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LifestyleTranscript
00:00I am so excited, so excited to be here with you guys today. Happy first day of Essence Festival.
00:14I'm so excited. This is not just a regular morning, guys. It is day one of the largest
00:20celebration of black culture in the world. So you know what? We're not going to keep
00:25it cute this morning, all right? You know what? I want everybody to get to their feet
00:28right now. Come on. We're not going to keep it cute. We are going to make some noise
00:32in here. Turn to your neighbor. Say, neighbor, we at Essence Fest. Neighbor, we at Essence
00:41Fest. Now, again, make some noise. All right, y'all. My name is, oh, you guys can have a
00:48seat. My name is Jessie Woon. It's an honor to welcome you guys to the Essence stage.
00:54I don't know about you guys, but I feel good. I feel good to be surrounded by so much
01:01melanin, so much blackness, so much black excellence, so much chocolate. I just love it.
01:08Listen, we are at the epicenter of black joy, celebration, self-love, y'all. Whether you're
01:15here in person or you're tuning in with us on Essence.com or EssenceFestival.com, we have
01:21such an incredible lineup for you guys today, and all weekend. So, without further ado, are
01:27y'all ready to get this day started? Let's go. All right, so, okay. So, whether you're
01:33on Team Get Snatched or Team Take Me As I Am, this first panel discussion is for you. We're
01:41going to explore the rise and the risk of weight loss trends that have so many of us in a choke
01:47hold. Now, I'm of the belief that the summer is going to get the body, I'm going to give
01:53it. Am I alone in my belief? Okay, I know that's right. The summer is going to get the
01:58body, I'm going to give it. All right? So, please welcome to the stage Essence Senior Lifestyle
02:04Editor, Victoria Owumarogi, Board Certified Physician, Dr. Courtney Arianne Washington, and
02:12international doctor and public health educator, Dr. Eric Griggs. Make some noise. Hello, hello,
02:23hello. Thank you. How's everybody doing out there? Well, good morning, Essence family. As you
02:33heard, my name is Victoria Owumarogi, and I am the Senior Lifestyle Editor for Essence Magazine,
02:39and I'm so excited and honored to be here to dive into this much-needed conversation about
02:44the new era of diet and weight loss with Dr. Courtney Washington and Dr. Eric Griggs.
02:49Everybody give it up for them real fast. All right, so let's get started. Dr. Washington,
02:56let's start with you. So, we're here to talk about the importance of protecting our bodies
03:00as black women. As a primary care physician here in New Orleans, I'm sure you see firsthand
03:05some of the issues our community faces when it comes to obesity and the resulting complications.
03:10Can you talk a bit about your experience with this and why you think it impacts our community
03:14even more than others? Yes. So, being from New Orleans, I see three groups of women that struggle
03:21with their weight. Either they've had a problem with their weight when they were younger and their
03:26relationship with food, maybe it was for comfort. The second group is those who gain weight from a
03:31stressful life event or pregnancy and then also as we age. So, when it comes to that, it's not as
03:36deeper than just the outward appearance. It's how it makes you feel and also the comorbid conditions
03:43that come along with that, like the risk for diabetes or development of that or hypertension. And so,
03:48not only is it just like a physical issue, it's a medical issue as well. So, a lot of people are
03:56hesitant to talk about it. They're scared of medications and they go and use Dr. Google,
04:01but the impact is so great because this is your life. This is your livelihood. It affects pregnancy,
04:07leading to preeclampsia and different things like that. So, I just try to make women feel welcome,
04:13explain the science, the need for medication and healthy lifestyle changes and make them understand it
04:20more than just saying, oh, just try this drug. No, we're going to explain it. We're going to talk about
04:24it so you know your health conditions and how to get better. Nice. Dr. Griggs, you're both here
04:29locally in New Orleans and around the country. You've become known for your motto, get checked,
04:34get fit, get moving. All right. Can you take a moment to break down why it's so important for
04:39our communities to do all three of these things? Yeah. So, the important thing, first of all,
04:44thank you. This is amazing. You know, it's important when I say get checked. It's more than just going
04:50to the doctor. It's climbing our family trees. We do the same thing every year. Every time it happens,
04:56there's a funeral. We say, hey, you know, we're going to get together and we're going to talk and
04:59it never happens. We don't talk about health enough in our family. So, get checked. It's climbing your
05:05family tree and there'll be amazing things that you'll find. This time last year, I found my father.
05:10Holy smokes. Yeah. And as we started talking about health histories, I know that I need to be checked
05:16for certain things now because they're genetic. Going to the doctor once a year is something that
05:21we don't think about. Now, we'll plan a trip like this. Amen. But we won't plan that doctor visit.
