How Big Pharma Made Up a Disease

Send us Fan Mail In 1995, the WHO published a report stating clearly: "There are no clearly established cutoff points for fat mass or fat percentage that can be translated into cut-offs for BMI." Just three short years later, they published a completely different report calling ob*sity a "disease". Not just a disease, but a "rapidly growing threat" and a "global epidemic" that needed managing. What changed? Professor Philip James established the International Ob*sity Task Force—funded by the pharmaceutical industry—specifically to persuade the WHO to create ob*sity policy. When asked how he determined BMI cut-offs of 25, 30, and 40, Professor James admitted it "just seemed to fit"—a "reasonable, pragmatic cut-off." In this episode, I prove that being fat doesn't meet the definition of a disease: there's no impaired function, no characteristic symptoms, no causative agent. But calling it a disease created a market worth billions for weight loss companies, drug manufacturers, and bariatric surgeons. You're not the one who benefits from being diagnosed with ob*sity—they are. Got a question for the next podcast? Let me know ! Connect With Me WEEKLY NEWSLETTER : Get a free script when you sign up THE WEIGHTING ROOM : Community with a neurodivergent flavour. **BOOK CLUB** exclusive to Weighting Room members. CONSULTATION : For the ultimate transformation in your healthcare journey MASTERCLASS LIBRARY : Become an expert in your condition and the weight inclusive ways to manage it FREE GUIDES :Evidence-based, not diet nonsense Find me on Instagram , YouTube , and LinkedIn .

You can listen to How Big Pharma Made Up a Disease online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

How Big Pharma Made Up a Disease is an episode from The Fat Doctor Podcast by Dr Asher Larmie.

This episode is 27:59 long.

This episode was published on Jan 28, 2026.

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