Sweetgreen CEO Jonathan Neman is facing heavy criticism after he wrote a LinkedIn post in which he claimed that obesity is the “root cause” of health issues, including COVID-19. Neman deleted the post following backlash.
78% of hospitalizations due to COVID are Obese and Overweight people. Is there an underlying problem that perhaps we have not given enough attention to? Is there another way to think about how we tackle “healthcare†by addressing the root cause?” Neman wrote in the post, which has been preserved on the Internet Archive.
“What if we focused on the ROOT CAUSE and used this pandemic as a catalyst for creating a healthier future??” he continued, adding: “We clearly have no problem with government overreach on how we live our lives all in the name of “health,” however we are creating more problems than we are solving.”
Neman also suggested that  “no vaccine nor mask will save us” from the virus, though he noted that he is vaccinated and supports as many people getting the shot as possible.
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He deleted the post after it received attention from Vice News.
There is overwhelming evidence that vaccines save lives. