In this episode of ‘The Fat Doctor Podcast’, Dr. Natasha Larmie is joined by fat liberationist writer, creator, and doctoral student from the Bronx, New York, Marquisele (Mikey) Mercedes.Together Dr Larmie and MIkey intimately discuss the following:Weight stigma in big pharma. Do doctors really receive huge sums of money from large pharmaceutical companies? They touch on the opioid epidemic in the USA vs UK and the role played by doctors and governing bodies. How much influence do large pharmaceutical companies have on research?Thank you for listening! Connect with Dr Natasha Larmie and other like-minded people in the ‘Friends of The Fat Doctor’ community over on Facebook here. You can also find her on Instagram at @fatdoctoruk. Resources and links mentioned in this episode:Mikey’s work can be found at the following linkspatreon.com/marquiseletwitter.com/marquiseleYou can connect with Marquisele on Instagram @fatmarquisele.More about the show:How would you react if someone told you that most of what we are taught to believe about healthy bodies is a lie? How would you feel if that person was a medical doctor with over 20 years experience treating patients and seeing the harm caused by all this misinformation?In her podcast, Dr Natasha Larmie,  an experienced General Practitioner and self-styled Fat Doctor, examines and challenges 'health' as we know it through passionate, unfiltered conversations with guest experts, colleagues and friends.She tackles the various ways in which weight stigma and anti-fat bias impact both individuals and society as a whole.  From the classroom to the boardroom, the doctors office to the local pub,  weight-based discrimination is everywhere. Is it any wonder that it has such an impact on our health? Whether you're a person affected by weight stigma, a healthcare professional, a concerned parent or an ally who shares our view that people in larger bodies deserve better, Dr. Larmie and the team at 'The Fat Doctor Podcast' welcomes you into the inner circle.More about Mikey Mercedes:Marquisele Mercedes is a fat liberationist writer, creator, and doctoral student from the Bronx, New York. As a Presidential Fellow at the Brown University School of Public Health, her work focuses on how racism, anti-Blackness, and fatphobia have shaped health care, research, and public health promotion and training. She is passionate about using public scholarship in various mediums to make science and research more accessible to those outside of academic institutions, as well as reshape interventions at multiple levels to make the world safer for fat people of If you enjoy this podcast and would like to support Asher so that they can continue making them, you can join them on Patreon. If you fancy connecting with other like-minded people in a safe and non judgmental environment, then why not join their Facebook group the ‘Friends of The Fat Doctor’? You can also check out their webiste or find them on all the usual social media channels including Instagram, Twitter and Tik Tok.