05:28My advice before you go plan your trips, plan your doctor visit, your annual wellness visit. If you're
05:33a sports fanatic, plan your team. When your team is getting ready for the season, you'll go get checked
05:38up for the season because if you like the science, they'll give you heart trouble. The other thing,
05:42the other thing is having conversations about food. So, I'm really, really privileged and honored
05:49to be on this panel. We've vilified food. We've vilified our bodies and we're just, we're too
05:54beautiful of a people to be even doing any of it. We make amazing foods. We make amazing,
05:59beautiful people. So, understanding what to eat, how to eat, and what works best for your body.
06:04And then get with your family and eat together. And the last part is get moving. Get checked,
06:08get fit, get moving. That's something that we do really well. Just find something you like
06:11to do and do it. I have no rhythm. I can't dance, but you can't tell me that I can't
06:16dance. I'm moving. Mind your business. Mind your business. So, these are important
06:19conversations to have. Nice. I love that. So, there are weight loss companies that we've
06:24all grown up, you know, knowing and being familiar with, like the Jenny Craig's and Weight Watchers,
06:28and they're suffering significant losses because people are just not making use of weight loss
06:33programs like they used to anymore. So, now they're looking for quicker fixes like the weight loss
06:38prescription drugs. Can you both explain to us some of the risks that are associated with using
06:43these drugs, some of their benefits, and as popular as these drugs are, what would you say that people
06:48need to know about them before considering use? Let's start with you, Dr. Washington.
06:52So, I use semiglutide or Ozempic in my practice as well as Monjaro. They are great drugs. They work very,
06:58very well, but it's important to always work up secondary causes of obesity. So, being a physician
07:05allows me to really do like Dr. Griggs mentioned, do that work up, get that family history, and talk
07:11about why you are obese. The quick fix doesn't mean that it's going to be a long-term fix. So,
07:17I believe that the reason that Jenny Craig is suffering financial losses is because patients
07:21are now seeing that you can go and see your doctor, get a thorough work up, and especially in my practice,
07:27we talk about lifestyle changes, how to read a nutrition label. You think you're eating something
07:31organic, right? But you don't understand how to read that nutrition label, and that is processed,
07:36pushing more fresh foods and things like that. And it's not going to be always just a quick fix,
07:43right? Because we don't want to gain the weight back. The medication is going to make you lose
07:46weight regardless, but you can't sustain it if you're not eating well. So, that's usually my big
07:52practice. But the side effects of the medication, if you're not getting it from a licensed physician,
07:57from a certified compounding pharmacy, and if you're getting it from out of the country,
08:03you don't know what's in that drug. So, I work in the ER as well, and what I see is people go over
08:09to Mexico, and they'll come in with big bruises. Their liver enzymes are elevated, and I cannot tell
08:16you what was in that drug. So, that's a huge side effect that I see from the drugs that are used off
08:20label, or you're taking the wrong dose. I've experienced people that have taken their other
08:26family members, Ozympic, at the highest dose. You're going to cause liver failure. The positives
08:32about the drug, if you're going to an actual physician, and they're working you up, is that
08:38nutritional counseling is going to take away the hunger sensation in your brain. It's going to help
08:42your body use and process the foods that you eat more efficiently, and target your body to use
08:48more of the fat cells for energy, so you're able to lose weight. But I cannot stress big enough,
08:55these internet, oh, get Ozympic for 200 bucks. Guys, even the compounded medication is more than 200
09:01bucks. Do not budget shop on your body. This is your body. You only get one. Amen. Dr. Griggs,
09:08what would you say? Yeah, so the only thing, the big thing that I'll add to that is the good thing
09:13about these drugs is the conversation that has taken place that obesity is a disease. It's a chronic
09:19disease. It's just like any other condition. There are medications that can help. Now, that moves into
09:26the mental, because we've vilified ourselves. It took me a long 53 years to get this beautiful and fine,
09:34so it's going to take me at least five to ten years to get it to where it needs to be again, right?
09:40There's no such thing as a quick fix, but what you can change quickly is your body image. There's no
09:46pill. There's no shot. There's no magic. One, you can wave to all of a sudden look like you think it's
09:51going to take work. So all of these drugs, and I do emphasize they're drugs. The reason that you're
09:57paying more is because you get a whole doctor with it, and a whole workup that you should get,
10:01because everything that you take affects every part of your body, and it's irresponsible to get these
10:08without healthcare supervision, because this might not be the one for you, and it might not be the
10:13dose for you, but the important thing is to look in the mirror and understand these things are only
10:18going to help me be as beautiful as I know that I am. I can change my diet. I can exercise. I can
10:24laugh with friends, and setting long-term goals. I'm going to lose your body safely. You can lose about
10:301 to 1.8 pounds a week safely without your body. If you've ever been on a diet before, and it failed,
10:36it ended up bigger than you were, more fine than you were before, it's because your body wasn't
10:41keeping up with what you were trying to do with it. Working with your body, being patient, giving
10:45yourself grace, and knowing that you're beautiful every day will help you, along with the doctor,
10:49use these drugs properly. I love that. I love that. And Dr. Washington, in your opinion, what's the
10:54first course of action that someone should take if they know they have a significant amount of weight
10:58to lose, and they don't want to go to the weight loss drug route? How do they start the path to get
11:03healthier, or possibly to save their own life? Starts with finding a good primary care physician.
