This morning I was approached by BBC Radio Scotland to give my thought on raising obesity rates in Scotland. It was an incredible discussion, hosting university researchers, professors, obesity specialists and people with lived experience.

Listen here

When the latest Public Health Scotland figures came out showing that two in three adults in Scotland are now overweight or obese, the usual headlines followed: “We need more exercise.” “People should eat better.”

But as someone who works on the front line of nutrition, metabolism, and lifestyle medicine, I can tell you the truth runs far deeper.

Obesity isn’t a reflection of laziness or lack of discipline. It’s a reflection of modern life and a system that has made it almost impossible to stay balanced.

1. Our Food Environment Is Working Against Us

Around 60% of calories in the average Scottish diet now come from ultra-processed foods.
These products are designed to be addictive, high in salt, sugar, and fats, while low in fibre and nutrients.

They hijack the brain’s reward system, leaving us hungry again soon after eating.

Cooking from scratch takes time, energy, and money: three things many households are short on. When healthy food is more expensive and less convenient, choice becomes a privilege, not a personal failure.

2. Inequality Drives Waistlines

Scotland’s obesity crisis isn’t evenly spread. The highest rates are in the most deprived communities, where access to fresh produce, green spaces, and affordable movement options is limited.
“Food poverty” and “time poverty” often coexist, parents working two jobs rely on what’s quick and filling, not necessarily what’s nourishing.

If we want to tackle obesity, we must address inequality first. This is as much a social justice issue as it is a health one.

3. Stress, Sleep, and the Mental Load

In my consultancy, I see this daily: women juggling careers, families, finances, and menopause while running on empty.

Chronic stress raises cortisol, the hormone that increases appetite and fat storage, particularly around the middle.

Add poor sleep and constant screen exposure, and your hunger hormones (ghrelin and leptin) go completely off track.

You can’t “out-diet” a dysregulated nervous system. Healing starts with rest and stress management, not restriction.

4. Medication-Related Weight Gain

One area that’s rarely spoken about is weight gain as a side effect of medication.

Many common prescriptions: antidepressants, antipsychotics, steroids, beta-blockers, insulin and hormonal therapies can alter metabolism, increase appetite, or cause fluid retention.

People often blame themselves when the scale moves, unaware that their medication may be playing a role.

This creates guilt and confusion, sometimes even leading to people stopping essential treatment.

The solution isn’t to avoid medication, it’s to build nutritional and lifestyle support around it. With the right plan, we can often stabilise weight, support the liver and gut, and protect metabolic health while continuing treatment safely.

5. Sedentary Living and Digital Overload

The shift to home working and digital entertainment has quietly reduced our daily movement.

Many adults now spend over 9 hours a day sitting, while sleep averages less than 6 hours.
This combination suppresses metabolism, increases inflammation, and feeds fatigue: the perfect storm for gradual weight gain.

6. Diet Culture, Confusion, and Rebound Weight Gain

Decades of “quick fixes” and extreme diets have left people metabolically exhausted.
Yo-yo dieting lowers resting metabolic rate, damages gut health, and disrupts hormones.
Every time someone loses and regains weight, it becomes harder to lose again.

The answer lies not in punishment, but in balance, rebuilding trust with food and body.

The B.A.D. Approach — Balanced. Authentic. Deserving.

My work is about helping people reconnect to their body’s signals, not punish them for biology.

You are human, responding exactly as evolution designed you to under chronic stress, poor sleep, and food scarcity.

To change the statistics, we need to move away from blame and towards empowerment:

• Balance: stabilise blood sugar, eat real food, rest deeply, move daily.
• Authenticity: listen to your body, not social media trends.
• Deserving: believe you’re worthy of good health, support, and time for yourself.

The Way Forward for Scotland

Solving obesity requires systemic change, not individual shame.

That means:

• Reformulating and regulating food marketing to children.
• Making fresh food affordable and accessible in every postcode.
• Integrating nutrition and lifestyle medicine into healthcare and prescriptions.
• Supporting mental health, sleep, and stress reduction as core public health priorities.

Obesity isn’t just about what’s on our plate, it’s about the pressure we live under, the food we’re surrounded by, and the support we’re missing.

References

• Public Health Scotland. (2024). Obesity Indicators.
• Monteiro, C. A. et al. (2023). Ultra-processed foods and human health: evidence from the NOVA classification. Nutrients, 15(1): 10.
• NHS Scotland. (2023). Prescribing Statistics.
• World Health Organization (2023). Obesity and Inequality in Europe.