywood

24
00:01:41,771 --> 00:01:43,507
that all the celebrities
were using.

25
00:01:43,508 --> 00:01:45,143
- ...Kelly Clarkson...
- ...Whoopi Goldberg...

26
00:01:45,144 --> 00:01:46,880
Reporter:
Television icon Oprah Winfrey

27
00:01:46,881 --> 00:01:49,686
revealing she's using
medication for weight loss.

28
00:01:49,687 --> 00:01:51,556
Sanchez: I started hearing
from other women,

29
00:01:51,557 --> 00:01:55,296
and the success they were having
was pretty significant.

30
00:01:55,297 --> 00:01:58,904
In the first couple weeks,
I was losing weight immediately.

31
00:01:58,905 --> 00:02:01,208
Luxmore:
All of the extreme distress

32
00:02:01,209 --> 00:02:04,214
that I had been feeling
with just instantly gone.

33
00:02:05,785 --> 00:02:08,189
[ Sighs ]

34
00:02:08,190 --> 00:02:10,728
[ Voice breaking ] It is such
an incredible sense of relief.

35
00:02:11,664 --> 00:02:14,401
Arrellin: My doctor is trying
everything she can

36
00:02:14,402 --> 00:02:16,573
to make it better for me.

37
00:02:16,574 --> 00:02:19,946
I want to lose weight more
than anything on Earth, I swear.

38
00:02:19,947 --> 00:02:23,887
This is unquestionably
a medical innovation.

39
00:02:23,888 --> 00:02:25,624
Reporter #2:
Weight loss is something

40
00:02:25,625 --> 00:02:27,595
that Americans have
been chasing for decades.

41
00:02:27,596 --> 00:02:30,199
There's a new class of drugs
that could be a game changer.

42
00:02:30,200 --> 00:02:32,404
Allen: This is not just
a pharmaceutical drug.

43
00:02:32,405 --> 00:02:34,842
This is a cultural shift
that we're seeing.

44
00:02:34,843 --> 00:02:37,681
- I lost eight pounds.
<i>- What are you eating? Muffins?</i>

45
00:02:37,682 --> 00:02:39,451
<i>Strudels? Put it down and let
me talk to you for a second.</i>

46
00:02:39,452 --> 00:02:41,422
Winfrey: Whether you have
$10 or $10 million,

47
00:02:41,423 --> 00:02:43,593
a fat butt is a fat butt.

48
00:02:43,594 --> 00:02:46,733
Diet culture set the stage
for these drugs.

49
00:02:46,734 --> 00:02:48,904
<i>I was, like, the unhealthiest
I've been in my entire life,</i>

50
00:02:48,905 --> 00:02:50,707
<i>but I was also the thinnest.</i>

51
00:02:50,708 --> 00:02:53,212
Gay: People treat thinness
as a virtue.

52
00:02:53,213 --> 00:02:55,383
It's practically biblical
for a lot of people.

53
00:02:55,384 --> 00:02:57,487
<i>I wouldn't recommend
anybody be fat in this world.</i>

54
00:02:57,488 --> 00:02:59,659
<i>It is so traumatizing.</i>

55
00:02:59,660 --> 00:03:01,663
I have a fear
of fat people on planes.

56
00:03:01,664 --> 00:03:03,900
What are you scared of?
Them being near me.

57
00:03:03,901 --> 00:03:06,271
Woman:
They're in a shortage.

58
00:03:06,272 --> 00:03:07,741
They can't make enough
to actually meet the demand.

59
00:03:07,742 --> 00:03:09,512
Tovar:
The path we're on right now,

60
00:03:09,513 --> 00:03:11,983
the path where we don't reckon
with our attitudes

61
00:03:11,984 --> 00:03:13,687
about higher-weight people...

62
00:03:13,688 --> 00:03:15,389
Reporter #3:
...drug market could eventually

63
00:03:15,390 --> 00:03:18,563
hit $100 billion in sales
a year.

64
00:03:18,564 --> 00:03:20,333
...is a path of destruction.

65
00:03:20,334 --> 00:03:27,480
♪

66
00:03:27,481 --> 00:03:29,384
Interviewer: <i>You look very
unhappy in that picture.</i>

67
00:03:29,385 --> 00:03:31,388
<i>I thought fat men
were supposed to be jolly.</i>

68
00:03:31,389 --> 00:03:33,025
<i>What did she model,
car covers?</i>

69
00:03:33,026 --> 00:03:34,629
<i>I'm really gonna
have to go on a crash diet.</i>

70
00:03:34,630 --> 00:03:36,900
<i>Some girl ate Monica!</i>

71
00:03:36,901 --> 00:03:38,804
Stern:
<i>I don't think you're aware
that you're a heavyset woman.</i>

72
00:03:38,805 --> 00:03:40,574
<i>- ...trying to lose weight.
- What's with the gut?</i>

73
00:03:40,575 --> 00:03:42,912
<i>- Lay off me! I'm starving!
- There you go.</i>

74
00:03:42,913 --> 00:03:44,549
<i>Beautiful.</i>

75
00:03:47,822 --> 00:03:49,457
<i>We're gonna start
with some deep breaths.</i>

76
00:03:49,458 --> 00:03:51,529
Blum: Over the years,
we have treated obesity

77
00:03:51,530 --> 00:03:53,332
as this problem to fix.

78
00:03:53,333 --> 00:03:55,403
Simmons: <i>Next 45 minutes
is your time.</i>

79
00:03:55,404 --> 00:03:57,307
Blum: There have been diets,
there have been drugs

80
00:03:57,308 --> 00:03:59,512
that hit the market
that seemed promising.

81
00:03:59,513 --> 00:04:02,718
Man: <i>Keep away from salt,
white flour, white sugar...</i>

82
00:04:02,719 --> 00:04:04,822
Blum:
But throughout all of this,

83
00:04:04,823 --> 00:04:06,960
obesity rates have continued
to climb.

84
00:04:06,961 --> 00:04:09,732
We know that obesity
is linked to a range

85
00:04:09,733 --> 00:04:12,003
of pretty devastating
conditions.

86
00:04:12,004 --> 00:04:14,341
Man #2: <i>Americans will do
almost anything to lose weight.</i>

87
00:04:14,342 --> 00:04:16,713
Blum:
But also, our entire culture

88
00:04:16,714 --> 00:04:18,984
incentivizes weight loss.
Woman: <i>Obsession.</i>

89
00:04:18,985 --> 00:04:21,956
Blum: So while I think there's a
lot of excitement around GLP-1s

90
00:04:21,957 --> 00:04:23,860
and there's reason
to be excited,

91
00:04:23,861 --> 00:04:26,365
there's also reason
to look at history

92
00:04:26,366 --> 00:04:28,503
and just be careful
and approach these drugs

93
00:04:28,504 --> 00:04:30,006
seriously and with caution.

94
00:04:30,007 --> 00:04:32,979
♪

95
00:04:35,050 --> 00:04:37,822
[ Child speaking in background ]

96
00:04:38,924 --> 00:04:40,594
Sanchez:
If you look at photos of me...

97
00:04:43,567 --> 00:04:45,637
...as far as I recall,

98
00:04:45,638 --> 00:04:47,541
I was not an overweight child.

99
00:04:47,542 --> 00:04:50,079
<i>♪ Get in shape, girl ♪</i>

100
00:04:50,080 --> 00:04:53,520
<i>♪ You got the feeling ♪</i>

101
00:04:53,521 --> 00:04:55,423
<i>♪ Get in shape, girl ♪</i>

102
00:04:55,424 --> 00:04:58,697
According to the growth chart
from my pediatrician,

103
00:04:58,698 --> 00:05:01,936
I must have been
in the higher numbers.

104
00:05:01,937 --> 00:05:05,844
My mom definitely had
body-image issues,

105
00:05:05,845 --> 00:05:08,917
and I think hearing
from the pediatrician

106
00:05:08,918 --> 00:05:11,756
that maybe I was on
a higher end of the growth chart

107
00:05:11,757 --> 00:05:13,960
triggered something in her,

108
00:05:13,961 --> 00:05:16,599
and she then projected it on me

109
00:05:16,600 --> 00:05:21,509
and was always trying to fix me.

110
00:05:21,510 --> 00:05:24,916
And unfortunately,
that trailed into teenage years,

111
00:05:24,917 --> 00:05:26,653
young adulthood.

112
00:05:26,654 --> 00:05:30,493
Binge eating created almost
a coping mechanism

113
00:05:30,494 --> 00:05:34,535
that I would use
in high-anxiety situations.

114
00:05:34,536 --> 00:05:38,142
At my 18th birthday,

115
00:05:38,143 --> 00:05:41,950
I opened a gift from my parents,
and when I opened the box,

116
00:05:41,951 --> 00:05:44,956
it was an image
of my personal trainer

117
00:05:44,957 --> 00:05:47,828
that I was being gifted
and workout clothes.

118
00:05:47,829 --> 00:05:50,701
And that was from her.
[ Chuckles ]

119
00:05:51,803 --> 00:05:53,607
And that's a core memory.

120
00:05:53,608 --> 00:05:57,681
<i>And push, and push
out and in.</i>

121
00:05:57,682 --> 00:05:59,852
<i>All right, kick swings
right here.</i>

122
00:05:59,853 --> 00:06:03,560
<i>Up, two.
Okay, tap it, tap it...</i>

123
00:06:03,561 --> 00:06:05,731
[ Clicking ]
Oh, there you go.

124
00:06:05,732 --> 00:06:07,133
Ooh.

125
00:06:07,134 --> 00:06:09,104
You want to season it
with some salt?

126
00:06:09,105 --> 00:06:12,010
Sanchez: I think the diet
culture that entered our home

127
00:06:12,011 --> 00:06:15,784
created a very dangerous
dynamic for me,

128
00:06:15,785 --> 00:06:19,090
already putting a complexity
on the size I was.

129
00:06:19,091 --> 00:06:23,132
My weight hit a peak
in my mid-20s.

130
00:06:23,133 --> 00:06:26,471
I needed help.

131
00:06:26,472 --> 00:06:29,578
What causes someone
to be obese, um,

132
00:06:29,579 --> 00:06:31,716
is really complicated, right?

133
00:06:31,717 --> 00:06:35,156
So not only is it an interplay
between environment and biology,

134
00:06:35,157 --> 00:06:37,795
genetics and individual choices,

135
00:06:37,796 --> 00:06:40,934
but it's also
about societal expectations.

136
00:06:40,935 --> 00:06:44,074
<i>Society tries
in every way possible</i>

137
00:06:44,075 --> 00:06:45,844
<i>to make you feel
like an outcast.</i>

138
00:06:45,845 --> 00:06:48,516
<i>As a fat person,
you are just used to the way</i>

139
00:06:48,517 --> 00:06:50,654
<i>that society treats you,
but you don't understand</i>

140
00:06:50,655 --> 00:06:53,827
<i>how badly you are treated
until you lose weight.</i>

141
00:06:53,828 --> 00:06:57,033
I think it's very easy to
know something intellectually,

142
00:06:57,034 --> 00:06:59,905
to know I have every right to be
in this world exactly as I am,

143
00:06:59,906 --> 00:07:02,010
but it's a lot harder
to maintain that

144
00:07:02,011 --> 00:07:03,947
while you actually live
in a world

145
00:07:03,948 --> 00:07:05,584
that is pretty inhospitable
to fatness.

146
00:07:05,585 --> 00:07:07,020
<i>Things I hate
as a fat person--</i>

147
00:07:07,021 --> 00:07:10,961
<i>concert seating because,
oh, my God,</i>

148
00:07:10,962 --> 00:07:13,265
<i>this is, like,
actively discriminatory.</i>

149
00:07:13,266 --> 00:07:15,704
Gay: We know that many,
many people in this country

150
00:07:15,705 --> 00:07:18,108
are fat, and yet there are
very few stores

151
00:07:18,109 --> 00:07:22,851
that cater to fat people
for clothing.

152
00:07:22,852 --> 00:07:25,590
Doctors refuse to treat you
for what you actually

153
00:07:25,591 --> 00:07:28,028
are trying to see them for,
like a sore throat

154
00:07:28,029 --> 00:07:31,502
or a cold or a broken ankle.

155
00:07:31,503 --> 00:07:34,074
They're always trying
to address fatness.

156
00:07:34,075 --> 00:07:36,044
Everything looks good.

157
00:07:36,045 --> 00:07:38,182
We'll call you with your
pap results when they come in.

158
00:07:38,183 --> 00:07:40,987
Okay.
Thank you.

159
00:07:40,988 --> 00:07:44,862
And I'm sure Dr. Lishen has
mentioned this to you before,

160
00:07:44,863 --> 00:07:47,701
but you should think about
gastric bypass.

161
00:07:47,702 --> 00:07:50,974
Okay. Um...
but we didn't do, like,

162
00:07:50,975 --> 00:07:53,913
any bloodwork
or anything today.

163
00:07:53,914 --> 00:07:56,586
Isn't that something
that maybe you should look at

164
00:07:56,587 --> 00:08:00,927
before you recommend
a major surgery?

165
00:08:00,928 --> 00:08:04,100
I think there's so much hatred

166
00:08:04,101 --> 00:08:07,073
of weight gain
and of larger-bodied people,

167
00:08:07,074 --> 00:08:09,945
and there's so much praise
to be had

168
00:08:09,946 --> 00:08:13,920
for being seen as dieting
and losing weight.

169
00:08:13,921 --> 00:08:17,293
I just know what it's like
to sort of have that feeling

170
00:08:17,294 --> 00:08:19,598
that all eyes are on me,

171
00:08:19,599 --> 00:08:23,640
I'm losing money or work
or respect because of my body,

172
00:08:23,641 --> 00:08:26,646
and I could make it all
go away if I just... blank.

173
00:08:27,748 --> 00:08:30,754
You're so tall.
Wow.

174
00:08:30,755 --> 00:08:32,891
Sanchez: I made the decision
to have the drastic change

175
00:08:32,892 --> 00:08:35,764
of gastric bypass,

176
00:08:35,765 --> 00:08:38,870
and, really, the idea was sold
to me that this will fix things.

177
00:08:38,871 --> 00:08:40,640
<i>Dropped about 120 pounds.</i>

178
00:08:40,641 --> 00:08:42,276
<i>It really worked for me.</i>

179
00:08:42,277 --> 00:08:45,182
<i>I wish I had done it
10 years ago.</i>

180
00:08:45,183 --> 00:08:47,086
Sanchez:
And it was successful.