11:09You need to cover your basics, your annual exam. If you go and you buy a Range Rover, right? You're
11:16going to go get the Range Rover's oil check when that light comes on, and you're going to spend the
11:20amount of money and take it to the dealer. Your annual exam is very important. Family history,
11:25as Dr. Greg says, it's important because I'm going to be screening you for certain things,
11:29maybe younger, and find that out. So that's where you need to start first, because I'm going to work
11:34up secondary causes of obesity or whatever's going on. So that's where you start. Second is going over,
11:41like he said, other things, your self-image. Depression can also lead to weight gain. If you're
11:48depressed, some people go get that big jar of Blue Bell ice cream, and they just gouge on it.
11:53I feel very seen right now. I feel attacked. No judgment. But it's true. It's true. And they do
12:04that. So sometimes you don't need an ozempic. What you need is a diagnosis of depression. And
12:09every time I say depression, like, oh, no, no, like, as black people, we need to talk about it. It is
12:14okay. Statistics show a good 80% of people will be clinically depressed at least one time in their
12:19life. There are medications that are safe, that can treat that depression. And now you're not
12:24overeating. So that's where we start. And also exercise, people, not just walking. If you walk,
12:30oh, I walk a lot from my job. No, that's not exercise. Exercise is saying, you know what,
12:35I'm making this time for myself. So you're giving yourself a mental break. You're preparing your body
12:40for that. And you are doing exercises that are going to be good for your cardiovascular health,
12:44and your overall well-being. It's for your brain and your body. So that's where you that's where
12:50you start before we even talk about weight loss drugs, per se. I love that you got to take care
12:54of the mind first. And don't go don't go ham on the bluebell, y'all share it. Sharing is caring.
13:01Sharing is caring. We're not talking about just you, Dr. Greggs. Look, if I see you in the whole
13:05food sheet, we know you eating the bluebell. I feel so attacked. I'm going to be your
13:09accountability partner. Put that down. But no, Dr. Greggs, you created your foundation,
13:14the Dr. Greggs Foundation, around the idea of promoting community health and wellness.
13:18So what are some of the initiatives that you've taken on to build awareness among our community
13:22about the importance of safe weight loss? Wow. So it's conversations going from church to church,
13:27to school, to school, to anyone that will listen, letting them know, first of all, that food is your
13:32friend. There's no such thing as bad food. They're just bad portions. And I educate. We've done bike
13:37rides. We've done the Bayou Classic events, the numerous walks. We've done the, what do you call it,
13:42the scavenger hunts all over the city. Trying to make it fun. If you trick people into being healthy,
13:47you make a lot of friends. But you gotta, you gotta trick them. Like even over today, I have hula hoops
13:52and I challenge anyone to a hula hoop contest. Did you know that you burn seven calories per minute
13:57that you hula hoop? Seven calories per minute. So in 10 minutes, 10 minutes, you'll burn about a bag
14:03of chips, 70 calories. So understanding, getting people to understand that you can't outwork or
14:09exercise a bad diet. You can take all the Ozempic. You can take the Wagovi. You can take any of these
14:14quote unquote miracle things. If you're eating a bad diet, you're not going to lose weight.
