If you live in a major urban area, chances are you’ve seen one of those huge ads for Ozempic, a semaglutide drug originally intended to help diabetics. It has been recently touted and advertised for its side effect: weight loss. If you live south of our border, you’ve heard the jingle and have probably had a certain 1974 song stuck in your head at least once (“oh, oh, oh, it’s magic”). Well, beyond needing a warning for the too-catchy ad, some scholars are warning about the dangers of the promise of “a fat-free future.”

Today, in The Conversation Canada, critical disability studies scholar Fady Shanouda and gender studies scholar Michael Orsini explain why we need to be on high alert when it comes to using semaglutide for weight loss. The messaging around Ozempic being a miracle cure is unsustainable and has kicked up a new level of fat phobia, they argue.

It’s a fascinating read and I highly encourage you to get into it. You can also catch Shanouda on the summer Don’t Call Me Resilient episode on how the widespread use of semaglutide drugs may change how we view fatness.

Also today:

• Gender inequality will still be an issue at the Paris 2024 Olympics — despite the Games being gender-balanced
• A new approach to environmental, social and governance policies is needed before it’s too late

All the best,