181
00:08:47,087 --> 00:08:50,126
I lost 110 pounds within
that first year.

182
00:08:50,127 --> 00:08:51,796
I felt great.

183
00:08:51,797 --> 00:08:53,700
It gave me the opportunity

184
00:08:53,701 --> 00:08:56,138
to have beautiful
wedding pictures

185
00:08:56,139 --> 00:08:58,710
and fit into a dress

186
00:08:58,711 --> 00:09:02,150
that I don't think I ever
would have fit into before that.

187
00:09:02,151 --> 00:09:03,285
There you go.

188
00:09:03,286 --> 00:09:05,724
Even after losing 110 pounds,

189
00:09:05,725 --> 00:09:07,961
the portion of my body

190
00:09:07,962 --> 00:09:09,832
that wouldn't change drastically

191
00:09:09,833 --> 00:09:13,005
was my lower legs and my hips.

192
00:09:13,006 --> 00:09:16,679
And within the last year

193
00:09:16,680 --> 00:09:18,683
oddly enough, through a TikTok,

194
00:09:18,684 --> 00:09:20,854
I learned what lipedema was.

195
00:09:20,855 --> 00:09:22,958
Woman: <i>Lipedema usually
affects the legs.</i>

196
00:09:22,959 --> 00:09:25,931
<i>It can affect the arms,
but usually it's the legs.</i>

197
00:09:25,932 --> 00:09:28,703
<i>Everyone with lipedema
will present differently.</i>

198
00:09:28,704 --> 00:09:30,172
Sanchez:
I could sit there going,

199
00:09:30,173 --> 00:09:33,278
"That's exactly
what my legs are."

200
00:09:33,279 --> 00:09:37,386
I wanted to talk a little more
about what lipedema is.

201
00:09:37,387 --> 00:09:40,727
It's a genetic fat disorder, um,

202
00:09:40,728 --> 00:09:42,664
where you basically have

203
00:09:42,665 --> 00:09:46,004
a layer of diseased fat
under your skin.

204
00:09:46,005 --> 00:09:48,041
It's not just in my head.

205
00:09:48,042 --> 00:09:51,816
It's not just me failing
at trying to lose weight.

206
00:09:51,817 --> 00:09:54,688
The other thing is,
I didn't know it was hereditary.

207
00:09:54,689 --> 00:09:58,128
It was something
that was in my genes.

208
00:09:58,129 --> 00:10:02,036
I don't know what it feels
like, at the end of the day,

209
00:10:02,037 --> 00:10:04,374
to not have heavy legs.

210
00:10:04,375 --> 00:10:07,246
And it would be nice to know.

211
00:10:07,247 --> 00:10:11,822
And the more research I did
in my lipidema communities,

212
00:10:11,823 --> 00:10:16,832
I was hearing and seeing results
from other women taking GLP-1s

213
00:10:16,833 --> 00:10:20,139
having reduction
in their lipedema.

214
00:10:20,140 --> 00:10:22,176
And when I got on Mounjaro,
and all those things suddenly

215
00:10:22,177 --> 00:10:24,682
started to, like, subside.

216
00:10:24,683 --> 00:10:27,019
Sanchez:
So that helped me realize

217
00:10:27,020 --> 00:10:31,261
I need a better tool
to help fix this.

218
00:10:31,262 --> 00:10:32,665
♪

219
00:10:38,409 --> 00:10:45,089
♪

220
00:10:45,090 --> 00:10:48,863
Luxmore: Thinking about weight
is probably the number-one item

221
00:10:48,864 --> 00:10:52,236
that's on my mind
most of the time.

222
00:10:52,237 --> 00:10:56,378
Like, I'm always comparing
myself to everyone around me.

223
00:10:56,379 --> 00:10:58,917
I sized up this crew
when they walked in

224
00:10:58,918 --> 00:11:00,720
and, like,
the first thing is like,

225
00:11:00,721 --> 00:11:03,058
"Yep, I'm definitely bigger
than all these people."

226
00:11:03,059 --> 00:11:05,429
Or it's like a game.
Like, the game is,

227
00:11:05,430 --> 00:11:08,770
"Am I the biggest person
in the room?"

228
00:11:08,771 --> 00:11:12,043
I have this negative internal
narrative about my weight

229
00:11:12,044 --> 00:11:13,980
that's always been there.

230
00:11:13,981 --> 00:11:16,886
I don't know
if my family, to this day,

231
00:11:16,887 --> 00:11:19,324
understands the implications
of weight.

232
00:11:19,325 --> 00:11:21,762
We know, of course,

233
00:11:21,763 --> 00:11:24,467
that obesity is associated
with a number of health risks.

234
00:11:24,468 --> 00:11:27,306
It just wasn't a topic.

235
00:11:27,307 --> 00:11:30,179
There are clear,
undeniable instances

236
00:11:30,180 --> 00:11:34,153
where my weight has, like,
caused a social interaction

237
00:11:34,154 --> 00:11:36,057
to go a certain way.

238
00:11:36,058 --> 00:11:37,961
Dating is a great example.

239
00:11:37,962 --> 00:11:40,800
Like, you know, there's really
not any other way to do it

240
00:11:40,801 --> 00:11:42,771
where, like, you're chatting
and then you're like,

241
00:11:42,772 --> 00:11:46,077
"Hey, let's send
each other photos."

242
00:11:46,078 --> 00:11:49,918
And then that person drops off
the face of the planet.

243
00:11:49,919 --> 00:11:52,423
I think that's a pretty clear
indication, right?

244
00:11:54,962 --> 00:11:57,433
What I want is I want to look...

245
00:11:57,434 --> 00:12:00,774
it's such a loaded word,
but I want to look "normal."

246
00:12:03,245 --> 00:12:06,384
The reality of a GLP-1 med
becoming available

247
00:12:06,385 --> 00:12:08,956
was sometime in 2023, like,

248
00:12:08,957 --> 00:12:11,061
because these articles
started popping up.

249
00:12:13,099 --> 00:12:16,204
The part that stood out to me
was this concept of food noise.

250
00:12:16,205 --> 00:12:17,941
You're eating breakfast
and you're thinking,

251
00:12:17,942 --> 00:12:20,479
"What am I gonna have
for lunch?"

252
00:12:20,480 --> 00:12:23,953
When I read people saying
the food noise just went away,

253
00:12:23,954 --> 00:12:28,128
I was like,
"That's not possible."

254
00:12:28,129 --> 00:12:31,067
Okay, friends, it's dinner time.

255
00:12:31,068 --> 00:12:34,508
Give you a little preview
of what's for dinner today.

256
00:12:34,509 --> 00:12:38,382
I have some
of this vegetable mélange.

257
00:12:38,383 --> 00:12:40,219
I like saying that word.

258
00:12:40,220 --> 00:12:42,991
Dr. Rich:
Hunger is a necessary

259
00:12:42,992 --> 00:12:46,231
biologic, um, impulse,

260
00:12:46,232 --> 00:12:47,534
so that you don't starve.

261
00:12:47,535 --> 00:12:52,209
And satiety, which says,
"That's enough,"

262
00:12:52,210 --> 00:12:55,482
is necessary
so that you don't overeat.

263
00:12:55,483 --> 00:12:57,988
And everyone's
been trying to find out

264
00:12:57,989 --> 00:13:00,259
what shuts on and off
those signals.

265
00:13:00,260 --> 00:13:03,165
If we could either
turn on satiety

266
00:13:03,166 --> 00:13:04,902
or shut off hunger,

267
00:13:04,903 --> 00:13:07,239
we can get people
to lose weight.

268
00:13:07,240 --> 00:13:10,179
<i>There's a brand-new drug
that's just been FDA-approved</i>

269
00:13:10,180 --> 00:13:13,553
<i>called Byetta,
which comes from the saliva</i>

270
00:13:13,554 --> 00:13:15,155
<i>of the Gila monster.</i>

271
00:13:15,156 --> 00:13:17,159
<i>It's actually
synthetic lizard spit.</i>

272
00:13:17,160 --> 00:13:19,030
<i>- Oh, my goodness.
- You're making this up.</i>

273
00:13:19,031 --> 00:13:20,600
<i>And so you inject it.
and the beauty of it is,</i>

274
00:13:20,601 --> 00:13:22,838
<i>is that your diabetes
gets better</i>

275
00:13:22,839 --> 00:13:24,541
<i>and you don't gain weight.</i>

276
00:13:24,542 --> 00:13:28,583
Decades ago, we were looking
at other diseases like diabetes.

277
00:13:28,584 --> 00:13:31,555
And that's where hormones
such as GLP-1

278
00:13:31,556 --> 00:13:33,593
came into the picture.

279
00:13:33,594 --> 00:13:36,599
<i>Some really smart
researcher found out</i>

280
00:13:36,600 --> 00:13:39,905
<i>that the Gila monster only eats
three to four times a year,</i>

281
00:13:39,906 --> 00:13:42,042
<i>and he found out
that the spit of it</i>

282
00:13:42,043 --> 00:13:45,583
<i>is just like a hormone
called GLP-1 in humans.</i>

283
00:13:45,584 --> 00:13:48,623
These are hormones that help
the body process sugar,

284
00:13:48,624 --> 00:13:51,094
and people were
able to isolate them,

285
00:13:51,095 --> 00:13:53,933
to study them for treatment.

286
00:13:53,934 --> 00:13:56,037
Reporter: It will be used
as a twice-a-day injection...

287
00:13:56,038 --> 00:13:57,473
And they're effective
for diabetes,

288
00:13:57,474 --> 00:13:59,410
which is extremely exciting.

289
00:13:59,411 --> 00:14:02,149
But they also induce
this very welcome side effect,

290
00:14:02,150 --> 00:14:04,187
which is weight loss.

291
00:14:04,188 --> 00:14:07,594
After two years on Byetta,
patients lost 10 pounds.

292
00:14:07,595 --> 00:14:09,464
Blum:
GLP-1s slow down the rate

293
00:14:09,465 --> 00:14:11,334
at which food
leaves your stomach,

294
00:14:11,335 --> 00:14:14,975
so you basically are feeling
fuller for much longer.

295
00:14:14,976 --> 00:14:16,645
What I find really fascinating

296
00:14:16,646 --> 00:14:19,585
is that the drugs
also target the brain.

297
00:14:19,586 --> 00:14:23,358
Man: They help us not to want
to eat the things we shouldn't.

298
00:14:23,359 --> 00:14:25,930
Dr. Rich: So then they started
to scratch their head--

299
00:14:25,931 --> 00:14:30,039
maybe this could be
a weight-loss drug, as well.

300
00:14:30,875 --> 00:14:35,349
This is the once-weekly,
single-use Zepbound pen.

301
00:14:35,350 --> 00:14:37,119
Announcer: Ask your doctor
about once-weekly Mounjaro.

302
00:14:37,120 --> 00:14:40,125
People taking Wegovy lost
an average of 35 pounds.

303
00:14:40,126 --> 00:14:43,465
♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh, Ozempic ♪

304
00:14:44,234 --> 00:14:46,639
There are two pharmaceutical
companies right now

305
00:14:46,640 --> 00:14:48,275
that are the major players.

306
00:14:48,276 --> 00:14:51,114
Novo Nordisk makes
Ozempic and Wegovy,

307
00:14:51,115 --> 00:14:54,387
and both of those medications
contain semaglutide,

308
00:14:54,388 --> 00:14:57,393
which is sort of the active
molecule in those drugs.

309
00:14:57,394 --> 00:14:59,531
The big rival is Eli Lilly,

310
00:14:59,532 --> 00:15:01,535
which makes Mounjaro
for diabetes

311
00:15:01,536 --> 00:15:03,539
and Zepbound for weight loss.

312
00:15:03,540 --> 00:15:05,643
And those drugs contain
a molecule

313
00:15:05,644 --> 00:15:08,215
that's called tirzepatide.

314
00:15:08,216 --> 00:15:11,221
I don't know that
anyone expected

315
00:15:11,222 --> 00:15:13,124
quite the demand
that we're seeing.

316
00:15:13,125 --> 00:15:15,295
This is unprecedented demand.

317
00:15:15,296 --> 00:15:18,001
[ Overlapping voices ]

318
00:15:18,002 --> 00:15:20,005
Day one of Ozempic.

319
00:15:20,006 --> 00:15:23,144
- Currently on week 23.
- I got my Ozempic yesterday.

320
00:15:23,145 --> 00:15:25,415
Woman: Being on a GLP-1
has changed my life.

321
00:15:25,416 --> 00:15:28,689
I'm no longer obsessed
with food 24/7.

322
00:15:28,690 --> 00:15:32,998
Recently lost 15 pounds
due to Ozempic.

323
00:15:32,999 --> 00:15:35,703
I lost 2 more pounds
this week, so I'm 243.

324
00:15:35,704 --> 00:15:37,641
Weight-loss drugs like Ozempic

325
00:15:37,642 --> 00:15:39,443
are incredibly popular
right now.

326
00:15:39,444 --> 00:15:41,014
Fallon: You look great!

327
00:15:41,015 --> 00:15:42,249
How are you staying in shape
these days?

328
00:15:42,250 --> 00:15:43,451
Well, that's Ozempic.

329
00:15:43,452 --> 00:15:45,557
Everybody looks so great.

330
00:15:45,558 --> 00:15:47,561
When I look around this room,
I can't help but wonder,

331
00:15:47,562 --> 00:15:50,165
is Ozempic right for me?

332
00:15:50,166 --> 00:15:53,171
That all, of course, comes
at a really expensive cost.

333
00:15:53,172 --> 00:15:56,444
Out of pocket, it will run you
about $1,000 a month...

334
00:15:56,445 --> 00:15:58,583
Blum: These are
really expensive medications.

335
00:15:58,584 --> 00:16:01,221
And in terms of actually
getting insurance coverage,

336
00:16:01,222 --> 00:16:03,358
it's really a moving target

337
00:16:03,359 --> 00:16:06,464
'cause our entire medical
system still views obesity

338
00:16:06,465 --> 00:16:09,470
as a vanity project
if you're trying to lose weight.

