Book Summaries Online

Author of this Review: Robert Davis

Bottom Line:
The author goes on a research journey about Ozempic and has been taking it for several years. He struggles with the pros and cons of the drug and ultimately suggests that people should really just diet and exercise. However, he places a lot of the blame on the food industry and the lack of government regulation—especially junk food advertising, junk food in school lunches, and a general lack of nutrition education.

My opinion on whether this is a good book:
Yes, it is a good book. It was entertaining to read, with informative sections, funny tidbits, and memorable anecdotal stories that help readers remember the underlying points. Is this an authoritative book on Ozempic and weight-loss drugs? Mostly no. The author comes from a biased perspective shaped by how he grew up, and he admits that he doesn’t really know how to cook and that 99% of his meals come from microwavable food (which is bananas to me). That said, he includes enough anecdotes and hard numbers to give readers a solid starting point to do their own research and make an informed decision about taking weight-loss drugs like Ozempic.

Is being overweight bad for you?
Shocker—the author says yes. He talks to a handful of doctors and comes away with the conclusion that it’s very hard to deny that obesity increases the likelihood of serious health issues like cancer, dementia, and heart attacks. I think he smartly confronts the short-lived fat-acceptance movement. One of the founders of that movement was verbally abused as an obese child, which is clearly not okay. She shared a story about being told by an adult to eat pudding at the school lunch table until she threw up, along with other disturbing things her parents did. The movement originally started as “let’s not just kick the crap out of obese people,” because shame doesn’t always lead to weight loss. But over time, it turned into a clown show where some people claimed it’s actually healthy to be fat and tried to use research to prove it. Much of that research was debunked. The author ultimately lands on the idea that obesity isn’t healthy, people shouldn’t be shamed for it, but obese individuals also shouldn’t see concern for their health as a personal attack.

What does Ozempic do?
It basically makes you feel full. You eat much less, and even people with very large appetites will stop eating when taking it at the right dosage. It’s a GLP-1 receptor blocker (or something like that—I don’t remember the exact science). People tend to lose weight quickly, though side effects can include nausea and lightheadedness. Overall, the side effects don’t seem too bad compared to the benefits.

What’s the problem?
There’s no long-term solution. You have to keep taking the drug indefinitely, potentially until you die, and we don’t yet know the long-term effects. The author brings up a past weight-loss drug that, after several years, ended up killing some people. This serves as a warning not to repeat history.

What about diet and exercise?
The author points out that diet fads like keto, Weight Watchers, and others usually aren’t long-term solutions, and many people regain the weight after a few years. The same goes for exercise—people start a New Year’s workout plan and quit a month or two in. He does a good job of calling out gimmicks like “seven-minute abs” and the carnivore diet, but I think he does a disservice to people who have successfully used diet and exercise to maintain good health.

Is there a better solution?
The author is very into Japan. They have one of the lowest obesity rates in the world, and he suggests that almost no one there uses Ozempic. He visits a school where kids eat healthy food and help cook and serve it. He talks to a chef who explains that Japanese people eat in a triangular pattern—taking bites from each part of the meal to slow down eating and feel fuller. He portrays Japan as having a culture centered on healthy fish, vegetables, rice, regular exercise, and even sports participation among people in their 80s and 90s. It’s a compelling example, and governments and food regulators around the world could learn from Japan’s approach to food, exercise, and longevity. That said, Japan’s suicide rate is fairly high, so maybe we shouldn’t copy everything.

Psychological factors:
Sometimes people are overweight for psychological reasons. The author tells the story of an obese woman in a study who lost over 400 pounds, going from 400+ lbs to 130 lbs, only to gain it all back. It turned out she had been sexually abused, and being overweight was her way of protecting herself. This situation happens more often than people realize. Weight loss can be a mental battle, and therapy may be necessary. The author also reflects on his own childhood: his mother loved the microwave because it freed her from cooking, while his father—a chef—believed fresh food was the only answer. His parents fought constantly over this. As a child, he was shamed into eating his father’s fresh meals while being secretly given junk food by his mother. As a result, he subconsciously associates healthy food with shame and junk food with love.

Conclusion:

It seems that there are a handful of factors that contirbute to a person’s weight. Stress, Childhood upbrining, your environment, your job, nutritional/exercise education, your countries culture, etc. These factors make up a different percentage for everyone, and it takes some internal reflection and external reflection to determine what are the biggest factors for you. My opinion on Ozembic is that it can be a good restart for some people, and allow them to beleive they can drop the weight, but people should get off of it once they reach their desired wieght with a plan and habit on how to keep it off.