According to the CDC, one in five American adults is living with obesity.

In the past few years, many have turned to weight loss drugs containing a hormone

that slows digestion and helps with sustained weight loss.

It's called Glucagon-like peptide 1, or GLP1.

Ali Rogan is back with her conversation with Dr. David Kessler, a former head of the FDA,

and himself a user of weight loss drugs.

In a new book, he advocates for their use but says they shouldn't be seen as a quick and easy fix.

Dr. Kessler, thank you so much for being here.

When you wrote this book, it was during a time when you yourself were experiencing challenges with your weight. What was happening in your life at that time?

I had had the privilege of co-leading Operation Warp Speed, an intense period for all of us, you know, through the pandemic.

And I found that I had gained 40 pounds over that period of time.

I was just, you know, in front of my computer, working seven days a week, looked in the mirror

and just didn't like myself and wanted to understand, you know, what was going on.

One of your conclusions, I would say, is that you think GLP-1s, other weight loss medications are a good tool for some people to have in their arsenal,

but that there need to be better guardrails

around it. What is missing from the equation currently? So understand these ultra-formulated foods,

I mean, they're addictive. The GLP-1 drugs, you know, can help tamp down that addiction.

But ultimately, you know, the important thing with this,

these GLP-1 drugs is they really allow you

to change your relationship with food.

We're living in this environment.

We took fat and sugar, fat and salt, fat sugar and salt, the perfect trifecta that keep us

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