339
00:16:09,471 --> 00:16:12,009
Reporter: Starting April 1,
North Carolina will stop paying

340
00:16:12,010 --> 00:16:15,182
for obesity drug coverage
in its state health plan

341
00:16:15,183 --> 00:16:18,556
as the costs soared
to $100 million last year.

342
00:16:22,063 --> 00:16:24,333
Sanchez: My insurance
didn't cover weight-loss meds.

343
00:16:24,334 --> 00:16:28,108
"Your prior authorization
for Ozempic has been denied."

344
00:16:28,109 --> 00:16:30,580
I felt I needed to take it
into my own hands,

345
00:16:30,581 --> 00:16:33,485
and if I can find it,
I'm gonna buy it and use it,

346
00:16:33,486 --> 00:16:36,224
regardless of
where it came from.

347
00:16:36,225 --> 00:16:39,363
It's led to these
compounding pharmacies--

348
00:16:39,364 --> 00:16:41,100
I don't know if you're familiar
with the term.

349
00:16:41,101 --> 00:16:42,369
But compounding
pharmacies

350
00:16:42,370 --> 00:16:44,073
are these pharmacies

351
00:16:44,074 --> 00:16:47,079
that are allowed to, quote,
"manufacture"

352
00:16:47,080 --> 00:16:49,083
the drug in their pharmacy

353
00:16:49,084 --> 00:16:51,321
to do an end-around
from your doctor

354
00:16:51,322 --> 00:16:53,091
and from your insurance company,

355
00:16:53,092 --> 00:16:54,460
so you can have this drug.

356
00:16:55,396 --> 00:16:58,134
Luxmore:
I scheduled an appointment
with my primary-care provider,

357
00:16:58,135 --> 00:17:01,374
and I said, "I think I want
to try, uh,

358
00:17:01,375 --> 00:17:04,113
Eli Lilly's Zepbound.
My insurance doesn't cover it."

359
00:17:04,114 --> 00:17:05,783
She just responded like,
"Well, we'll need to do

360
00:17:05,784 --> 00:17:07,252
some tests and stuff."

361
00:17:07,253 --> 00:17:10,359
And I was like,
"Ah, screw this."

362
00:17:10,360 --> 00:17:12,396
And a week later,

363
00:17:12,397 --> 00:17:15,503
the medication was at my house.

364
00:17:15,504 --> 00:17:17,373
The compounded medication
that I used--

365
00:17:17,374 --> 00:17:19,544
about $450 a month.

366
00:17:19,545 --> 00:17:22,416
I know that I'm very fortunate
in having an income

367
00:17:22,417 --> 00:17:23,753
that can support that,

368
00:17:23,754 --> 00:17:26,224
and I know a lot of people
can't.

369
00:17:28,162 --> 00:17:30,165
Sanchez:
A friend of mine mentioned

370
00:17:30,166 --> 00:17:32,169
that she had learned
about these peptides

371
00:17:32,170 --> 00:17:34,541
and work just the same
at a less cost

372
00:17:34,542 --> 00:17:37,413
than paying out of pocket
for the brand name,

373
00:17:37,414 --> 00:17:42,156
because it's in a wholesale
type of environment.

374
00:17:42,157 --> 00:17:44,160
I said, "Why not?"

375
00:17:44,161 --> 00:17:45,395
The most money
I would have lost out of pocket

376
00:17:45,396 --> 00:17:47,266
at the time for it was $100.

377
00:17:47,267 --> 00:17:49,805
People were being sent
to compound pharmacies

378
00:17:49,806 --> 00:17:51,809
and paying double
what I'm paying.

379
00:17:54,882 --> 00:17:57,486
So I'm doing this on my own.

380
00:17:59,457 --> 00:18:02,429
So my tirzepatide
comes from a company

381
00:18:02,430 --> 00:18:05,837
that sources the medication,

382
00:18:05,838 --> 00:18:08,743
just the main ingredient,

383
00:18:08,744 --> 00:18:11,414
and sends it to me
in a powdered form.

384
00:18:13,653 --> 00:18:15,556
It comes from China.

385
00:18:15,557 --> 00:18:19,731
Sorry, but the truth is,
a lot of them do.

386
00:18:19,732 --> 00:18:23,839
They are marked
"For research purposes only."

387
00:18:23,840 --> 00:18:26,177
And when it comes to me
in a vial,

388
00:18:26,178 --> 00:18:29,450
I need to use a solution
that we call "bac water."

389
00:18:29,451 --> 00:18:31,855
And you mix that into that vial,

390
00:18:31,856 --> 00:18:34,695
and it creates the solution
that is your medication.

391
00:18:36,866 --> 00:18:38,869
There's no prescription
needed for these.

392
00:18:38,870 --> 00:18:42,610
There's no FDA regulations.

393
00:18:42,611 --> 00:18:45,783
And a lot of us
that use peptides,

394
00:18:45,784 --> 00:18:49,290
we are conducting our own
research on how it works on us.

395
00:18:52,931 --> 00:18:54,868
So for the tirzepatide peptide,

396
00:18:54,869 --> 00:18:57,708
we pinch the skin
for the syringe.

397
00:19:00,413 --> 00:19:03,251
Kraftson: You are injecting
something in your body

398
00:19:03,252 --> 00:19:05,890
and you don't-- you don't have
a lot of validation

399
00:19:05,891 --> 00:19:08,896
about what it is,
how safe it is,

400
00:19:08,897 --> 00:19:11,902
whether it actually is
the medicine at all.

401
00:19:12,804 --> 00:19:15,810
Sanchez: I don't need anyone's
permission.

402
00:19:15,811 --> 00:19:19,918
This just gets me one step
further in my health journey

403
00:19:19,919 --> 00:19:24,628
and feeling better physically,
mentally, and emotionally,

404
00:19:24,629 --> 00:19:28,703
because it's no longer
this battle that I'll never win.

405
00:19:37,453 --> 00:19:39,290
Woman: <i>Drugs, alcohol, cancer,
whatever your problems, people are sympathetic
unless you're fat,</i>

406
00:19:39,291 --> 00:19:42,463
<i>and then you're supposed
to be ashamed.</i>

407
00:19:42,464 --> 00:19:44,768
<i>Everything's set up
to tell you that--</i>

408
00:19:44,769 --> 00:19:48,274
<i>magazine covers,
clothes.</i>

409
00:19:48,275 --> 00:19:52,015
<i>I mean, if you're not thin,
you're not neat.</i>

410
00:19:52,016 --> 00:19:53,819
<i>And that's it.</i>

411
00:19:53,820 --> 00:19:55,823
Tovar:
I used to believe strongly--

412
00:19:55,824 --> 00:19:58,529
and I think all larger-body
people are encouraged to believe

413
00:19:58,530 --> 00:20:01,602
that our fat body is
a temporary body,

414
00:20:01,603 --> 00:20:04,440
and it's an alien body
and it's an unwelcome body,

415
00:20:04,441 --> 00:20:07,446
and that there is an authentic,
thin person inside of us,

416
00:20:07,447 --> 00:20:09,383
and that that person is real.

417
00:20:11,823 --> 00:20:14,528
But it speaks to this idea

418
00:20:14,529 --> 00:20:18,669
that fat people exist
as a product of error.

419
00:20:21,074 --> 00:20:24,681
McMillan Cottom: We still have
this really latent assumption

420
00:20:24,682 --> 00:20:27,654
that a body reflects
who you really are,

421
00:20:27,655 --> 00:20:30,660
that thin bodies are
not just better bodies,

422
00:20:30,661 --> 00:20:34,901
but they are
morally superior bodies.

423
00:20:34,902 --> 00:20:37,974
Around, you know,
the late 1800s,

424
00:20:37,975 --> 00:20:40,045
we started to see the emergence
of the Gibson Girl.

425
00:20:40,046 --> 00:20:42,049
And then that aesthetic
got even thinner

426
00:20:42,050 --> 00:20:45,422
with the emergence of
the flapper ideal in the 1920s.

427
00:20:45,423 --> 00:20:48,361
We start to see thin bodies
selling products.

428
00:20:48,362 --> 00:20:51,668
And that really continued
throughout the early 1900s

429
00:20:51,669 --> 00:20:53,506
through the 1960s.

430
00:20:53,507 --> 00:20:56,410
And those were
the fashion ideals.

431
00:20:56,411 --> 00:21:00,085
Diet culture is very feminine.
It's very white.

432
00:21:00,086 --> 00:21:02,824
It's very focused on things

433
00:21:02,825 --> 00:21:04,728
that straight women
are supposed to want

434
00:21:04,729 --> 00:21:06,999
and-- and creating a reality

435
00:21:07,000 --> 00:21:11,340
where weight is a condition
of getting those things.

436
00:21:11,341 --> 00:21:13,679
[ Indistinct conversations ]

437
00:21:16,652 --> 00:21:18,354
Man:
Watch yourself, fellas.

438
00:21:18,355 --> 00:21:20,325
[ Indistinct conversation ]

439
00:21:20,326 --> 00:21:22,830
Weight Watchers Started in 1963.

440
00:21:22,831 --> 00:21:24,868
It's on this kind of diet
that, uh,

441
00:21:24,869 --> 00:21:26,605
you're allowed
to lose weight?

442
00:21:26,606 --> 00:21:28,408
Right. As long as they eat it
in moderation,

443
00:21:28,409 --> 00:21:30,111
they could have great variety
and still lose weight.

444
00:21:30,112 --> 00:21:33,619
And it really pushes
diet culture to the forefront.

445
00:21:33,620 --> 00:21:35,355
I guess you went into this
together.

446
00:21:35,356 --> 00:21:36,992
We sure did.

447
00:21:36,993 --> 00:21:40,065
We were fat together
and we got thin together.

448
00:21:40,066 --> 00:21:42,035
Every woman knows
the Weight Watchers model.

449
00:21:42,036 --> 00:21:44,741
Count every single thing
that goes into your mouth

450
00:21:44,742 --> 00:21:47,346
and track your weight
obsessively.

451
00:21:47,347 --> 00:21:50,118
Rosemary has lost
80 pounds.

452
00:21:50,119 --> 00:21:51,889
Weight Watchers were in schools.

453
00:21:51,890 --> 00:21:55,997
They were in hospitals.
They were in workplaces.

454
00:21:55,998 --> 00:21:59,437
You had a Weight Watchers
in a strip mall in Idaho.

455
00:22:01,909 --> 00:22:04,480
Sanchez: They would have
a weekly meeting.

456
00:22:04,481 --> 00:22:05,883
[ Woman speaks indistinctly ]

457
00:22:05,884 --> 00:22:08,989
And you got weighed
where everyone is.

458
00:22:08,990 --> 00:22:11,628
They marked that down
on your sheet.

459
00:22:11,629 --> 00:22:15,001
It was something
I was told to do.

460
00:22:15,002 --> 00:22:17,707
I hear the name
and I just cringe.

461
00:22:17,708 --> 00:22:20,846
Blum: In the '80s, we really
start to see this idea

462
00:22:20,847 --> 00:22:24,554
of obesity as a public-health
crisis take hold.

463
00:22:24,555 --> 00:22:26,959
And in response,
there becomes this sort of

464
00:22:26,960 --> 00:22:30,498
American obsession with cutting
fat as much as possible.

465
00:22:30,499 --> 00:22:32,770
<i>Viva tastes so fresh
and creamy,</i>

466
00:22:32,771 --> 00:22:34,908
<i>nobody realizes
that it's low-fat.</i>

467
00:22:34,909 --> 00:22:36,645
<i>And it's non-fat.</i>

468
00:22:36,646 --> 00:22:38,081
<i>How could this
not have any fat?</i>

469
00:22:38,082 --> 00:22:39,784
<i>It's too good.</i>

470
00:22:39,785 --> 00:22:41,420
A lot of the foods
in our house were low-fat,

471
00:22:41,421 --> 00:22:44,460
fat-free,
and very fake, produced foods.

472
00:22:44,461 --> 00:22:49,036
And I think a lot of that
was diet-culture influence

473
00:22:49,037 --> 00:22:51,440
that was pushed at the time.

474
00:22:51,441 --> 00:22:53,779
[ <i>Upbeat music plays</i> ]

475
00:22:56,117 --> 00:22:57,820
Hi, everybody.

476
00:22:57,821 --> 00:23:00,526
<i>This is a very,
very personal show for me</i>

477
00:23:00,527 --> 00:23:02,930
<i>because I have received
thousands--</i>

478
00:23:02,931 --> 00:23:04,968
<i>you wouldn't believe
the letters</i>

479
00:23:04,969 --> 00:23:06,137
<i>my office has received--</i>

480
00:23:06,138 --> 00:23:07,874
<i>hundreds of calls every day,</i>

481
00:23:07,875 --> 00:23:09,978
<i>and every place
I go out on the street--</i>

482
00:23:09,979 --> 00:23:13,484
<i>"Hey, Oprah!
Okrie girl!</i>

483
00:23:13,485 --> 00:23:15,589
<i>How'd you lose
all that weight?"</i>

484
00:23:15,590 --> 00:23:17,492
Gay:
Oprah is like all of us.

485
00:23:17,493 --> 00:23:20,533
And that really was what made
her audience gravitate.

486
00:23:20,534 --> 00:23:23,471
And the fact that she has
publicly struggled with weight

487
00:23:23,472 --> 00:23:25,208
mirrors our private struggles
with weight.

488
00:23:25,209 --> 00:23:27,680
You know, "Oh, my gosh.
She's just like us,

489
00:23:27,681 --> 00:23:29,483
and she's a billionaire."

490
00:23:29,484 --> 00:23:31,555
<i>You know, I'm tired of
having to deal with,</i>

491
00:23:31,556 --> 00:23:35,095
<i>what is wrong with me
that I can't solve this problem</i>

492
00:23:35,096 --> 00:23:36,865
<i>that I have with myself?</i>

493
00:23:36,866 --> 00:23:38,468
Harrison: Oprah had
incredible pressures on her

494
00:23:38,469 --> 00:23:40,573
to achieve this thin ideal,

495
00:23:40,574 --> 00:23:44,179
and was facing
so much scrutiny from tabloids,

496
00:23:44,180 --> 00:23:47,152
from media at large,
from other celebrities, even.

