David Allison

It's possible that the public health solution to obesity is becoming a Marxist.

I'm not sure we all want to volunteer, but I think some of these things are worth looking at.

we do see that there seem to be these long-term benefits in studies, as I said, I mentioned what I think of the two best, but they're not the only ones, where they weren't meant to be primarily nutrition, obesity studies.

I think there's at least two ways to look at that.

One way is the idea of interaction.

Right.

The same exposures may not have the same effects in one place or another.

For example, we consistently see that in less developed countries, poorer countries, less industrialized countries, greater wealth is associated with greater obesity.

We consistently see in more industrialized wealthy countries, greater wealth and education, especially among adult women, tends to be associated with lesser obesity.

You have the interaction.

The other is, as you and I had said earlier, the strength of the evidence.

One of the things people frequently say is when you say, well, we think temperature has this effect.

And they say, what about those people in Iceland?

They don't have.

Well, alcohol is this.

Yes, but those people over there, they drink a lot and they don't have.

They're different.

They're different in many ways.

We don't know that any one factor has to explain why Qatar has this versus Samoa or something.

But I think it's a good hypothesis.