Patients don’t trust fat doctors as much as their leaner colleagues. Robert Hash of Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, and his colleagues discovered this when they surveyed more than 200 patients of five doctors, two of whom were obese. When asked how confident they were about the medical advice they received, patients of the plump doctors were significantly less impressed – even when the advice was about disease treatment rather than weight control (Preventive Medicine, vol 36, p 41). Hash says it’s time to hammer home the message to medical students – if you don’t look too healthy yourself,…
To continue reading, today with our introductory offers
Advertisement
More from New Scientist
Explore the latest news, articles and features
Popular articles
Trending New Scientist articles
1
Where, when and how to watch the 2026 solar eclipse
2
Our verdict on The Selfish Gene: An unpopular piece of popular science
3
We’ve uncovered a master gene that switches on human development
4
If you aren't terrified by this heatwave, you should be
5
The race to understand how and when Thwaites glacier will collapse
6
The best sci-fi novel in 2026 so far – plus 6 other great reads
7
Europe’s heatwave is the hottest and most humid ever
8
Ancient human DNA found on cave art for the first time
9
I have a 100 per cent chance of getting cancer due to a rare gene
10
How menopause radically changes the brain – and what happens after