497
00:23:47,153 --> 00:23:48,756
<i>They told me
you're a beauty-contest winner.</i>

498
00:23:48,757 --> 00:23:50,793
<i>Yeah, uh,
50 pounds ago or so.</i>

499
00:23:50,794 --> 00:23:52,697
<i>So how'd you gain
the weight?</i>

500
00:23:52,698 --> 00:23:54,166
<i>I ate a lot.</i>

501
00:23:54,167 --> 00:23:55,970
[ <i>Laughter</i> ]

502
00:23:55,971 --> 00:23:57,907
<i>No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
You said 50 pounds.</i>

503
00:23:57,908 --> 00:24:00,011
<i>You shouldn't let that
happen to you.</i>

504
00:24:00,012 --> 00:24:01,247
<i>You're very pretty.
Joan, do you know what?</i>

505
00:24:01,248 --> 00:24:02,950
<i>No, I don't want
to hear.</i>

506
00:24:02,951 --> 00:24:04,688
<i>Let me tell you this.
Let me tell you something.</i>

507
00:24:04,689 --> 00:24:05,756
<i>You're a pretty girl
and you're single.</i>

508
00:24:05,757 --> 00:24:07,627
<i>You must lose the weight.</i>

509
00:24:07,628 --> 00:24:10,265
But she was also very much
a spokesperson for diet culture.

510
00:24:10,266 --> 00:24:12,970
<i>We are now-- "A.M. Chicago,"
in Chicago--</i>

511
00:24:12,971 --> 00:24:15,008
<i>we're starting
A Diet With Oprah.</i>

512
00:24:15,009 --> 00:24:17,079
<i>- Great.
- Yes.</i>

513
00:24:17,080 --> 00:24:19,016
<i>So that I have been put under
pressure to finally do it.</i>

514
00:24:19,017 --> 00:24:21,955
And so when she tried something,
a lot of people tried it, too.

515
00:24:21,956 --> 00:24:24,527
Today we get the motivation
and inspiration we need

516
00:24:24,528 --> 00:24:27,534
to start the Oprah
Potato a Day Diet.

517
00:24:29,103 --> 00:24:32,209
McMillan Cottom:
No matter what her show
was about that Tuesday,

518
00:24:32,210 --> 00:24:35,181
the metanarrative
of Oprah's show was,

519
00:24:35,182 --> 00:24:37,720
how happy is she
with her body today?

520
00:24:37,721 --> 00:24:39,123
I wake up in the morning.

521
00:24:39,124 --> 00:24:40,693
I go and look in the mirror
sometimes,

522
00:24:40,694 --> 00:24:41,962
and one of the reasons
why I realized

523
00:24:41,963 --> 00:24:43,565
I don't have a handgun is
because

524
00:24:43,566 --> 00:24:45,836
I would have shot off my thighs
years ago.

525
00:24:45,837 --> 00:24:48,709
And that metanarrative
really shaped

526
00:24:48,710 --> 00:24:52,249
how women in particular
talked about themselves...

527
00:24:52,250 --> 00:24:55,556
I start on a diet like
I started another one yesterday.

528
00:24:55,557 --> 00:24:58,562
McMillan Cottom:
...the expectations they set
for themselves...

529
00:24:58,563 --> 00:25:01,735
I still hate myself
because of my weight.

530
00:25:01,736 --> 00:25:03,739
...and the expectations
that they passed on

531
00:25:03,740 --> 00:25:05,308
to their daughters,
which I think is also

532
00:25:05,309 --> 00:25:07,680
just particularly complex.

533
00:25:07,681 --> 00:25:09,951
<i>I lost...</i>

534
00:25:09,952 --> 00:25:13,091
<i>I have lost,
as of this morning,</i>

535
00:25:13,092 --> 00:25:18,101
<i>as of this morning,
67 pounds since July 7th.</i>

536
00:25:18,102 --> 00:25:21,708
<i>This is what 67 pounds
of fat looks like.</i>

537
00:25:21,709 --> 00:25:23,277
Harrison: I think that
wagon-of-fat moment

538
00:25:23,278 --> 00:25:25,583
was so iconic, perhaps,

539
00:25:25,584 --> 00:25:29,056
because people had
seen her struggle for so long

540
00:25:29,057 --> 00:25:31,862
and, you know,
the visual of a wagon of fat,

541
00:25:31,863 --> 00:25:33,932
and I think it sort of taps
into that desire of, "Yeah,

542
00:25:33,933 --> 00:25:36,605
if I could just, you know,
cut these parts off myself,

543
00:25:36,606 --> 00:25:38,642
I would be okay.
I would be perfect."

544
00:25:38,643 --> 00:25:41,280
How do you feel about
your girlfriend losing
all this weight?

545
00:25:41,281 --> 00:25:43,184
McMillan Cottom:
If you watch that whole show,

546
00:25:43,185 --> 00:25:46,725
she brings out her
longtime partner, Stedman,

547
00:25:46,726 --> 00:25:50,699
to sort of perform, like,
her validation of herself.

548
00:25:50,700 --> 00:25:54,106
Stedman: <i>Since the beginning,
every time we walk into a room,</i>

549
00:25:54,107 --> 00:25:56,110
<i>I would see how people
would react to you.</i>

550
00:25:56,111 --> 00:25:59,617
<i>And, uh, you know, they--
I could see on their faces,</i>

551
00:25:59,618 --> 00:26:02,389
<i>they said, "Yeah, she's, you
know, she's this or she's that,</i>

552
00:26:02,390 --> 00:26:04,226
<i>but she's overweight."</i>

553
00:26:04,227 --> 00:26:05,896
<i>And, you know,
I've had to deal with that</i>

554
00:26:05,897 --> 00:26:08,034
<i>for months and months
and months.</i>

555
00:26:08,035 --> 00:26:10,104
<i>And I saw, you know--</i>

556
00:26:10,105 --> 00:26:14,714
<i>I saw, uh, a diamond
in the rough.</i>

557
00:26:16,652 --> 00:26:19,122
Harrison: I think she was
really, at the time,

558
00:26:19,123 --> 00:26:21,761
like, very pleased and proud.

559
00:26:21,762 --> 00:26:24,667
Diets lure us in.

560
00:26:24,668 --> 00:26:26,805
Every day I mix
my little protein pack,

561
00:26:26,806 --> 00:26:29,644
this Optifast.

562
00:26:29,645 --> 00:26:32,048
I drank this five times a day

563
00:26:32,049 --> 00:26:35,054
every day for
three and a half months.

564
00:26:35,055 --> 00:26:36,791
But they aren't sustainable,
right,

565
00:26:36,792 --> 00:26:38,227
because the body fights
weight loss.

566
00:26:38,228 --> 00:26:40,365
Winfrey:
In all, I've gained 17 pounds

567
00:26:40,366 --> 00:26:43,672
of the 67 pounds
I lost last year.

568
00:26:43,673 --> 00:26:45,743
It is a battle
that I'm still fighting

569
00:26:45,744 --> 00:26:49,016
every waking moment of my life.

570
00:26:49,017 --> 00:26:53,057
We want to talk about
the toxicity of diet culture,

571
00:26:53,058 --> 00:26:54,928
I think it's important
to keep in mind

572
00:26:54,929 --> 00:26:58,000
that not even being
a billionaire mega celebrity

573
00:26:58,001 --> 00:27:00,739
bought Oprah Winfrey out of it.

574
00:27:00,740 --> 00:27:03,110
Harrison:
And that's really convenient
for the diet industry, right?

575
00:27:03,111 --> 00:27:06,217
Because people are dieting
their way up the scale,

576
00:27:06,218 --> 00:27:08,221
and they're looking for
a new solution.

577
00:27:09,023 --> 00:27:10,158
Dr. Rich: The reality is

578
00:27:10,159 --> 00:27:12,730
there is a medical issue here.

579
00:27:12,731 --> 00:27:15,468
We need to treat people
like they have a disease

580
00:27:15,469 --> 00:27:18,140
and not like
they are just not strong enough

581
00:27:18,141 --> 00:27:19,945
to say no.

582
00:27:20,647 --> 00:27:23,685
<i>If you can believe
in yourself</i>

583
00:27:23,686 --> 00:27:25,789
<i>and believe that this is
the most important thing</i>

584
00:27:25,790 --> 00:27:27,727
<i>in your life,
you can conquer it.</i>

585
00:27:35,810 --> 00:27:38,281
<i>of people using
the GLP-1 medications,</i>

586
00:27:38,282 --> 00:27:41,153
<i>but there is a dark side
and we have to talk about it.</i>

587
00:27:41,154 --> 00:27:45,395
It's Friday night, 10:30 p.m.

588
00:27:45,396 --> 00:27:48,200
I'm specifically trying
to take it kind of late at night

589
00:27:48,201 --> 00:27:50,204
so that if I have
any side effects,

590
00:27:50,205 --> 00:27:52,042
I'll hopefully just sleep
through them.

591
00:27:52,043 --> 00:27:54,112
Just grab a little bit
of the fat,

592
00:27:54,113 --> 00:27:57,820
which there's plenty of that,
and then just boom.

593
00:27:57,821 --> 00:28:00,158
I guess I've been very fortunate
with the side effects--

594
00:28:00,159 --> 00:28:01,962
very minimal.

595
00:28:01,963 --> 00:28:05,268
I have sort of been
experiencing, like, heartburn,

596
00:28:05,269 --> 00:28:07,238
um, kind of feeling
a bit lately.

597
00:28:07,239 --> 00:28:09,076
I read people's
accounts religiously,

598
00:28:09,077 --> 00:28:11,447
and some people reported
some truly horrendous things.

599
00:28:11,448 --> 00:28:13,752
I've actually gotten really,
really bad.

600
00:28:13,753 --> 00:28:15,488
Like, I'll drink water,

601
00:28:15,489 --> 00:28:17,225
and just, like, immediately
have to throw it up.

602
00:28:17,226 --> 00:28:21,968
Nauseous, vomiting,
um, hunched over in pain.

603
00:28:21,969 --> 00:28:24,473
Woman: There are rarer reports
of pancreatitis

604
00:28:24,474 --> 00:28:27,412
as well as acute kidney injury.

605
00:28:27,413 --> 00:28:30,886
Sanchez: I was lightheaded
for a week straight.

606
00:28:30,887 --> 00:28:34,159
And it was affecting my lifts
really bad.

607
00:28:34,160 --> 00:28:35,495
Allen: We know what it looks
like for people

608
00:28:35,496 --> 00:28:37,365
who have been using them
for diabetes,

609
00:28:37,366 --> 00:28:39,937
but we don't know what
the longer-term implications are

610
00:28:39,938 --> 00:28:42,242
of being on these medications
for weight loss.

611
00:28:42,243 --> 00:28:45,148
[ Grunts ]
I thought I was gonna pass out.

612
00:28:45,149 --> 00:28:47,385
Kraftson: Our patients will
describe it--

613
00:28:47,386 --> 00:28:49,156
"Oh, I feel weak,"

614
00:28:49,157 --> 00:28:51,995
or, "I don't feel like I have
the same stamina."

615
00:28:51,996 --> 00:28:53,464
I...

616
00:28:53,465 --> 00:28:57,974
quickly went to my community
on Facebook,

617
00:28:57,975 --> 00:29:00,111
and another lady had
the same exact experience.

618
00:29:00,112 --> 00:29:03,384
She goes, "Go back down to 7.5
and you'll feel better,"

619
00:29:03,385 --> 00:29:05,054
and I did.

620
00:29:05,055 --> 00:29:06,524
Kraftson: And when you lose
a lot of weight,

621
00:29:06,525 --> 00:29:08,194
you just hope,
"Oh, it's all gonna be fat."

622
00:29:08,195 --> 00:29:11,868
But that is actually
not what happens.

623
00:29:11,869 --> 00:29:16,845
We are worried about that
muscle loss that can happen.

624
00:29:16,846 --> 00:29:21,855
♪

625
00:29:21,856 --> 00:29:23,190
Luxmore:
There's more studies coming out.

626
00:29:23,191 --> 00:29:24,861
They're talking about longer--

627
00:29:24,862 --> 00:29:27,332
longer effects of being
on these medications.

628
00:29:27,333 --> 00:29:29,837
And, you know,
I'm thinking about like,

629
00:29:29,838 --> 00:29:32,208
"Oh, am I gonna take
this medication forever?

630
00:29:32,209 --> 00:29:34,279
Is that fine?"

631
00:29:34,280 --> 00:29:36,584
My early days of thinking
about GLP-1 drugs was,

632
00:29:36,585 --> 00:29:38,588
"Oh, I remember this.

633
00:29:38,589 --> 00:29:41,360
We've done this before."

634
00:29:41,361 --> 00:29:44,166
Reporter: <i>Wouldn't it be nice
to treat obesity with a pill?</i>

635
00:29:44,167 --> 00:29:46,036
<i>Now we can.</i>

636
00:29:46,037 --> 00:29:48,542
<i>Two drugs,
fenfluramine and phentermine,</i>

637
00:29:48,543 --> 00:29:51,380
<i>when taken together,
help you control your appetite.</i>

638
00:29:51,381 --> 00:29:53,217
<i>The program is called Fen-Phen.</i>

639
00:29:53,218 --> 00:29:55,856
By giving them the pills,
it makes them not hungry,

640
00:29:55,857 --> 00:29:57,927
and it makes them satiated.

641
00:29:57,928 --> 00:29:59,597
♪

642
00:29:59,598 --> 00:30:02,536
Dr. Rich: Fenfluramine...

643
00:30:02,537 --> 00:30:06,845
which is one of the drugs
in the Fen-Phen name...

644
00:30:06,846 --> 00:30:10,151
was a drug developed
by Servier Pharmaceuticals,

645
00:30:10,152 --> 00:30:12,255
a French pharmaceutical company.

646
00:30:12,256 --> 00:30:14,025
♪

647
00:30:14,026 --> 00:30:16,163
But women taking the
fenfluramine

648
00:30:16,164 --> 00:30:18,902
started to develop
pulmonary hypertension,

649
00:30:18,903 --> 00:30:21,206
which is a cause
of serious heart failure.

650
00:30:21,207 --> 00:30:23,444
♪

651
00:30:23,445 --> 00:30:26,918
Well, Servier pushed back,
and they said,

652
00:30:26,919 --> 00:30:29,222
"We're not going to
take this off the market

653
00:30:29,223 --> 00:30:30,993
unless there's proof."

