Cocoa Pods

Dr Knight Timestamps (00:14) Complexity of obesity (05:05) Breastfeeding lowers obesity risks (09:05) Statistics of breastfeeding and obesity (10:35) Dr. Kight’s training (11:05) Surgical management of obesity (14:30) Our role in achieving health equity Dr. Knight joins Cocoa Pods for part three of this four-part series involving obesity, health equity, and more! Dr. Knight and Dr. Sogade discuss why obesity is a complex illness. Many of these complexities arise from barriers to health equity, such as the lack of safe exercise space, low financial resources, and lack of accessible healthy foods. Dr. Knight explains the concept of food deserts and food swamps. Food deserts involve the distance one has to travel to reach fresh and healthy food. A food swamp is when there is an overabundance of unhealthy food that is accessible and inexpensive. Can we tackle obesity early in life? For many, breast milk is the first type of nutrition that a child receives in life. It is proven that breastfeeding an infant can lower the risk of childhood obesity. It is recommended for mothers to exclusively breastfeed for the first six months, and then continue to breastfeed for the first year. Although breastfeeding has many benefits, including lowering the risk of obesity, many women do not have the opportunity to breastfeed. Dr. Knight explains these barriers and how we should be changing this system. Dr. Knight and Dr. Sogade also discuss bariatric surgery. Weight loss surgeries are intended for individuals with a bmi of 40 and above or individuals with a bmi of 35 with complications of obesity. The people who qualify for this surgery are generally older, come from racial and ethnic minorities, are economically disadvantaged, and have a lower education. Despite this, the people who receive the surgery do not fall into these categories. This is because of the many barriers associated with bariatric surgery. First, this procedure has to be recommended by a healthcare provider. Many patients are not educated on obesity and are simply told to eat less and exercise more. Second, there are many hoops one has to navigate through before qualifying for surgery. Many checkups and various types of counseling must be completed. For some, this is difficult due to lack of education or the time hassle. Before ending this episode, Dr. Knight gives advice to all listeners. His advice is that everyone has a role in achieving health equity! Listen to the complete episode to hear his explanation and learn more. #obesity #bariatricsurgery #weightloss #breastfeeding #obesityrisks #healthequity #gastricbypass #healthbarriers #healtheducation