Episode Catalog

What happens when obesity assessment stops at BMI? In this episode of Scale Up Your Practice, we speak with Dr. Kristin Terenzi, family physician based in Ontario, about what it really means to assess obesity well in primary care. Drawing on both clinical experience and lived experience, Dr. Terenzi discusses how the 4Ms framework can help clinicians move beyond weight alone to better understand the mental, mechanical, metabolic, and social factors affecting a person’s health.

What happens in the first few moments of a conversation about weight with a patient can shape everything that follows. Dr. Shahebina Walji joins us for a thoughtful conversation about how to start discussions about weight in a way that feels respectful, collaborative, and actually helpful. If you’ve ever wondered how to approach this topic with patients more thoughtfully in practice, this conversation offers practical guidance you can use right away.

What does ethical obesity care look like when the system itself can make good care harder to deliver? In this episode, we speak with Dr. Jerry Maniate about trust, language, weight bias, and the kind of reflective practice that helps healthcare professionals move beyond transactional and into relational care. 

What changes when obesity care stops being about willpower and starts with biology? In this episode, Dr. Roshan Abraham speaks with Dr. Sean Wharton about how pharmacotherapy is reshaping obesity care, why “food noise” matters, and how clinicians can support patients with more empathy, less stigma, and a better understanding of obesity as a chronic disease.

Why is obesity still treated differently from other chronic diseases? Dr. Arya Sharma, founder of Obesity Canada, joins Dr. Roshan Abraham to explore the biology of obesity, the limits of lifestyle advice alone, and the role of compassion, evidence, and better clinical tools in improving care. From set point biology to the Edmonton Obesity Staging System, this conversation offers practical insight for healthcare professionals who want their care to better reflect the science.

What does it take to move obesity care forward in Canada? In the season two opener of Scale Up Your Practice, Executive Director Lisa Schaffer and Scientific Director Dr. Sanjeev Sockalingam return to the podcast to unpack Obesity Canada’s 2026-2029 Strategic Plan. They explore what shifting systems, advancing care, and reshaping narratives can look like in practice, and how those changes can create more respectful, evidence-based experiences for people living with obesity.

When conversations about obesity focus only on food, movement, or medications, something essential gets missed. Mental health is not an add-on in obesity care. It’s foundational. We’re joined by Dr. Sanjeev Sockalingam, psychiatrist, researcher, Scientific Director of Obesity Canada, and co-author of the mental health chapter of the Canadian Adult Obesity Clinical Practice Guidelines. We discuss how mental health intersects with obesity across the lifespan, and why addressing depression, anxiety, trauma, disordered eating, sleep, and weight bias is essential to providing compassionate, evidence-based care. Dr. Sockalingam shares practical insights clinicians can apply in everyday practice to strengthen patient relationships, reduce stigma, and support long-term health.

Metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) affects an estimated 38% of adults in North America — yet many patients have never heard the term before receiving a diagnosis. Confusion, stigma, outdated language, and misconceptions often contribute to delayed recognition and missed opportunities for early intervention.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common—and most misunderstood—conditions in women’s health. It affects an estimated 6–13% of women globally, yet up to 70% remain undiagnosed. PCOS isn’t just a reproductive issue. At its core is metabolic dysfunction: insulin resistance, adipose tissue inflammation, and hormonal disruption—all of which intersect closely with obesity. These biological drivers influence ovulation, fertility, mental health, metabolic health, and long-term risks like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, sleep apnea, and MASLD.  In this episode of Scale Up Your Practice, we’re joined by Dr. Emilia Huvinen, Finnish gynaecologist, researcher, and associate professor at the University of Helsinki, whose work focuses on the intersection of obesity and women’s health.

Multidisciplinary care can transform obesity management for patients — but what does it actually look like in practice? We sit down with Dr. Rishi Handa, internal medicine specialist, and pharmacist Khalid Bhatti, co-founders of Durham Care Clinic + Pharmacy in Oshawa, Ontario, a collaborative care model bringing physicians, pharmacists, and allied health professionals together to support patients living with obesity and related chronic diseases.

Dr. Harman Chaudhry discusses new Canadian Orthopaedic Association recommendations on knee and hip replacements, tackling BMI cut-offs, bias, & equitable access to surgery.

Access to obesity treatment in Canada can feel like a maze—for both patients and healthcare professionals. In this episode of Scale Up Your Practice, we sit down with Dr. Ian Patton, Obesity Canada’s Director of Advocacy and Public Engagement, to explore what fair and timely access to care really looks like. 

Behaviour change in obesity and chronic disease care is complex, relational, and happens far beyond the clinic visit—so our conversations with patients need to reflect that reality. We sit down with health psychologists Dr. Michael Vallis and Dr. Tiffany Shepherd to rethink how we teach behavioural change counselling skills.

In this episode of Scale Up Your Practice, we sit down with Dr. Stasia Hadjiyannakis, pediatric endocrinologist, clinician, researcher, and advocate, to explore what compassionate, evidence-based support for children, youth, and their families can look like.

Nutrition in obesity management is complex, deeply personal, and shaped by biology, culture, mental health, access, and lived experience. In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Flavio Vieira, Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Alberta, to explore what personalized, evidence-informed nutrition can really look like in practice.

Discover what’s new in Obesity Canada’s 2025 pharmacotherapy for obesity management guideline update with lead author, Dr. Sue Pedersen.

What happens when assumptions shape pregnancy care? Dr. Taniya Nagpal joins us to unpack how weight bias affects pregnant people living with obesity—and what clinicians can do to help create safer, more respectful care.

Psychiatrist and sleep medicine specialist Dr. Michael Mak returns to explore how sleep health fits into the patient journey of obesity care. For many people living with obesity, sleep challenges are part of the story—but they’re often left out of the care conversation. In this episode, we take a practical look at how poor sleep contributes to obesity, how obesity impacts sleep, and what clinicians can do to better support patients at every step.

Psychiatrist and sleep medicine specialist Dr. Michael Mak joins us to explore one of the most overlooked intersections: sleep, mental health, and metabolic health.

National obesity researcher Dr. Angela Alberga returns for a deep dive into one of the most pervasive and harmful forces in society: weight bias and stigma. From subtle stereotypes to systemic barriers, weight bias shows up in ways we often don’t even see—especially in schools, sports, and healthcare.

Dr. Angela Alberga joins us to explore weight bias, its impact on kids, and how clinicians can lead with equity and empathy.

Dive into the kind of discomfort that sparks real change—in ourselves, in our conversations, and in how we support people living with obesity. Registered Dietitian and Certified Bariatric Educator Jennifer Brown shares how her experiences—both personal and professional—have shaped the way she supports people living with obesity.

Dr. Sue Pedersen shares her journey, key lessons from 20+ years in obesity care, and why early, stigma-free, long-term treatment is crucial for better outcomes.

In this episode, we dive into Canada’s new pediatric obesity clinical practice guideline with authors Dr. Geoff Ball and Dr. Catherine Birken. Learn what’s changed, why it matters, and how a more compassionate, evidence-based approach is reshaping care for children and families.