654
00:30:30,994 --> 00:30:33,497
So the health authorities
in Europe

655
00:30:33,498 --> 00:30:36,470
agreed with Servier
to put together a plan

656
00:30:36,471 --> 00:30:38,942
for an epidemiologic study.

657
00:30:38,943 --> 00:30:40,311
♪

658
00:30:40,312 --> 00:30:42,883
At the end of the trial,

659
00:30:42,884 --> 00:30:46,925
we've showed what's the chance
of you getting this disease

660
00:30:46,926 --> 00:30:49,063
if you take these diet pills.

661
00:30:50,099 --> 00:30:53,104
So, the odds ratio--
to give you some comparisons--

662
00:30:53,105 --> 00:30:55,676
the odds ratio for lung cancer
and cigarette smoking

663
00:30:55,677 --> 00:30:57,379
would be about four.

664
00:30:58,181 --> 00:31:01,386
In general,
you are four times more likely

665
00:31:01,387 --> 00:31:04,459
to get lung cancer if you smoke
than if you don't.

666
00:31:04,460 --> 00:31:07,700
The odds ratio for
severe pulmonary hypertension

667
00:31:07,701 --> 00:31:09,570
was 23...

668
00:31:09,571 --> 00:31:11,908
with 3 months' exposure.

669
00:31:12,710 --> 00:31:15,682
But Servier's partner
in the United States

670
00:31:15,683 --> 00:31:18,688
had a subsidiary called
Wyeth-Ayerst.

671
00:31:18,689 --> 00:31:21,427
They went to the FDA
to get the drug approved.

672
00:31:22,630 --> 00:31:26,236
So the FDA asked me
to present the data

673
00:31:26,237 --> 00:31:28,708
from the European study.

674
00:31:28,709 --> 00:31:32,650
And then it passed, 6 to 5,
to get this drug on the market.

675
00:31:33,552 --> 00:31:35,054
<i>I don't crave anything.</i>

676
00:31:35,055 --> 00:31:36,558
<i>My most successful patient
has lost</i>

677
00:31:36,559 --> 00:31:38,360
<i>over 100 pounds
in a year.</i>

678
00:31:38,361 --> 00:31:41,033
Reporter: <i>Gary dropped
from size 44 to 36.</i>

679
00:31:41,034 --> 00:31:43,370
Woman: <i>I tried all kinds
of diets all my life.</i>

680
00:31:43,371 --> 00:31:45,374
[ Microwave dings ]
<i>Hmm.</i>

681
00:31:45,375 --> 00:31:46,711
Woman: <i>This is the first time
I've been able to keep it off.</i>

682
00:31:46,712 --> 00:31:48,582
Everyone wanted on.

683
00:31:48,583 --> 00:31:49,951
Woman: <i>I have a lot more
self-esteem.</i>

684
00:31:49,952 --> 00:31:51,487
<i>I have a lot more energy.</i>

685
00:31:51,488 --> 00:31:53,290
<i>My bowling average
has gone up 10 pins.</i>

686
00:31:53,291 --> 00:31:55,261
It was skyrocketing.

687
00:31:55,262 --> 00:31:56,664
We're definitely seeing
a revolution

688
00:31:56,665 --> 00:31:58,467
in the way
we think about obesity.

689
00:31:58,468 --> 00:32:00,371
Dr. Rich: I mean,
it was devastating to me

690
00:32:00,372 --> 00:32:03,210
because I knew,
from the patients' side,

691
00:32:03,211 --> 00:32:05,348
what the consequence of this
was going to be.

692
00:32:05,349 --> 00:32:06,751
<i>It's 7:19 now.</i>

693
00:32:06,752 --> 00:32:08,187
<i>Once again,
here's Bryant in Chicago.</i>

694
00:32:08,188 --> 00:32:09,724
All right, Katie.
Thanks.

695
00:32:09,725 --> 00:32:12,161
Of late, more than 60,000
new customers a week

696
00:32:12,162 --> 00:32:15,301
have taken to trying
the newest trendy diet.

697
00:32:15,302 --> 00:32:17,305
The diet is called Fen-Phen.

698
00:32:17,306 --> 00:32:19,710
Problem is, those pills could
also be linked to a serious

699
00:32:19,711 --> 00:32:21,480
and sometimes fatal
lung disease.

700
00:32:21,481 --> 00:32:23,317
That news comes from
a study published today

701
00:32:23,318 --> 00:32:24,754
in "The New England Journal
of Medicine."

702
00:32:24,755 --> 00:32:26,490
Dr. Stuart Rich
from the University of Illinois

703
00:32:26,491 --> 00:32:28,160
is one of those
who authored that study.

704
00:32:28,161 --> 00:32:29,597
Doctor, welcome.

705
00:32:29,598 --> 00:32:31,734
This drug produces.
Pulmonary hypertension,

706
00:32:31,735 --> 00:32:34,272
a very uncommon
but very fatal illness.

707
00:32:34,273 --> 00:32:37,011
Dr. Rich: When I appeared
on the "Today" show,

708
00:32:37,012 --> 00:32:38,582
the drug was just on the market,

709
00:32:38,583 --> 00:32:41,621
being hailed
as the Great American Dream.

710
00:32:41,622 --> 00:32:45,127
Would it be fair to say that
even with the increased risks,

711
00:32:45,128 --> 00:32:46,664
the chance is minuscule?

712
00:32:46,665 --> 00:32:48,668
No, far from
minuscule.

713
00:32:48,669 --> 00:32:52,075
So now physicians
were really confused.

714
00:32:52,777 --> 00:32:55,047
This drug got approved,
and here's this paper

715
00:32:55,048 --> 00:32:58,722
in "The New England Journal"
saying it's not so safe?

716
00:32:58,723 --> 00:33:00,358
Lauer: Cardiologists
at the Mayo Clinic

717
00:33:00,359 --> 00:33:02,630
have found that 24 women
on these drugs

718
00:33:02,631 --> 00:33:04,232
developed some severe
heart problems.

719
00:33:04,233 --> 00:33:06,103
Dr. Rich:
And it didn't take too long

720
00:33:06,104 --> 00:33:07,706
before there was another paper

721
00:33:07,707 --> 00:33:10,512
showing damage to the heart
from these diet pills

722
00:33:10,513 --> 00:33:12,616
that came
out of the Mayo Clinic.

723
00:33:12,617 --> 00:33:16,691
They knew that they had far more
cases of pulmonary hypertension

724
00:33:16,692 --> 00:33:18,561
and deaths associated with that

725
00:33:18,562 --> 00:33:20,464
than they told
the doctors about.

726
00:33:20,465 --> 00:33:22,235
There are figures coming out,
four or five deaths.

727
00:33:22,236 --> 00:33:24,172
Don't use it.
It's a deadly drug.

728
00:33:24,173 --> 00:33:26,443
Reporter: She took the drug
for just a few weeks

729
00:33:26,444 --> 00:33:28,380
when her symptoms began.

730
00:33:28,381 --> 00:33:31,654
Nearly nine months later,
she was dead.

731
00:33:31,655 --> 00:33:33,290
♪

732
00:33:33,291 --> 00:33:34,694
It was the nail in the coffin.

733
00:33:34,695 --> 00:33:38,233
♪

734
00:33:38,234 --> 00:33:42,208
I remember there was a woman
in my community here

735
00:33:42,209 --> 00:33:44,313
who was on Fen-Phen...

736
00:33:45,048 --> 00:33:48,387
...who stopped me on the street
and yelled at me

737
00:33:48,388 --> 00:33:50,859
that I was the reason why

738
00:33:50,860 --> 00:33:54,265
she couldn't take
her diet pill any longer.

739
00:33:54,266 --> 00:33:58,107
How dare I
be part of all of this?

740
00:33:58,709 --> 00:34:00,646
McMillan Cottom:
Imagine what it means to say

741
00:34:00,647 --> 00:34:04,152
it is more important
for you to risk dying

742
00:34:04,153 --> 00:34:08,528
than it is for you to live
being obese.

743
00:34:08,529 --> 00:34:11,567
Man: A new lawsuit is alleging
that some diabetes drugs,

744
00:34:11,568 --> 00:34:13,370
which have become popular
for their weight-loss effects,

745
00:34:13,371 --> 00:34:16,209
are causing stomach paralysis
in some users.

746
00:34:16,210 --> 00:34:17,780
Man #2: Their symptoms are
so difficult to control

747
00:34:17,781 --> 00:34:20,284
that they have to be admitted
to the hospital.

748
00:34:20,285 --> 00:34:21,888
Luxmore:
And I mentioned before

749
00:34:21,889 --> 00:34:24,159
that I had felt a little,
like, heartburn.

750
00:34:24,160 --> 00:34:25,595
And other people have reported
that, too,

751
00:34:25,596 --> 00:34:27,398
and it was pretty minor,

752
00:34:27,399 --> 00:34:29,637
but it actually-- I kind of,
like, enjoyed that

753
00:34:29,638 --> 00:34:31,306
I had a little bit of heartburn.

754
00:34:31,307 --> 00:34:33,645
I was like, "Ah, that's
the medication, man."

755
00:34:33,646 --> 00:34:35,749
There's so many questions,
you know,

756
00:34:35,750 --> 00:34:38,120
about what's gonna happen
over the long-term.

757
00:34:41,394 --> 00:34:43,865
I honestly don't even care about
the long-term effects.

758
00:34:43,866 --> 00:34:45,902
And that's really where I'm at
today is like, okay,

759
00:34:45,903 --> 00:34:48,340
let's say in five years I have
stomach cancer and it's bad,

760
00:34:48,341 --> 00:34:50,378
like, I had a good run.

761
00:34:50,379 --> 00:34:52,583
Like, I'm assuming that I can
just be normal for a while.

762
00:34:52,584 --> 00:34:57,425
Like, I would take that
if it meant a terrible ending.

763
00:34:57,426 --> 00:35:00,566
It's more like, okay, let's
just see what happens, you know?

764
00:35:10,218 --> 00:35:12,623
[ Woman speaks indistinctly ]

765
00:35:16,832 --> 00:35:18,601
Arrellin:
My lizard's name is Buford,

766
00:35:18,602 --> 00:35:21,674
and he's
a citrus bearded dragon.

767
00:35:21,675 --> 00:35:24,312
He's so, so pretty.
I love him.

768
00:35:24,313 --> 00:35:28,220
I feed him this vegetable mix
that he really likes.

769
00:35:28,221 --> 00:35:30,191
I feed him-- I don't know
what they're called,

770
00:35:30,192 --> 00:35:32,228
but they're little worms
and they're blue,

771
00:35:32,229 --> 00:35:36,169
and they explode
when they bite them.

772
00:35:36,170 --> 00:35:39,242
My name is Jennavecia,
and I'm 14 years old.

773
00:35:42,382 --> 00:35:45,722
I was 10 when I was diagnosed
with PCOS.

774
00:35:45,723 --> 00:35:47,492
♪

775
00:35:47,493 --> 00:35:50,966
You have more testosterone
than most women.

776
00:35:50,967 --> 00:35:55,207
It intensifies hair growth
and acne

777
00:35:55,208 --> 00:35:57,445
and weight gain.

778
00:35:57,446 --> 00:36:00,519
And everything
that nobody wants to deal with

779
00:36:00,520 --> 00:36:01,788
is what we get.

780
00:36:01,789 --> 00:36:03,792
♪

781
00:36:03,793 --> 00:36:07,933
When I first started to notice
that I was gaining weight,

782
00:36:07,934 --> 00:36:10,639
I cried.
I cried so much.

783
00:36:10,640 --> 00:36:14,379
I was super self-conscious, was
not comfortable in my own skin.

784
00:36:14,380 --> 00:36:16,784
So after a while I, like,
avoided going swimming,

785
00:36:16,785 --> 00:36:19,255
I avoided doing so, so, so much

786
00:36:19,256 --> 00:36:21,259
because I didn't like
how it looked.

787
00:36:21,260 --> 00:36:23,531
I look like Satan in that.
This one?

788
00:36:23,532 --> 00:36:27,539
Yes.
You're actually
ungodly excited at that point.

789
00:36:27,540 --> 00:36:30,946
Hernandez: I, too, had struggled
with my weight.

790
00:36:30,947 --> 00:36:34,018
My perception on weight
was very, um, jaded.

791
00:36:34,019 --> 00:36:35,822
It was terrible.

792
00:36:35,823 --> 00:36:37,693
<i>What if I told you
that in 10 days</i>

793
00:36:37,694 --> 00:36:39,663
<i>you could lose two inches
around your waist</i>

794
00:36:39,664 --> 00:36:41,266
<i>and drop a dress size?</i>

795
00:36:41,267 --> 00:36:42,970
<i>Dr. Mehmet Oz is back,</i>

796
00:36:42,971 --> 00:36:45,609
<i>and he claims he has
the real weapon against fat.</i>

797
00:36:45,610 --> 00:36:49,784
In the 2000s, it was very
unrealistic, the way

798
00:36:49,785 --> 00:36:52,890
that they were trying
to have women look,

799
00:36:52,891 --> 00:36:54,693
especially to teenagers.

800
00:36:54,694 --> 00:36:56,798
<i>You know Natalie,
who works here?</i>

801
00:36:56,799 --> 00:36:58,935
Woman:
<i>The chubby girl?</i>

802
00:36:58,936 --> 00:37:00,839
<i>Ooh, would call her
chubby?</i>

803
00:37:00,840 --> 00:37:02,576
Hernandez:
I ended up developing

804
00:37:02,577 --> 00:37:04,580
anorexia and stuff
through those years.

805
00:37:04,581 --> 00:37:05,982
Reporter: <i>Now it looks like
Jess is enjoying</i>

806
00:37:05,983 --> 00:37:08,287
<i>a whole lot
of Southern cooking.</i>

807
00:37:08,288 --> 00:37:09,723
<i>- I know what you're saying.
- What am I saying?</i>

808
00:37:09,724 --> 00:37:11,527
<i>- That I'm overweight.
- You really are.</i>

809
00:37:11,528 --> 00:37:15,000
<i>- How much does she weigh?
- 350 pounds.</i>

810
00:37:15,001 --> 00:37:17,840
<i>On TV, you are a little fuller,
a little bit more thicker.</i>

811
00:37:17,841 --> 00:37:20,411
<i>I wouldn't call myself thick.
I'm just standing next to Paris</i>

812
00:37:20,412 --> 00:37:21,848
<i>who's the skinniest person
in the world.</i>

813
00:37:21,849 --> 00:37:23,818
There's a wealth
of research that shows that

814
00:37:23,819 --> 00:37:26,724
the more the toxic culture
of the 2000s

815
00:37:26,725 --> 00:37:31,066
really took hold on television
and later on social media...

