The above is Dr. Oz’s reaction after hearing from his guest, Dr. Glenn Gaesser, that “as carbohydrate intake goes up, body weights goes down” (Can You Be Fat & Fit? 3:30, part 2). Seeing that expression was well worth the watch ;).
I love that Dr. Gaesser was on the show talking about obesity as a symptom rather than a cause. It’s a shame that that mostly got lost in all of you-know-who’s bloviating. The point Dr. Gaesser made in part 1 is pretty much shown in research: eating healthy and exercising results in better health markers with very little weight loss. For researchers, this can be as little as 5% of body weight, which means your 250-lb person is seeing health improvements just getting to 233. But wait, they’re still obese … hmmm.
Here’s Dr Oz hearing that “you take people that have diabetes, in two weeks time, with a heart-healthy diet with exercise, they’ll be off medications … this has been published in the literature, I’m surprised you didn’t know about this” (2:00 part 3)
Of course, I too had a bit of a knee-jerk reaction to Dr. Gaesser’s point that the research shows that the more sugar folks eat the thinner they are (gotta find those studies!). I also found his “eat whole grains” prescription unsurprising given that he is a “nutrition expert” for the Grain Foods Foundation.
Check out the entire Can You Be Fat & Fit? series and you’ll be in for the typical fare from Dr. Oz … lots of hyperbole, misrepresenting of the guest’s position, and daytime TV theatrics (e.g., popping a balloon to represent the perils of yo-yo dieting, sending Dr. Gaesser running up the audience stairs with an 80-lb weight vest).
Ultimately, I was glad Dr. Gaesser got to this point out at the end: it is “far easier to get a fat person fit than it is to get a fat person thin” (1:40 part 4). This is certainly a HAES message I totally agree with. For more on that, check out Ragen Chastein’s (of Dances With Fat blog) great take on the fiasco:
Weight Maven is written by Beth Mazur. Beth believes that obesity is more symptom than cause and that the real problem is our Western diet -- especially sugar, refined grains, and industrial oils. Beth writes about nutrition, ancestral health, & food policy. And cats! 
Thank you for sharing my video and THANK YOU for capturing these screen shots. This is awesome!
~Ragen
Thanks for this, Beth. Really enjoyed your thoughtful review. Dr. Oz just gives too much unsubstantiated advice for me so I don’t watch, but will go back and look at this one!
Dreena, thanks for the comment. BTW, you may want to revise your wordpress profile … the link on your name is showing up as http://[email protected] … makes it a little harder for folks to find your blog!
Science-Based Medicine blog has several snarky posts about Dr. Oz. (Has he been crowned “America’s Doctor” yet?). Where’s Dr. Dean Edell when you need him? I don’t remember him promoting woo.
Admittedly, I think Oz is an opportunistic, pliable shyster; I didn’t see this show nor did I watch the clips, so my comment is not an unbiased one. However, to state that “within two weeks” of beginning a better diet and some minimal exercise, a diabetic can improve so much that they no longer need medications is EXTREMELY irresponsible and may lead to people self-adjusting/self-discontinuing their meds based on what was said and then making up their own “healthy” diet and exercise program. I am no fan of the drug industry but there is already a tremendous compliance issue with prescription meds, especially for patients with chronic diseases like diabetes and these grossly exaggerated blanket claims/pieces of advice do not help the situation in the least. But, they know who their audience is, and I’m sure a “Dr. Oz Diabetes Cure” book or branded vitamin supplement is in the works.
Norma, point taken. I certainly hope that Dr. Gaesser’s comments aren’t used as license for folks to discontinue their meds. That said, I’ve long thought that some of the same “nearly immediate” reversal of diabetes after weight loss surgery has far more to do with the post-surgery diet than it does the surgery itself.
I think you are right on target with your thoughts on the reversal of diabetes/pre-diabetic conditions after weight loss surgery. I do have a close friend who was pre-diabetic/close to 400 lbs who decided to go the RnY gastric bypass route. In her program, she was required to lose about 60 lbs on her own before she could have the surgery. That process took about seven months. She then had her bypass and within six months of the bypass and another 85 lbs gone, her pre-diabetic issues were gone…but that took a year of a changed diet and lifestyle altogether; nowhere near the “immediate”/two weeks that some people may now be expecting (and which, if they don’t see, may say, “why bother?” and give up on their post-surgery diet/lifestyle…there’s a compliance issue there, as well — my friend is three years out from her surgery now but continues to participate in a support group, and there are many, if not a majority, of patients she knows who have managed to regain significant weight). My friend has lost over 180 lbs in total. But she follows her food intake restrictions to the letter (as to types of foods she can eat, portion size, eating slowly, etc.) and lives a very active life…which she could not have done without the bypass. So it’s a chicken-and-egg circle, in a way; one begets the other and so on.
I just finished reading (and was tremendously inspired by) a book called “Move Yourself” by Zucker, Mitchell, and Church, which basically says the same thing-that very small alterations in your activity levels can make a huge difference in terms of your health, and that it is possible to be fat AND fit. Indeed, they really are encouraging by supplying scientific data to support the notion that as little as 15 minutes of walking per day can have significant positive results. Heck, anyone can do that! Five minutes here and five minutes there. At their advice, I’ve gotten a pedometer to see how active I am. Quite shocking, but also motivating, because it’s easy enough to add a couple of hundred steps a day. (I’ve been getting up from my desk every hour or so and doing a quick walk up and down the hall.) Ihave also found (personal experience) that whole grains do make a huge difference in diabetes control and weight loss. They are filling but, unlike other carbs, don’t raise my blood sugar through the roof. The bottom line on Dr. Oz is that he’s not nearly as up on bariatric science as he thinks he is. (Read Arya Sharma’s blog for some really valuable SCIENTIFIC information on the subject.)
What’s with Dr. Oz and all of his demonstrations? I watched the clips and I agree with Dr. Gaesser. From my point of view, neither talk about the psychological damage of cyclical dieting and the impact on eating behaviours.