Ultra-Processed People

“Dr. Chris Van Tulleken, you wrote a book titled 'Ultra-Processed People.' I know from firsthand experience that writing books is a painful journey that takes a long time.”

“I read this stat in your book: according to the World Obesity Federation, 51% of the world, or more than 4 billion people, will be obese or overweight within the next 12 years. I like to say they will live with obesity, rather than use 'obese' as an adjective, because I think the biggest problem for people who live with”

“You talk about doing exactly this in your book, where I'm trying to make an argument that will appeal to the political right, who are much more on the side of free market and low regulation. In fact, we can have regulations completely compatible with huge economic growth.”

“But this is why I argue, if an individual wants to read my book, I think they will come away with technical knowledge that they will be able to use, and I wish them well with that. The big argument of the book is around social justice; it is really appalling that even for people with a lot of means,”

“I’m sitting here, ready to live my life with my two kids; I don’t go to the gym for an hour a day, so I spend my calories, but they're spent on inflammation and anxiety and relatively high hormone levels. Is this what we call the fixed energy model? I read that term in your book.”

“I love that, and what I try to propose in the book is that you need to make that journey. Probably when you start reading the book, you’re in this unconscious stage; if you don’t think of yourself as a victim or anything, you’re just eating your food.”

“I just got to be blunt here: there’s an anxiety I had writing this book for the core audience of readers who can afford books, most of whom will be able to buy sourdough from a fancy bakery rather than, you know, the loaf of bread we just looked at. For the people who are most affected by the problem,”

“Part five of your book is what am I supposed to do about it, and I’ve kind of answered it. I want to make sure I’m really clear about my own life here—I can because I have the privilege of doing so to make better food choices.”

“A core message of the book is to stop nagging your loved ones about their food; their food is controlled by forces that are far bigger than you. They know what to eat; nagging people about their weight only stresses them out and makes it worse.”

“To spend time with you today, I prepared, I thought about it, I read your book, and I've been listening to the podcast for ages. As a result, we've had at least what feels to me like quite a meaningful engagement.”