816
00:37:31,067 --> 00:37:32,870
<i>Is your weight
back to normal?</i>

817
00:37:32,871 --> 00:37:34,472
<i>- Yeah, it is.
- Can I check? Do you mind?</i>

818
00:37:34,473 --> 00:37:36,309
Blum: ...the more
that young girls started

819
00:37:36,310 --> 00:37:38,681
to develop eating disorders.

820
00:37:38,682 --> 00:37:41,453
You know, I remember
Pro-Ana Tumblr

821
00:37:41,454 --> 00:37:44,092
and just the total way
in which young girls

822
00:37:44,093 --> 00:37:47,599
were sharing their strategies,

823
00:37:47,600 --> 00:37:50,939
what tools to use to make
yourself as skinny as possible.

824
00:37:53,645 --> 00:37:56,684
It was really damaging
and pervasive.

825
00:37:58,589 --> 00:38:00,424
I know for me personally,
when I was struggling

826
00:38:00,425 --> 00:38:03,865
with my own eating disorder
around that time,

827
00:38:03,866 --> 00:38:05,902
it was just the sense
I could never be thin enough,

828
00:38:05,903 --> 00:38:10,344
and I did not see myself
clearly.

829
00:38:10,345 --> 00:38:11,981
But I think it happened
to so many of us

830
00:38:11,982 --> 00:38:14,887
in our society, like, en masse
around that time.

831
00:38:17,058 --> 00:38:20,064
Tovar: You know, pretty early on
I'm starting to restrict food,

832
00:38:20,065 --> 00:38:22,068
and the behavior gets worse
over time,

833
00:38:22,069 --> 00:38:24,640
and I'm just restricting more
and more and more.

834
00:38:24,641 --> 00:38:26,978
I hate my body.
I literally wake up every day

835
00:38:26,979 --> 00:38:28,581
and I'm like,
"I hate this body.

836
00:38:28,582 --> 00:38:30,351
I will do anything
not to have this body."

837
00:38:30,352 --> 00:38:33,625
It's not like it was
just my peers or just my doctor.

838
00:38:33,626 --> 00:38:37,064
It was, like, my peers,
the doctor, the media,

839
00:38:37,065 --> 00:38:39,002
everything I was watching.

840
00:38:39,003 --> 00:38:43,645
<i>Unless you faint,
puke, or die, keep walking!</i>

841
00:38:43,646 --> 00:38:45,080
<i>Go, go, go!</i>

842
00:38:45,081 --> 00:38:46,951
I want you to run
through the pain.

843
00:38:46,952 --> 00:38:50,959
They've helped 114 people lose
over 10,000 pounds.

844
00:38:50,960 --> 00:38:52,763
Man:
I literally was just like,

845
00:38:52,764 --> 00:38:55,167
"I have got my work cut out
for me right now."

846
00:38:55,168 --> 00:38:57,071
Woman: Kathy's
plan features liposuction

847
00:38:57,072 --> 00:38:58,541
in six different areas.

848
00:38:58,542 --> 00:39:00,144
No more cookies.
Say it every time.

849
00:39:00,145 --> 00:39:02,081
No more cookies!

850
00:39:02,082 --> 00:39:03,818
McMillan Cottom: Then there's
the social-media revolution.

851
00:39:03,819 --> 00:39:05,689
...the fastest way to lose
30 pounds.

852
00:39:05,690 --> 00:39:07,024
For breakfast, I'm having half
of a large watermelon.

853
00:39:07,025 --> 00:39:09,763
Four six-ounce
tri-tip sirloin steaks.

854
00:39:09,764 --> 00:39:13,437
The Internet overall
amplified diet culture.

855
00:39:13,438 --> 00:39:15,441
If you want to lose weight and
you don't know where to start,

856
00:39:15,442 --> 00:39:16,844
listen to this.

857
00:39:16,845 --> 00:39:18,548
McMillan Cottom:
And it's also made it harder

858
00:39:18,549 --> 00:39:21,587
to regulate and rein in.

859
00:39:21,588 --> 00:39:23,658
Man: This is day two of trying
to lose 35 pounds

860
00:39:23,659 --> 00:39:26,096
of water weight
in one single day.

861
00:39:26,097 --> 00:39:28,467
Blum: It's like you can
never really get away

862
00:39:28,468 --> 00:39:29,970
from this narrative

863
00:39:29,971 --> 00:39:31,707
that is telling you
the worst thing you can be

864
00:39:31,708 --> 00:39:33,678
is someone in a larger body.

865
00:39:36,718 --> 00:39:40,725
Hernandez:
It hurt to see my daughter

866
00:39:40,726 --> 00:39:43,998
go through being bullied

867
00:39:43,999 --> 00:39:47,706
for those things
that she couldn't control.

868
00:39:47,707 --> 00:39:49,710
Arrellin:
It was the boys.

869
00:39:49,711 --> 00:39:51,714
They were honestly
the worst part of it.

870
00:39:51,715 --> 00:39:54,218
I remember specifically,
I was in eighth grade

871
00:39:54,219 --> 00:39:57,993
and I walked my friend home,
and he drove by and he was like,

872
00:39:57,994 --> 00:40:01,032
he yelled out the window, "Fat,"

873
00:40:01,033 --> 00:40:03,437
very unkind word, the B-word.

874
00:40:03,438 --> 00:40:04,940
And I was like,
"Well, that's mean.

875
00:40:04,941 --> 00:40:07,144
I don't even know you."

876
00:40:07,145 --> 00:40:08,881
Reporter:
The FDA approving Wegovy

877
00:40:08,882 --> 00:40:11,620
as a treatment for teenagers
with obesity.

878
00:40:11,621 --> 00:40:13,490
Reporter #2: Drugs for weight
loss now being prescribed

879
00:40:13,491 --> 00:40:16,096
to kids as young as 12.

880
00:40:16,097 --> 00:40:18,634
Arrellin: The test study
that I am in right now

881
00:40:18,635 --> 00:40:22,475
is the Wegovy test study.

882
00:40:22,476 --> 00:40:25,515
My doctor is trying to--

883
00:40:25,516 --> 00:40:29,590
she's trying everything she can
to make it better for me.

884
00:40:31,060 --> 00:40:33,497
Jenny, come on back.

885
00:40:33,498 --> 00:40:35,769
So we're just gonna grab
your height and weight.

886
00:40:35,770 --> 00:40:39,008
Cree: Adult women with PCOS
who struggle with weight

887
00:40:39,009 --> 00:40:42,481
have an eight times higher rate
of developing type-two diabetes.

888
00:40:42,482 --> 00:40:45,622
So the number-one recommendation
for PCOS

889
00:40:45,623 --> 00:40:47,659
is weight loss.

890
00:40:47,660 --> 00:40:50,799
Hernandez:
We had a sense of hope.

891
00:40:50,800 --> 00:40:53,237
Not relief yet, but hope.

892
00:40:57,813 --> 00:41:00,150
Arrellin:
My first time on Wegovy shot,

893
00:41:00,151 --> 00:41:01,620
I think it hurt really bad.

894
00:41:01,621 --> 00:41:04,225
It's 8:05 p.m.,

895
00:41:04,226 --> 00:41:08,067
and I'm about to take
my shot of Wegovy.

896
00:41:09,202 --> 00:41:10,739
[ Gasps ]

897
00:41:10,740 --> 00:41:12,743
I would not leave my bed.
It was terrible.

898
00:41:12,744 --> 00:41:14,680
It was just all puke.

899
00:41:14,681 --> 00:41:16,282
I couldn't eat.
I couldn't drink. It was bad.

900
00:41:16,283 --> 00:41:18,621
All right.

901
00:41:18,622 --> 00:41:21,794
So you said you're having
the sweating and the shaking,

902
00:41:21,795 --> 00:41:23,698
but it's mostly
before meals?

903
00:41:23,699 --> 00:41:26,537
Cree: One of the concerns
for the GLP-1s

904
00:41:26,538 --> 00:41:29,810
is the amount of time

905
00:41:29,811 --> 00:41:32,047
that somebody would be
on these medications.

906
00:41:32,048 --> 00:41:33,316
Well, it's actually so sad.

907
00:41:33,317 --> 00:41:35,254
My favorite food--
um, we went to

908
00:41:35,255 --> 00:41:37,993
a Mexican restaurant
and I got flautas.

909
00:41:37,994 --> 00:41:39,262
They were so gross.
I was so sad.

910
00:41:39,263 --> 00:41:41,132
I love flautas.

911
00:41:41,133 --> 00:41:42,602
Looks like the part
of your brain

912
00:41:42,603 --> 00:41:44,573
where you make
those decisions,

913
00:41:44,574 --> 00:41:48,848
um, it's changed relative to
where you take your calories in.

914
00:41:48,849 --> 00:41:53,724
Are we actually rewiring
the brain

915
00:41:53,725 --> 00:41:56,931
in a developing individual?

916
00:41:56,932 --> 00:41:59,001
And what does this do long-term?

917
00:41:59,002 --> 00:42:02,274
We just don't know.

918
00:42:02,275 --> 00:42:04,145
Cree: Do you want to know
how much weight you've lost?

919
00:42:04,146 --> 00:42:05,748
- Yeah.
- Yes.

920
00:42:05,749 --> 00:42:10,692
Today you are 86.3 kilos.

921
00:42:10,693 --> 00:42:11,861
You've lost 10 pounds.

922
00:42:11,862 --> 00:42:13,163
Oh, my God.
I did it.

923
00:42:13,164 --> 00:42:14,967
That is good.

924
00:42:14,968 --> 00:42:19,710
Arrellin: The Wegovy test-study
trial is 10 months long.

925
00:42:19,711 --> 00:42:24,686
If I keep on what I'm doing now,
I will be a lot healthier.

926
00:42:24,687 --> 00:42:27,024
I'll be better.
I'll be amazing.

927
00:42:27,025 --> 00:42:30,164
But my fear is that
all of my progress

928
00:42:30,165 --> 00:42:33,871
that I've made on the Wegovy
could just disappear

929
00:42:33,872 --> 00:42:36,309
after I get off of it.

930
00:42:36,310 --> 00:42:38,180
I think that's it for me.

931
00:42:38,181 --> 00:42:41,319
That means we're ready
to go up on the next doses.

932
00:42:41,320 --> 00:42:43,658
Do you feel ready
to go up on the next doses?
Mm-hmm.

933
00:42:43,659 --> 00:42:45,995
Arrellin:
I'm scared of that.

934
00:42:45,996 --> 00:42:49,035
I'm scared of doing all of this
for nothing at the end.

935
00:43:03,063 --> 00:43:05,835
Arrellin: I have more motivation
to do things around the house.

936
00:43:05,836 --> 00:43:07,338
I love cooking and cleaning now.

937
00:43:07,339 --> 00:43:09,175
It's, like, my favorite thing
to do, ever.

938
00:43:10,979 --> 00:43:12,381
And sometimes I make,
like, a little dessert.

939
00:43:12,382 --> 00:43:14,653
It's great.
I don't ever eat the dessert.

940
00:43:14,654 --> 00:43:17,659
But everybody else likes it,
so that makes me happy.

941
00:43:17,660 --> 00:43:22,368
♪

942
00:43:22,369 --> 00:43:24,372
We went grocery shopping
earlier.

943
00:43:24,373 --> 00:43:28,079
Publix had these shrimp trays--
buy one, get one.

944
00:43:28,080 --> 00:43:32,354
Readily available, ready to go,
low-calorie, high-ish protein.

945
00:43:32,355 --> 00:43:34,693
$10 a tray. Not bad.

946
00:43:34,694 --> 00:43:37,966
What I'm having is a bowl

947
00:43:37,967 --> 00:43:39,970
with, uh, some super greens,

948
00:43:39,971 --> 00:43:41,372
some green-bean chicken.

949
00:43:41,373 --> 00:43:43,711
I'm going to have
a fortune cookie.

950
00:43:43,712 --> 00:43:46,049
I love fortune cookies.

951
00:43:49,022 --> 00:43:51,994
The part of Pueblo
that I live in,

952
00:43:51,995 --> 00:43:54,833
it's technically
like a borough town.

953
00:43:54,834 --> 00:43:57,338
It's not fully connected,
but it's connected.

954
00:43:57,339 --> 00:44:01,847
Here itself,
there's not that much.

955
00:44:01,848 --> 00:44:04,352
There's a little restaurant
up the street from the house,

956
00:44:04,353 --> 00:44:08,026
which is, like,
an hour and a half, hour walk.

957
00:44:08,027 --> 00:44:09,295
Man on TV:
The term "food desert"

958
00:44:09,296 --> 00:44:12,001
is used
to describe neighborhoods

959
00:44:12,002 --> 00:44:14,038
where there are few,
if any, markets

960
00:44:14,039 --> 00:44:18,247
to buy fresh and nutritious food
at a reasonable price.

961
00:44:21,219 --> 00:44:26,029
McMillan Cottom: GLP-1s
are a blockbuster

962
00:44:26,030 --> 00:44:28,935
because they promise
to solve a social problem

963
00:44:28,936 --> 00:44:31,139
without changing anything else.

964
00:44:31,140 --> 00:44:33,410
It is the height of hypocrisy

965
00:44:33,411 --> 00:44:36,750
that American social policy,

966
00:44:36,751 --> 00:44:41,459
from everything from housing to
transportation to agriculture,

967
00:44:41,460 --> 00:44:45,200
incentivizes things
that make it difficult

968
00:44:45,201 --> 00:44:46,804
for people to be healthy.

969
00:44:46,805 --> 00:44:51,045
<i>Good morning.</i>

970
00:44:51,046 --> 00:44:54,953
<i>Cardiovascular heart disease
is the leading cause of deat</i> h

971
00:44:54,954 --> 00:44:56,790
<i>in the United States today,</i>

972
00:44:56,791 --> 00:45:00,932
<i>and costs society
over $60 billion in direct</i>

973
00:45:00,933 --> 00:45:03,904
<i>and indirect health costs
each year.</i>

974
00:45:03,905 --> 00:45:06,175
Blum: Over the years,

975
00:45:06,176 --> 00:45:08,280
the government has rolled out
a number of different programs

976
00:45:08,281 --> 00:45:10,785
to try to get more involved
in people's health.

