Physician. Historian.
I’ve spent three posts detailing the internal and external causes of obesity: appetite, metabolism, and our environment. The next question is: why do we care? Why should we concern ourselves about treating obesity? Not just vanity Beauty and weight have a complicated social position. Over the centuries, the ideal shape, size, and fatness of “beauty”…
In my previous two posts, I discussed appetite and metabolism. This post will focus on the many ways the typical American environment is weight-promoting. Changes in our daily lives, occupations, neighborhood walkability, and food supply all contribute to the increasing rate of obesity. Our food supply We have long suspected that there is something amiss…
In my last post, I discussed the complexity of appetite. This post will cover another important topic: metabolism. Metabolism is a very complicated topic by itself. The Krebs Cycle has terrorized biology and medical students for decades. Metabolism is a dance of hormones, receptors, signals, and activity. Thankfully, I’m not going to subject you to…
The outgoing Biden administration recently proposed a new rule to expand Medicare and Medicaid coverage. This rule, published on November 26, 2024, would finally allow for Medicare and Medicaid to treat obesity using anti-obesity medications. As of the time I am writing this, only 13 state Medicaid programs cover the cost of medications used to…
West Virginia has a wealth of ghost stories. The Telltale Lilac Bush is a well-known collection of them. West Virginia schoolchildren read it yearly as they learn about West Virginia history and culture. However, my absolute favorite ghost story growing up was one from my family. My Grandpa Jim told it to my dad who…
“Lord willin’ and the creek don’t rise” was something I heard a lot growing up. It’s one of my favorite Appalachian sayings. It acknowledges that we can hope for the best but that even our best plans may be washed away. It embodies that particular Appalachian mindset that accepts the way things are, is deeply…
What is Polio? The oldest documentation of polio dates back to the time of the ancient Egyptians. Carvings and paintings from that time period show adults and children walking with canes and visibly deformed legs. However, it wasn’t until the 19th century, as medicine was embracing scientific principles of diagnosis and description, that a standardized…
This year has been an exhausting year for all of us, and we have all faced our own struggles in our own lives. In healthcare, we have been forced to deal with the emergence of the COVID pandemic, with all of its attendant suffering. Healthcare workers are constantly adapting to new information, worried about being…
It was early in the morning on November 20, 1968 when an explosion rocked the small town of Farmington, West Virginia. It was powerful enough to be felt miles away, in the larger city of Fairmont. Miners and their families lived in fear of the sound of an explosion and the blaring of the alarm…
Appalachia’s Role in National Politics In 2016, Donald Trump won 95% of all Appalachian Counties. I don’t think anyone who actually lived in Appalachia at the time was terribly surprised. It apparently shocked the rest of the country. As it attempted to explain this, popular media soon turned its eyes to the region. As NPR…