New research from Gelesis highlights ongoing stigmatization of people with obesity and diabetes
BOSTON, JUNE 5, 2022 – Gelesis (NYSE: GLS), the maker of Plenity for weight management, presented new findings about the role of language in obesity and diabetes scientific literature at the American Diabetes Association’s annual conference. The study sought to understand the extent to which person-first language, or language that identifies people as people as individuals first before their diagnosis, is used in scientific articles. Person-first language (e.g. referring to a person with diabetes as such, instead of “a diabetic”) is generally endorsed by several professional societies including the American Medical Association and American Diabetes Association to help reduce stigmatization. Yet in practice, the data highlighted that person-first language was used in fewer than 1% of obesity articles.
The authors’ final analysis included over 100,000 scholarly articles for diabetes and obesity published from 2011-2020. The results showed that while the use of person-first language in diabetes articles has increased over the past ten years, adoption has recently slowed. And among obesity-focused articles, person-first language is generally not used, suggesting a widespread lack of recognition of its importance within the scientific community. Progress was minimal: 0.1% of obesity-focused articles used person-first language in 2011; by 2020, that figure was 6.6%. Obesity articles were more likely to use person-first language if the journal had a policy of encouraging the use of such language. Among diabetes articles, the use of person-first language increased by 3.1% per year between 2011-2020.
“We know that language and communication are important barriers in health care and while various entities are becoming more aware of the problem and ways to fix it, our academic and scientific literature is not there yet,” said Jane K. Dickinson, RN, PhD, Program Director of the Diabetes Education and Management Program at Columbia University. “This is perhaps one of the easiest barriers to better care that we can overcome, which means we need to use these results as inspiration for change.”
Added Elaine Chiquette, Pharm.D., Gelesis’ Chief Scientific Officer, “Obesity is a chronic disease that affects millions of Americans, and we hear time and time again how weight stigma can impact people, for example by worsening physical and mental health and discouraging people from seeking care. At Gelesis, we are a consumer-focused company that aims to deliver new solutions to people struggling with their weight, including working to eliminate some of that stigma. That includes improving access to clinically proven options through our telemedicine endeavors, providing an evidence-based, affordable solution for weight management. We believe stigmatization interferes with the success of weight loss interventions and these findings highlight the need for a call to action to fight against bias and reframe the weight management conversation both in research and in practice.”
Gelesis Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GLS) (“Gelesis”) is a consumer-centered biotherapeutics company and the maker of Plenity®, which is inspired by nature and FDA cleared to aid in weight management. Our first-of-their-kind non-systemic superabsorbent hydrogels are made entirely from naturally derived building blocks. They are inspired by the composition and mechanical properties of raw vegetables, taken by capsule, and act locally in the digestive system, so people feel satisfied with smaller portions. Our portfolio includes Plenity® and potential therapies in development for patients with Type 2 Diabetes, Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)/Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH), and Functional Constipation. For more information, visit gelesis.com, or connect with us on Twitter @GelesisInc.
Rx Only. For the safe and proper use of Plenity or more information, talk to a healthcare professional, read the Patient Instructions for Use, or call 1-844-PLENITY.
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These filings address other important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements.
Media & Investor Relations
Katie Sullivan
ksullivan@gelesis.com
Source: Gelesis Holdings, Inc.