977
00:45:10,786 --> 00:45:12,488
Metzenbaum:
I do look at labels,

978
00:45:12,489 --> 00:45:14,893
and I'm more confused
every time I look at them.

979
00:45:14,894 --> 00:45:17,832
People who represent industry
have an obligation

980
00:45:17,833 --> 00:45:21,339
to be concerned about the health
of the people of this country.

981
00:45:21,340 --> 00:45:23,243
And there have been
some changes.

982
00:45:23,244 --> 00:45:27,084
The idea is that they will
put the nutrition information

983
00:45:27,085 --> 00:45:30,223
out for the consumer
at fast-food restaurants.

984
00:45:30,224 --> 00:45:32,328
There was Let's Move,
Michelle Obama's campaign

985
00:45:32,329 --> 00:45:35,067
to try to increase
physical activity.

986
00:45:35,068 --> 00:45:38,774
We can't afford <i>not</i> to give
our kids nutritious food.

987
00:45:38,775 --> 00:45:39,943
Harrison: It was so tied
to rhetoric

988
00:45:39,944 --> 00:45:41,479
around the obesity epidemic

989
00:45:41,480 --> 00:45:44,485
and how this initiative
was going to help ameliorate it.

990
00:45:44,486 --> 00:45:46,222
Man on TV:
The public-health purpose

991
00:45:46,223 --> 00:45:48,828
is to get consumers
to make healthier choices.

992
00:45:48,829 --> 00:45:51,366
Kraftson: We need a lot
more encouragement to people

993
00:45:51,367 --> 00:45:53,971
to choose healthier diets.

994
00:45:53,972 --> 00:45:55,942
McMillan Cottom: You can make
all the individual changes

995
00:45:55,943 --> 00:45:57,344
that you want,

996
00:45:57,345 --> 00:45:59,215
but if the environment makes
it easier

997
00:45:59,216 --> 00:46:02,989
for you to eat more calories
and to move less,

998
00:46:02,990 --> 00:46:05,360
then it is
not an individual problem.

999
00:46:05,361 --> 00:46:07,398
And when we come up with
individual solutions

1000
00:46:07,399 --> 00:46:12,007
and put people in a catch-22
of available options,

1001
00:46:12,008 --> 00:46:14,378
then we create the system
that blames people

1002
00:46:14,379 --> 00:46:17,284
for things that really are
beyond their control.

1003
00:46:17,285 --> 00:46:19,021
<i>Before I had
any critical awareness</i>

1004
00:46:19,022 --> 00:46:20,958
<i>of weight discrimination
or diet culture,</i>

1005
00:46:20,959 --> 00:46:24,432
<i>I used to listen avidly
to any advice about eating.</i>

1006
00:46:24,433 --> 00:46:27,004
We don't need more advice
on how to eat.

1007
00:46:27,005 --> 00:46:29,275
No more rules, no more advice.

1008
00:46:29,276 --> 00:46:34,018
We need less of the stuff
that actually harms people.

1009
00:46:34,019 --> 00:46:37,892
One of the most powerful things
that social media did

1010
00:46:37,893 --> 00:46:41,567
was to basically
create a reality

1011
00:46:41,568 --> 00:46:45,407
in which larger-bodied people
could be the authors

1012
00:46:45,408 --> 00:46:48,514
of their own story
for the first time in history,

1013
00:46:48,515 --> 00:46:52,555
and it created enough space
to say, "Oh, my God,

1014
00:46:52,556 --> 00:46:55,293
if this plus-size woman
is showing me

1015
00:46:55,294 --> 00:46:57,431
that they're dating
and wearing cute bikinis

1016
00:46:57,432 --> 00:46:59,301
and going, like, on trips

1017
00:46:59,302 --> 00:47:01,305
and having
these meaningful moments,

1018
00:47:01,306 --> 00:47:04,044
it was just like it was
a cognitive dissonance

1019
00:47:04,045 --> 00:47:07,151
because I've been told
there's no path to dignity,

1020
00:47:07,152 --> 00:47:10,958
no path to love,
no path to beauty."

1021
00:47:10,959 --> 00:47:14,599
I don't starve myself.

1022
00:47:14,600 --> 00:47:16,102
Luxmore: You know, I want to be
very supportive of people,

1023
00:47:16,103 --> 00:47:17,404
and I am very supportive
of people.

1024
00:47:17,405 --> 00:47:18,874
Like. other people
who are large,

1025
00:47:18,875 --> 00:47:21,012
like, I understand
their experience

1026
00:47:21,013 --> 00:47:22,582
and I want to support them.

1027
00:47:22,583 --> 00:47:24,185
But when I think about
body positivity, for me,

1028
00:47:24,186 --> 00:47:25,922
like, it doesn't apply.

1029
00:47:25,923 --> 00:47:27,491
So if somebody came at me
with body positivity,

1030
00:47:27,492 --> 00:47:29,095
like, "You just need to feel
better about yourself,"

1031
00:47:29,096 --> 00:47:30,898
I'd be like,
"You need to go fuck off."

1032
00:47:30,899 --> 00:47:33,470
I started getting e-mail

1033
00:47:33,471 --> 00:47:37,377
from third-party
marketing companies

1034
00:47:37,378 --> 00:47:41,620
that wanted me to take GLP-1s

1035
00:47:41,621 --> 00:47:44,058
and share my journey.

1036
00:47:44,059 --> 00:47:49,068
What made it noteworthy to me
was if they vetted my platform,

1037
00:47:49,069 --> 00:47:52,441
they either
don't care about my values

1038
00:47:52,442 --> 00:47:54,646
or they actually believe
I'm lying.

1039
00:47:54,647 --> 00:47:57,652
There was a cynicism
that felt very familiar

1040
00:47:57,653 --> 00:48:00,390
and it also felt very toxic.

1041
00:48:00,391 --> 00:48:05,333
What GLP-1 did is that
it made everybody prove

1042
00:48:05,334 --> 00:48:07,639
just how body-positive
they were.

1043
00:48:07,640 --> 00:48:10,110
I don't like people
complimenting

1044
00:48:10,111 --> 00:48:12,949
or not complimenting
on how you look.

1045
00:48:12,950 --> 00:48:16,255
Having said that, I welcome you
to call me a skinny bitch.

1046
00:48:16,256 --> 00:48:17,959
McMillan Cottom:
It is something else

1047
00:48:17,960 --> 00:48:19,996
to be committed
to body positivity

1048
00:48:19,997 --> 00:48:24,205
when, for enough money,
you can buy your way out of it.

1049
00:48:29,082 --> 00:48:32,689
♪

1050
00:48:32,690 --> 00:48:34,626
Look at this.

1051
00:48:34,627 --> 00:48:38,266
This is basically two sizes
down from what I was wearing.

1052
00:48:38,267 --> 00:48:41,405
I'm just getting ready

1053
00:48:41,406 --> 00:48:45,380
to go to a work-reunion event,

1054
00:48:45,381 --> 00:48:47,685
and I guess I'm
kind of curious to see

1055
00:48:47,686 --> 00:48:50,390
if anyone will say anything.

1056
00:48:52,796 --> 00:48:56,703
Like, if it did come up,
would I even tell the person?

1057
00:48:56,704 --> 00:48:58,440
I mean, the short answer is no.

1058
00:49:00,745 --> 00:49:03,684
In 2021, I got my first e-bike.

1059
00:49:03,685 --> 00:49:07,024
The idea was like, "Okay,
if I get this e-bike,

1060
00:49:07,025 --> 00:49:08,761
I'm still
putting out a lot of effort."

1061
00:49:08,762 --> 00:49:13,436
But, you know,
when you're on an e-bike,

1062
00:49:13,437 --> 00:49:16,643
you can do more laps,

1063
00:49:16,644 --> 00:49:19,081
you can go farther,
you can go faster.

1064
00:49:22,088 --> 00:49:23,657
And it's interesting
with e-bikes

1065
00:49:23,658 --> 00:49:25,661
because it sort of mirrors

1066
00:49:25,662 --> 00:49:27,197
what's happening right now
with GLP-1 meds

1067
00:49:27,198 --> 00:49:30,170
in that people
who are anti-e-bike

1068
00:49:30,171 --> 00:49:32,709
are just like,
"You're not earning it."

1069
00:49:32,710 --> 00:49:34,613
♪

1070
00:49:34,614 --> 00:49:37,552
"For $1,000, just get a meal
service and go to the gym."

1071
00:49:37,553 --> 00:49:42,494
♪

1072
00:49:42,495 --> 00:49:44,164
McMillan Cottom: GLP-1s

1073
00:49:44,165 --> 00:49:48,674
do threaten
our unexamined belief

1074
00:49:48,675 --> 00:49:52,381
that fat people deserve
the way we treat them.

1075
00:49:52,382 --> 00:49:55,420
"We can't be sure.
Who do we judge now?

1076
00:49:55,421 --> 00:49:57,659
Who-- How much
<i>should</i> I judge them?"

1077
00:49:57,660 --> 00:50:00,463
That is a threat
to my own social position.

1078
00:50:00,464 --> 00:50:02,835
Are we going to continue
to pretend

1079
00:50:02,836 --> 00:50:04,673
like a lot of
these conversations

1080
00:50:04,674 --> 00:50:07,645
aren't rooted
in the gatekeeping of thin?

1081
00:50:07,646 --> 00:50:11,587
It's very clear that the people
who have that mentality

1082
00:50:11,588 --> 00:50:15,427
don't have the experience
that people like me have had.

1083
00:50:15,428 --> 00:50:17,197
Winfrey: I never dreamed

1084
00:50:17,198 --> 00:50:19,201
that we would be talking
about medicines

1085
00:50:19,202 --> 00:50:22,374
that are providing
hope for people like me,

1086
00:50:22,375 --> 00:50:25,080
who have struggled for years

1087
00:50:25,081 --> 00:50:27,484
with being overweight
or with obesity.

1088
00:50:27,485 --> 00:50:30,290
As these drugs
get more and more popular,

1089
00:50:30,291 --> 00:50:33,196
the cultural dialogue
really goes to a fever pitch.

1090
00:50:33,197 --> 00:50:34,599
And of course,
that's the point

1091
00:50:34,600 --> 00:50:37,471
that Oprah
re-enters this conversation.

1092
00:50:37,472 --> 00:50:40,410
Hi, everybody.
I wanted to do this special...

1093
00:50:40,411 --> 00:50:45,153
Blum: In March of 2024,
Oprah does this entire special

1094
00:50:45,154 --> 00:50:47,692
that is devoted
to weight-loss drugs

1095
00:50:47,693 --> 00:50:49,461
and how revolutionary they are.

1096
00:50:49,462 --> 00:50:52,535
In losing,
you have now gained so much

1097
00:50:52,536 --> 00:50:53,771
in terms of your own health.

1098
00:50:53,772 --> 00:50:55,708
- Absolutely.
- Yes.

1099
00:50:55,709 --> 00:50:58,446
And she says that she is taking
a medication for weight loss.

1100
00:50:58,447 --> 00:51:00,685
She pretty pointedly
doesn't say which one.

1101
00:51:00,686 --> 00:51:02,722
I use it as a tool.

1102
00:51:02,723 --> 00:51:04,826
Blum: It's really fascinating
to have Oprah,

1103
00:51:04,827 --> 00:51:08,734
who has been for so long
this sort of cultural avatar,

1104
00:51:08,735 --> 00:51:12,240
say that she is now to the point
where she is in on this, too.

1105
00:51:12,241 --> 00:51:14,178
Winfrey: The two
pharmaceutical companies

1106
00:51:14,179 --> 00:51:17,819
who are behind the meds,
Ozempic and Wegovy,

1107
00:51:17,820 --> 00:51:20,691
Mounjaro and Zepbound, are here.

1108
00:51:20,692 --> 00:51:24,799
I think a lot of people
felt almost betrayed.

1109
00:51:24,800 --> 00:51:26,503
It basically looked like

1110
00:51:26,504 --> 00:51:29,843
the manufacturers paid her
to promote it.

1111
00:51:29,844 --> 00:51:31,780
Man: They come across
as trying to be

1112
00:51:31,781 --> 00:51:35,353
some sort of neutral reporter,
which is certainly not the case.

1113
00:51:35,354 --> 00:51:39,596
So, about two months later,
Oprah does a whole new special,

1114
00:51:39,597 --> 00:51:42,501
and it is totally steeped
in this language

1115
00:51:42,502 --> 00:51:43,804
of body positivity.

1116
00:51:43,805 --> 00:51:45,808
Winfrey: We have reached
a pivotal moment

1117
00:51:45,809 --> 00:51:47,745
in the way we talk about

1118
00:51:47,746 --> 00:51:51,252
and the way
we think about our bodies.

1119
00:51:51,253 --> 00:51:55,260
It was extremely surreal
because I was watching Oprah

1120
00:51:55,261 --> 00:51:58,399
and this carousel
of celebrities get up there

1121
00:51:58,400 --> 00:52:02,407
and use this kind of, like,
"my body, my choice" rhetoric

1122
00:52:02,408 --> 00:52:03,944
around weight-loss drugs.

1123
00:52:03,945 --> 00:52:05,815
And our body is being
up for debate,

1124
00:52:05,816 --> 00:52:07,752
our body is being weaponized,

1125
00:52:07,753 --> 00:52:12,729
our body is being used
for legislation by bad actors,

1126
00:52:12,730 --> 00:52:15,433
and I've just had it.

1127
00:52:15,434 --> 00:52:17,605
And I was kind of
looking around, watching

1128
00:52:17,606 --> 00:52:20,310
everyone in the room go through
those mental gymnastics

1129
00:52:20,311 --> 00:52:22,782
of like, "Okay,
it's empowering,

1130
00:52:22,783 --> 00:52:25,186
but the reason
we're losing weight

1131
00:52:25,187 --> 00:52:28,292
is to fit into a body standard
that's been foisted upon us,

1132
00:52:28,293 --> 00:52:30,463
but we're choosing to do it,
so it's okay."

1133
00:52:30,464 --> 00:52:35,306
We want women's bodies
to be off-topic.

