[thefz]

> why instead of attempting to medicate our way out of the problem we don't try to attack the actual cause

Have you noticed that every time this discussion comes up in this forum, simple personal intervention is glossed over as a solution? Causes for obesity, for HN users, are:

- The Environment - The Lack of Walkable Cities - The Policymakers™ - Too Many Cars - The Government Lobbied By Food Corps et cetera.

While none of the above has directly put calories into a person's mouth, and the only responsibility is on the mouth owner, we sometimes forget that the simple solution to the obesity crisis is: caloric restriction. This solution however has a major drawback: it requires being slightly uncomfortable for a tiny amount of time, which is unacceptable to most. So, enter the Magic Pill: No effort is required whatsoever, and we can keep on blaming external factors for what enters our mouth.

[belZaah]

Oh were it that easy. While, absolutely, you could not gain weight with a calorie deficit, a targeted calorie deficit alone is not a direct path to loosing weight. If what you eat goes straight to fat (sugar, highly processed foods etc), you’ll still be lacking immediately available sugars to fuel your day. Cue your body slowing down the metabolism while resisting using the fat reserves. What you say is true (and, per personal experience, even the discomfort might not be there) only if the food eaten is of high quality and varied.

[bradlys]

Please don’t speak pseudoscience.

Your body doesn’t violate the laws of thermodynamics. Your argumentation is saying if you stop eating you wont lose weight - which is blatantly false.

No one dies of starvation being fat. It’s that simple. You wanna lose weight? Stop eating and drink water. You’ll lose the weight regardless of what nonsense you believe.