In the age of the internet and easily accessible weight-loss meds, we still struggle with obesity in the US. Early estimates show that 37% of the country is obese as of December 2025. So with our abundance of videos, free articles, and recipes, why is obesity still worse than anywhere in the world?
A Shift In Mindset
I have some insight into this epidemic, as I have lost 50+ pounds twice in my life. There are essentially 3 reasons that make obesity so prevalent in America. First, we are one the few first world countries that can be considered a “food desert.” In other words, fresh and healthy food is less available compared to poor nutritional food (i.e. fried foods, desserts, foods loaded with preservatives).
Second, the average American citizen doesn’t have time to cook. We live much more busy and stressful lives than our parents and grandparents did. Many of us work long hours and multiple jobs to fund our lifestyles, leaving us little time to make nutritional meals. Instead we rely on fast food and highly processed foods to sustain us.
Finally, social media rewards and promotes unhealthy lifestyles. We’re told how to get skinny quickly, then the algorithm shows you the most absurdly unhealthy food you’ve seen before finally sending you an ad for online weight-loss medications. The systems are designed in a way to promote maximum consumerism.
If you want to lose weight in 2026 and beyond, you need to realize 2 truths:
- Food is fuel – it’s easy to develop an unhealthy relationship. Some people see it as a pleasure or stress reliever, while others see it as something to fear. All these people have an unrealistic view on how humans use food. In reality, food is nothing more than fuel for our lives. Eating food gives us energy to do the things we love and help our body carry out functions necessary for life. You wouldn’t want to put bad fuel in your car constantly or it will cause the engine to run inefficiently; we need to view our bodies the same way. Eat healthy to fuel our workouts, reduce inflammation, and keep our organs working properly.
- Weight loss is a numbers game – dieting culture of the past decades have distorted the truth on how our body actually loses weight. We’ve been told eating fatty foods tricks our body into burning fat, apple cider vinegar melts fat, and eating wet cotton balls can make you feel full (at the very high risk of developing a bowel blockage). The truth is simple: you lose weight when you burn more calories than you eat. So, our goal should be to eat a few calories as is healthy, and burn calories through exercise.
I’m Here to Help
Like I mentioned earlier, I’ve been there, so I’m planning to help share how I’ve lost over 100+ pounds. The core of my philosophy has always been to not compromise on flavors, but instead just make them healthier with the ingredients. I love cooking, and am comfortable spending hours in the kitchen trying as many recipe alterations as I can to make a final product that is the lowest possible calorie version that still tastes great.
I believe this all starts with using quality ingredients that give recipes the same flavor profile, texture and consistency. I call this the Subtle Swap Method.
My Favorite Swaps
I’ve included a few of my core swaps below so that you can start experimenting:
- Greek Yogurt for Sour Cream/Mayo: saves calories and get more protein
- Half and Half or Cottage Cheese for Heavy Cream: saves calories and fats
- Olive Oil for Butter: reduces calories and saturated fats
- Apple Sauce for Butter: reduces calories, fats and increases fiber in baked goods
- Whole Wheat or Chickpea Pasta for White Pasta: increased fiber
- Whole Wheat or Ezekiel Bread for White Bread: less sugar and more fiber
- Honey, Maple Syrup, or Mashed Fruit for Sugar: reduced sugar content, calories and increased fiber
I plan to share some real example recipes of how I’ve used switches in examples in my diet. I believe you can still occasionally indulge in inherently unhealthy recipes as long as you don’t binge (ie control portions and watch total calories), so I’ll still be posting non-swapped recipes. Stay tuned and I’ll tag these recipes with [Subtle Swap] so you can identify them from other recipes I share.
Faith, Food and Pharmacy 