Obesity care

Rx symbol created by various medications being lined into the shape of the letters

New Treatments for Often Unrecognized Health Complications of Obesity

Dr. Robert Kushner June 11, 2025 No Comments

Recently published papers and news articles are covering exciting findings related to obesity complications, co-morbidities and treatments. There are over 200 such complications that are related to obesity. Three of the complications may go unnoticed but have been shown to improve with treatment by one of the new highly effective obesity medications: Sleep apnea, a

New Research, New Reasons to Discuss Obesity Medications with Your Health Care Provider

Dr. Robert Kushner March 18, 2025 No Comments

It’s no secret that the new, highly effective injectable obesity medications have impressive weight loss benefits. This has led millions of people who struggle with weight to ask their health care professionals whether or not they are candidates for taking these new medications. But we’ve known for a long time that there is more to

Graphic of a man thinking about a burger

Food Noise: A New Name for an Old Problem

Dr. Robert Kushner March 2, 2025 No Comments

For the past 4 decades, I have treated patients who struggle with weight. And I have also identified a subset of individuals who are more tempted by the obesogenic food environment we all live in. “I think about food all the time.” “As hard as I try, I can’t clear my head from being preoccupied

Graphic of a stethoscope listening to a red heart and reporting a heartbeat's rhythm

Is Waist Size Measurement the New Obesity Care Vital Sign?

Dr. Robert Kushner February 12, 2025 No Comments

If you struggle with excess weight, most likely your health care visits include measurements of your weight, height, and blood pressure, as well as a calculation of your BMI (body mass index). But what about your waist circumference? As an obesity medicine physician specialist, I’ve been measuring waist circumference on my patients for over 25

Body tape measure laying on top of a glass body scale

New Report Advances the Conversation on Obesity Care

Dr. Robert Kushner January 27, 2025 No Comments

Consensus is hard. As a member of the Lancet Commission on Definition and Diagnostic Criteria of Clinical Obesity among 58 experts from around the world, our just released report aims to define clinical obesity and aid in clinical decision making and therapeutic interventions. With over 1 billion people living with obesity worldwide, this report begins

Cover of Dr. Kushner's book, "Six Factors to Fit"

Personal Weight Struggles Require a Personalized Approach

Dr. Robert Kushner January 1, 2025 No Comments

I learned long ago that generic weight loss advice doesn’t work well for most people. That’s because managing weight is personal, influenced by your likes and dislikes, health goals and personal challenges. This applies whether or not you’re taking one of the newer anti-obesity medications. I wrote my book, Six Factors to Fit: Weight Loss that Works

Improving Weight Management Outcomes Beyond the Scale

Dr. Robert Kushner December 18, 2024 No Comments

We are a weight-focused society but when it comes to managing weight long term, having a weight-only narrow focus can be detrimental. Throughout my 4-decade career I have stressed the importance of lifestyle modification being foundational for losing weight and achieving better health. Now with an average 15-20% weight loss with the new injectable obesity

Enhancing Obesity Care with Innovative Medical Education

Dr. Robert Kushner October 16, 2024 No Comments

I am passionate about educating both current and future health care professionals on the care of patients living with the disease of obesity. If you’re a patient struggling with overweight or obesity, you need health care providers who are knowledgeable and skilled in giving you the most effective treatments. Here, I’d like to share some

Expanding the Provision of Obesity Care

Dr. Robert Kushner August 12, 2024 No Comments

As an obesity medicine physician, I have been on a mission to train health care professionals about providing obesity care in their practices. Most recently, I spoke at the American Society for Preventive Cardiology Congress where the room was packed with colleagues wanting to learn about new obesity care treatments. The timing was perfect as

Take a More Active Role in Your Weight Management Care

Dr. Robert Kushner June 24, 2024 No Comments

As a weight management expert, I’ve been encouraging my patients to take a more active role in their care for years. If this is something you’re interested in doing, engaging in shared decision making with your health care professional can be helpful. Shared decision-making is a process whereby health care professionals and patients come to