In this issue:
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Fall 2026 Event Schedule
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Featured Research Article: “Cardiorespiratory Fitness, Body Mass Index and Mortality: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis”
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New Podcast Recommendation: Exposing Obesity Incorporated
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Upcoming AWSIM Events
Mark Your Calendars! GLP-1 Informed Consent Discussion and other Fall Events
We are excited to announce our event schedule for the Fall 2026 semester! Through these events, we hope to create opportunities for healthcare students and anyone interested in size-inclusive medicine to find community and learn more about weight-inclusive care. We hope to see you at one (or more) of our upcoming events!
GLP-1 Informed Consent Guide: A Discussion
October 1st, 2026 at 7:30 PM EST
Open to all! Join consent guide authors and MSSI advocacy co-chairs Jackie Liu and Karen Linares Quintos for a discussion of the updated resource and navigating medical school and clinical practice in the GLP-1 boom. You can find the updated resource on the MSSI website, or click here to download a PDF version!
MSSI Fall Advisory Meeting
October 19th, 2026 at 7:00 PM EST
Open to all MSSI advisors, healthcare students, and clinicians! We welcome you to join us for this advisory meeting where we will review ongoing projects and seek guidance and input from our community. We will also leave time for community building and connection.
Advocacy in Clinical Rotations and Residency Interviews
November 5th, 2026 at 8:00 PM EST
For healthcare students only! Join for a discussion of how to navigate conversations with those in positions of power who may not agree with our approach to size-inclusive care. This will also be a wonderful opportunity to get to know one another and build community!
Featured Research Article: “Cardiorespiratory fitness, body mass index and mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis”
Content warning: Medicalized fatphobia, ob*sity, anti-fat language
Many patients in larger bodies have had the experience of being told by their doctor, “Just start exercising!” without ever asking about their current level of physical activity. Under the assumption that body size can be easily and sustainably controlled by diet and exercise, physicians assume that patients in larger bodies must be physically inactive and unfit. And since lack of cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with increased mortality due to cardiovascular disease (Blair et al 1995), this is just another reason why people in larger bodies have increased risk of heart disease, right?
Wrong, according to a 2024 systematic review and meta-analysis published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. This study analyzed 20 articles published between 1980 and 2023 to assess the relationship between cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF, measured through VO2-max testing), body mass index (BMI) and cardiovascular disease (CVD).
The authors found that “those classified as fit, regardless of BMI status, showed no statistically significant increase in CVD or all-cause mortality risk compared with normal weight-fit individuals. In contrast, all BMI classifications who were unfit showed twofold to threefold increases in risk of CVD and all-cause mortality compared with normal weight-fit individuals.”
The study has several limitations that should be acknowledged:
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Only studies published in English were analyzed, potentially missing studies published in other languages.
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BMI was used as a proxy for adiposity despite its known limitations in accurately assessing body composition and its racist and sexist origins.
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CRF was measured as a dichotomous variable (“fit” or unfit”), but the relationship between CRF and decreased CVD mortality is not linear (Paluch et al 2022, Kokkinos et al 2022).
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The majority of participants in the studies analyzed used were white, lived in the US, and were of higher socioeconomic status, potentially limiting application of the data to more diverse groups.
Despite these limitations, the study provides important takeaways for physicians caring for patients of all sizes:
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Patients in larger bodies are not automatically at increased risk of CVD because of their size, especially if they are physically active.
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Patients of “normal weight” who are sedentary still experienced increased risk of CVD and should be screened and treated appropriately.
Finally, we want to recognize that some patients may not want to or be able to participate in regular exercise, and these patients still deserve respect and compassion from their physicians. In the words of MSSI advisor Ragen Chastain, “Health is not an obligation, barometer of worthiness, or entirely within our control.”
New Podcast Recommendation: Exposing Obesity Incorporated
We are excited to share a new podcast hosted by Ragen Chastain (researcher, writer, speaker, and MSSI advisor) and Louise Adams (president of Healthy at Every Size Australia)! In Exposing Obesity Incorporated, Chastain and Adams “expose the sordid underbelly of the weight loss industry,” exploring how pharmaceutical corporations and other lobbying organizations have influenced public health over the past several decades and how these forces continue to shape healthcare in the era of GLP-1s.
Listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!
Upcoming AWSIM Events!
September 11, 2026
Clinical Practice: Applying Weight-Inclusive Medicine in Patient Care
Mara Gordon, MD
Time: 10:00 AM PT / 1:00 PM ET
September 17, 2026
Shamed from a Place of Love: How the Fear of Fat Black Bodies Comes Home to the Black Family
Dr. Sabrina Strings
Time: 12:00 PM PT / 3:00 PM ET
Save the Date! AWSIM Fall Symposium 2026
Wednesday, November 18, 2026
10:00 AM–2:00 PM PT / 1:00–5:00 PM ET
More details coming soon!
This newsletter was authored by MSSI member Megan Coolahan (Tufts University School of Medicine).