14:18It begins with food, nutrient rich, calorie poor foods. And my example is, has anyone ever ate a
14:25whole head of cabbage? A whole pot? No, no, no. I'll bust. It's not going to make for a good day or good
14:31night if you do. I wouldn't advise it. But that's a whole lot of food. So nutrient rich,
14:35calorie poor foods. I won't say calorie poor, but calorie less dense foods and coloring up your
14:40plate. Showing those examples, starting with the babies and taking it all the way up because kids
14:45will change a household. Yeah, very true, very true. And lastly, we know that much of the issues
14:51around obesity that we deal with in our community, it comes from generations before us that just didn't
14:56know any better and pass those issues down in regards to diet and how we eat. So for the men and
15:00women in the audience raising children of their own, how can we begin to make the changes that
15:05are necessary to turn this health crisis around and positively impact our children and generations
15:10after them? Well, I'll let Dr. Washington go first. So that is a great question because always when I
15:17talk about a weight loss program for the mom, I always ask, okay, is husband on board? Right? Because
15:23you need an accountability partner. It makes no sense for you to start the diet, but you still got the
15:28chips and the candy and the sodas and no fresh produce in your house. Okay? And when they're
15:34like, oh, my kids, they like this food. No, no, no. You buy the food and you program what
15:39they do like. If they see you doing it, they're going to want to do it. So it has to be a family
15:44effort. Childhood obesity and these problems, there are studies that show that when kids,
15:50they asked, when does cardiovascular disease start? Right? So they all looked at the pediatric
15:56patients and they saw that with poor diets, they started to develop coronary artery plaques
16:01by age five years old. So even though they may not be obese today, you're setting them up for heart
16:07disease later. So feeding them all of the processed frozen foods, all of those things are going to
16:12individually land them up in a poor health spot. So I try to encourage, because I'm a mom, I have twins,
16:17I work, I do a lot of things. My slow cooker is my friend. You press the button, you got red beans.
16:23You know, you come home, ooh, somebody been cooking all day. Right? So those things are relatively
16:28inexpensive. So making time for yourself, again, we're busy, but you have to make time for your body.
16:34You only get one. And especially for your kids and your whole household. I have seen whole families
16:39change and look completely different and feel completely different, especially when we talk about
16:44little black girls. Right? As they grow older, they notice and they pick on them when they're
16:48overweight. Right? Imagine how they feel when they're able to eat healthier. They're able to
16:52participate in physical education longer than mental and building up the self-esteem. So it's
16:58really, really a big issue, but it's a family effort. Dr. Graves? So high functioning societies are
17:04child centered, adult governed, and elderly ruled. Now, if you take that society to a family model,
17:09the family that cooks together and plays together lives a real long time. Cooking together, cooking,
17:17teaching your kids healthy habits, challenging your kids, pizza night, who can make the, and sometimes
17:23you'll get jelly beans and licorice and crazy stuff on the pizza, but you got to, if you make it,
17:27you got to eat it. But challenging and making it fun, letting everyone look for healthy recipes to cook
17:33and having a taste contest with a prize at the end. I keep bringing up hula hoops. If you want to
17:38incorporate your grandparents, you would be surprised. I challenge anyone in here to talk
17:43to their mom, challenge their mom or grandmother to a hula hoop contest. Kids don't hula hoop. We
17:48didn't hula hoop, but they did. I'm telling you, they started wrapping around their arm and jumping the
17:53whole nine. But it's all about the smiles and the fun and the talking and the feeling included. You get
17:59it at both ends of the spectrum. Your seniors, as elders, they govern the family, they feel included.
18:04The kids, they love it because they get to play with mom and grandmother. Prime example is my
18:09grandmother started us mall walking when I was 11 years old. And all the way through med school,
18:14it ended up being my mom, my grandmother, my grandfather, my uncle, my aunt, my sister,
18:18my three cousins, whatever dude they were dating at the time. We started mall walking. And ironically,
18:23we have, we come from five generations of diabetics. None of us are diabetic.
18:26Amen. Amen. And she changed our food to, she had us eating off sauces instead of a plate. And
18:31my grandfather wasn't having it. He was upset. Like, yeah, he still wanted a big piece of chicken
18:35and a big plate. But it's working and it's working, doing those things, just loving on each other
18:40and keep making it fun, starting in the kitchen and going outside and playing. You'd be surprised.
18:46Just don't let your mom be the banker. Because mom, mom, yeah. Yeah.
18:52For my friends, they only like vegetables when I started having them cook with me. Well,
18:56now he's like, oh, these green beans are the best I ever tasted. Yeah, they are.
18:59Oh, yeah. All right.
19:00Because they cooked it.
19:00Exactly.
19:01Ain't that something.
19:02I love that. I love that. So you guys hear that you got to cook with your kids to help them to learn some
19:07of these healthy habits. We got to work on our mental health so that we can have better habits when we eat. So
19:12we're not indulging and doing the most with our Blue Bell ice cream, even though we love Blue Bell. We love Blue Bell.
19:17Hey, come on now.
19:17You don't have to bring it back to that. And you got to just, you know, go and see your doctor. Make sure you're making these
19:23appointments. They made some really great points. And I hope that you guys gathered a lot from that. So let's clap it up for
19:28Dr. Courtney Washington and Dr. Eric Griggs helping us kick off Essence Fest, right?
19:34Thank you both so much for joining us today and dropping knowledge. It was an honor to have you. So thank you.
19:40And thank you guys for sitting and being here for the first panel. We've got more coming. So thank you so much.
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