When Marilou Paladin, 42, of Quezon City, began her weight-management journey, her biggest hurdle wasn’t portion control. It was the constant, intrusive thoughts about food.
“Even when I wasn’t hungry, I was thinking about what to eat next,” she said. “It was exhausting, like my mind never rested.”
Her experience mirrors what many Filipinos with obesity face daily: a challenge that is not just physical but profoundly mental and emotional. Health experts call this “food noise,” or those repetitive thoughts about eating that make it difficult to focus, manage emotions, and maintain control.
While advanced treatments that help quiet food noise are not yet widely available in the Philippines, new global research is giving hope to people living with obesity.
The INFORM survey, a large real-world study presented by Novo Nordisk at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) 2025 conference in Vienna, found that people who used a modern treatment for weight management experienced a 46 percent drop in constant thoughts about food. Participants also reported better overall mental well-being.
The study, conducted in the United States, showed many participants developed healthier habits and gained confidence during treatment.
Though the specific therapy is not yet locally available, Filipino health experts believe the findings are highly relevant, especially with obesity rates rising across the country.
“Many Filipinos living with obesity struggle not just with managing their weight, but with guilt, anxiety, and intrusive thoughts about food,” said Dr. Neslie Buena-Bobis, Clinical, Medical, Regulatory, and Pharmacovigilance Director of Novo Nordisk Philippines.
“The INFORM study is encouraging because it shows that new obesity treatments can help improve both physical and mental health — helping people regain control and quiet the constant food noise,” she added.
According to the 2023 National Nutrition Survey (NNS) from the Department of Science and Technology – Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI), the prevalence of obesity among Filipino adults remains high at nearly 4 in every 10 (39.8 percent). The rate is significantly higher among women (45.4 percent) and urban dwellers (44.5 percent).
Dr. Buena-Bobis underscored that obesity remains widely misunderstood and is often dismissed as a lack of willpower rather than what it truly is: a chronic disease influenced by biological, psychological, and environmental factors.
“There’s still stigma around obesity. We need to move the conversation from blame to science — and ensure that advanced, evidence-based treatments eventually become accessible to Filipinos,” she said.
The INFORM study highlights that obesity management goes beyond the scale. The research showed the number of people who thought about food “all day” dropped from 62 percent before treatment to just 16 percent after. Furthermore, 64 percent reported improved mental health, 80 percent developed healthier habits, and 83 percent were satisfied enough to continue treatment.
As global data continues to unfold, Novo Nordisk stated it remains committed to studying how these new weight-management treatments can help people gain better control over eating behavior, appetite, and mental health — offering hope to those who have long struggled against both the scales and stigma.