1134
00:52:35,307 --> 00:52:37,277
It was just this total knot

1135
00:52:37,278 --> 00:52:39,783
that we were all
trying to untangle.

1136
00:52:39,784 --> 00:52:41,686
And at a certain point,
you just give up

1137
00:52:41,687 --> 00:52:44,224
because it's too interconnected.

1138
00:52:44,225 --> 00:52:45,895
Thanks, everybody.

1139
00:52:45,896 --> 00:52:49,501
Blum: I think the narrative
around obesity and weight

1140
00:52:49,502 --> 00:52:52,775
stigma and shame
gets even more complicated

1141
00:52:52,776 --> 00:52:54,813
when the drug companies
get involved

1142
00:52:54,814 --> 00:52:56,850
and start putting out promos

1143
00:52:56,851 --> 00:53:00,691
that are basically staking out
their own position

1144
00:53:00,692 --> 00:53:02,895
in a conversation
about all the ways

1145
00:53:02,896 --> 00:53:06,603
in which our culture has
demonized having a larger body.

1146
00:53:06,604 --> 00:53:08,005
Man: I was always told,

1147
00:53:08,006 --> 00:53:10,009
because I was overweight,
I must be lazy.

1148
00:53:10,010 --> 00:53:11,913
Blum: These are forever drugs.

1149
00:53:11,914 --> 00:53:13,584
These are medications

1150
00:53:13,585 --> 00:53:15,988
that people need to stay on
in perpetuity

1151
00:53:15,989 --> 00:53:17,792
if they want to keep
the weight off.

1152
00:53:17,793 --> 00:53:21,332
And so these drug companies
really stand to profit

1153
00:53:21,333 --> 00:53:24,438
from presenting themselves
as the solution.

1154
00:53:24,439 --> 00:53:26,577
Man: We must stop
fat-shaming.

1155
00:53:29,650 --> 00:53:33,356
Tovar: The proposition that
a pharmaceutical company

1156
00:53:33,357 --> 00:53:35,828
can end weight discrimination

1157
00:53:35,829 --> 00:53:39,536
is ludicrous.

1158
00:53:39,537 --> 00:53:40,838
You're going to end
weight stigma?

1159
00:53:40,839 --> 00:53:42,307
How?

1160
00:53:42,308 --> 00:53:43,877
By getting rid of
every fat person

1161
00:53:43,878 --> 00:53:46,415
on the planet
and the United States?

1162
00:53:46,416 --> 00:53:48,486
Okay, what does that
actually look like?

1163
00:53:48,487 --> 00:53:50,423
It means that every person,

1164
00:53:50,424 --> 00:53:52,595
whether they want to take it
or not, have to.

1165
00:53:52,596 --> 00:53:56,435
At the end of the day,
what will happen is

1166
00:53:56,436 --> 00:53:58,574
that we won't have dealt
with fat phobia.

1167
00:53:58,575 --> 00:54:01,780
We'll still be a society
that has fat phobia.

1168
00:54:01,781 --> 00:54:03,584
We're not eradicating stigma.

1169
00:54:03,585 --> 00:54:05,955
We're eradicating the people
who experience stigma.

1170
00:54:13,336 --> 00:54:15,808
ve been on my shots for six months now.

1171
00:54:15,809 --> 00:54:19,816
Throughout everything,
I have lost 26 pounds.

1172
00:54:19,817 --> 00:54:21,820
Pretty close to 30.

1173
00:54:21,821 --> 00:54:22,788
I haven't done a weigh-in
in a little bit,

1174
00:54:22,789 --> 00:54:24,826
so I could be there.

1175
00:54:27,566 --> 00:54:31,806
Luxmore: So, I've lost 64 pounds
while being on the GLP-1 drugs.

1176
00:54:31,807 --> 00:54:35,681
It is...
[Sighs]

1177
00:54:35,682 --> 00:54:37,785
20-some years of relief.

1178
00:54:41,125 --> 00:54:44,398
I've lost about 50 pounds
since I started a GLP-1.

1179
00:54:44,399 --> 00:54:49,041
[ Exhaling sharply ]

1180
00:54:49,042 --> 00:54:51,345
This is the first time
in my life

1181
00:54:51,346 --> 00:54:53,550
that I've ever been
on a weight-loss journey

1182
00:54:53,551 --> 00:54:55,955
and my legs have
actually transformed.

1183
00:54:55,956 --> 00:54:58,426
And I don't think I realized
how much

1184
00:54:58,427 --> 00:55:01,533
I was living in pain
in my legs before,

1185
00:55:01,534 --> 00:55:02,935
because I just tolerated it.

1186
00:55:02,936 --> 00:55:04,739
Right up there?
Yeah?

1187
00:55:04,740 --> 00:55:08,412
Blum: GLP-1s
are extremely exciting.

1188
00:55:08,413 --> 00:55:09,983
They were revolutionary.

1189
00:55:09,984 --> 00:55:11,519
I've never heard
the word "miracle"

1190
00:55:11,520 --> 00:55:13,857
come up so many times
in my reporting.

1191
00:55:13,858 --> 00:55:16,061
It's really easy
to get swept up in the hype

1192
00:55:16,062 --> 00:55:19,501
around these medications.

1193
00:55:19,502 --> 00:55:21,438
Arrellin: It's already helped
all the PCOS stuff.

1194
00:55:21,439 --> 00:55:23,543
Like a normal girl now, honestly.

1195
00:55:23,544 --> 00:55:27,450
I'm in a size 9 in my jeans,

1196
00:55:27,451 --> 00:55:29,087
so that's pretty nice.

1197
00:55:29,088 --> 00:55:32,828
Luxmore: The forum
I'm on a lot on Reddit,

1198
00:55:32,829 --> 00:55:36,135
they talk about NSV--
non-scale victory.

1199
00:55:36,136 --> 00:55:39,509
There's, like, an NSV,
like, every day.

1200
00:55:39,510 --> 00:55:40,644
These are much better.

1201
00:55:40,645 --> 00:55:42,447
So it gives a lot of hope now.

1202
00:55:42,448 --> 00:55:43,884
I'm not mad about that.

1203
00:55:43,885 --> 00:55:47,525
So, this is what we call
a non-scale victory.

1204
00:55:47,526 --> 00:55:49,061
[ Sighs ]

1205
00:55:49,062 --> 00:55:51,833
This was supposed to be
the easy interview.

1206
00:55:51,834 --> 00:55:54,706
[ Sighs ]

1207
00:55:54,707 --> 00:55:56,743
♪

1208
00:55:56,744 --> 00:55:58,012
Luxmore: The goal, really,
I think,

1209
00:55:58,013 --> 00:55:59,916
is to have
more social connections.

1210
00:55:59,917 --> 00:56:03,757
So maybe I can go on dates now,
and I could convince myself

1211
00:56:03,758 --> 00:56:05,493
that my size
isn't really a factor.

1212
00:56:05,494 --> 00:56:07,732
♪

1213
00:56:07,733 --> 00:56:10,003
I think I'm ready
to start trying that again.

1214
00:56:10,004 --> 00:56:11,573
[ Camera timer beeping ]

1215
00:56:11,574 --> 00:56:13,409
One of my dream scenarios
would be, like,

1216
00:56:13,410 --> 00:56:15,113
I go on a date and
my date would say,

1217
00:56:15,114 --> 00:56:17,652
"By the way,
I'm taking Ozempic."

1218
00:56:17,653 --> 00:56:20,625
Like, if I heard that,
I'd just be like, "I love you."

1219
00:56:23,731 --> 00:56:27,037
Sanchez: I think, with any type
of medical treatment,

1220
00:56:27,038 --> 00:56:28,940
there's risk involved,
so I think

1221
00:56:28,941 --> 00:56:30,811
it's up to your choice

1222
00:56:30,812 --> 00:56:33,149
what level of risk
you're willing to take.

1223
00:56:33,150 --> 00:56:36,756
I finally got approved
for Zepbound

1224
00:56:36,757 --> 00:56:39,762
because my insurance company
now covers it,

1225
00:56:39,763 --> 00:56:42,033
and my copay is $25 a month.

1226
00:56:42,034 --> 00:56:44,772
My goal is
to just have Zepbound

1227
00:56:44,773 --> 00:56:47,110
only for financial reasons.

1228
00:56:47,111 --> 00:56:49,615
However, that could change
overnight,

1229
00:56:49,616 --> 00:56:52,454
so I'll still have
a backup plan--

1230
00:56:52,455 --> 00:56:54,659
a plan B with my peptides.

1231
00:56:54,660 --> 00:56:57,631
Just in case.
[ Chuckles ]

1232
00:56:57,632 --> 00:57:01,573
I know so many people are
so mad at me for saying this.

1233
00:57:01,574 --> 00:57:03,677
GLP-1s are a diet.

1234
00:57:03,678 --> 00:57:07,585
At the end of the day,

1235
00:57:07,586 --> 00:57:09,922
diets are when you restrict food

1236
00:57:09,923 --> 00:57:12,828
in order
to change your body size.

1237
00:57:12,829 --> 00:57:15,667
That is what a GLP-1 does.

1238
00:57:15,668 --> 00:57:17,938
It does it in kind of
an elaborate way.

1239
00:57:17,939 --> 00:57:20,476
It does it in kind of, like,
a more medicalized way,

1240
00:57:20,477 --> 00:57:24,519
but, fundamentally, it is
a food-restriction program.

1241
00:57:24,520 --> 00:57:28,492
Luxmore: So, right now,
I weigh 259 pounds.

1242
00:57:28,493 --> 00:57:32,000
At my lowest weight,
without GLP-1,

1243
00:57:32,001 --> 00:57:34,038
I had gotten to, like, 261.

1244
00:57:35,742 --> 00:57:39,047
And I'd done that
through diet and exercise.

1245
00:57:39,048 --> 00:57:41,753
At that point,
I did feel really confident.

1246
00:57:41,754 --> 00:57:45,026
But this time around,
I'm not really having that.

1247
00:57:45,027 --> 00:57:47,732
That feeling is not
explicitly tied to your size.

1248
00:57:47,733 --> 00:57:49,167
It's tied to other things.

1249
00:57:49,168 --> 00:57:51,105
And I haven't nailed down
what that is.

1250
00:57:51,106 --> 00:57:53,543
Today I slept all day because
I wasn't feeling good at all.

1251
00:57:53,544 --> 00:57:55,581
Very, very difficult.

1252
00:57:55,582 --> 00:57:57,083
I don't like
how sick it makes me feel.

1253
00:57:57,084 --> 00:57:58,687
I'm very happy
for what it's doing to me,

1254
00:57:58,688 --> 00:58:00,557
and I'm very happy
that I got to be

1255
00:58:00,558 --> 00:58:02,093
a part of the study that I'm in.

1256
00:58:02,094 --> 00:58:04,164
That was me when I--
on my 13th birthday.

1257
00:58:04,165 --> 00:58:07,270
I was a lot bigger then.
I'm very happy I've lost weight.

1258
00:58:07,271 --> 00:58:09,575
I just don't like feeling sick.

1259
00:58:09,576 --> 00:58:14,552
Tovar: Chronic nausea,
gastroparesis, hair loss,

1260
00:58:14,553 --> 00:58:16,956
the idea that you might have to
pay out-of-pocket

1261
00:58:16,957 --> 00:58:20,597
$20,000 a year
for the rest of your life.

1262
00:58:20,598 --> 00:58:24,337
Why aren't any of those things
worthy of headlines?

1263
00:58:24,338 --> 00:58:27,277
Why is the only thing
that's worthy of headlines

1264
00:58:27,278 --> 00:58:30,216
that this is a quote,
unquote, miracle drug?

1265
00:58:32,755 --> 00:58:36,061
Luxmore: My expectation is that
I'm going to be taking GLP-1s

1266
00:58:36,062 --> 00:58:38,299
indefinitely,
which is expensive.

1267
00:58:38,300 --> 00:58:41,271
I'm very fortunate
that I can afford--

1268
00:58:41,272 --> 00:58:44,311
If I had to pay full price,
I can still afford it.

1269
00:58:44,312 --> 00:58:47,117
Arrellin: After the trial ends,
my doctor said

1270
00:58:47,118 --> 00:58:51,993
that I won't be on it anymore
unless something happens

1271
00:58:51,994 --> 00:58:54,665
and it becomes, like,
an actual PCOS med.

1272
00:58:54,666 --> 00:58:57,705
I don't want to end up
where I was in the beginning.

1273
00:58:57,706 --> 00:58:59,341
McMillan Cottom:
As they stand now,

1274
00:58:59,342 --> 00:59:02,046
GLP-1 drugs for weight loss

1275
00:59:02,047 --> 00:59:04,619
are for people
who are at risk

1276
00:59:04,620 --> 00:59:08,660
for losing
social status and money

1277
00:59:08,661 --> 00:59:10,831
if they aren't thin,

1278
00:59:10,832 --> 00:59:14,605
and for people who can afford
to take that risk.

1279
00:59:14,606 --> 00:59:19,147
As a country, we need to decide
if we are okay with that.

1280
00:59:19,148 --> 00:59:22,988
I'm happy to, like,
confidently wear this.

1281
00:59:22,989 --> 00:59:25,159
Harrison: To really improve
people's well-being,

1282
00:59:25,160 --> 00:59:27,030
we need to focus
on ending the cultural obsession

1283
00:59:27,031 --> 00:59:29,000
with dieting and body image...

1284
00:59:29,001 --> 00:59:32,173
Woman: There's been
a more than 930% increase

1285
00:59:32,174 --> 00:59:35,079
in patients getting
prescription semaglutide.

1286
00:59:35,080 --> 00:59:38,385
Harrison: ...helping people
develop resilience to that.

1287
00:59:38,386 --> 00:59:41,626
And it looks good, and
it makes me feel good.

1288
00:59:41,627 --> 00:59:43,663
Gay: If we could just
let people live

1289
00:59:43,664 --> 00:59:45,266
and be who they are,

1290
00:59:45,267 --> 00:59:47,771
and try and address some
of the stigmas around fatness,

1291
00:59:47,772 --> 00:59:50,076
maybe you would see
fewer fat people.

1292
00:59:50,077 --> 00:59:52,715
I don't know. We could try it.

1293
00:59:52,716 --> 00:59:56,321
But we won't.

1294
00:59:56,322 --> 01:00:07,778
♪

1295
01:00:11,219 --> 01:00:45,053
♪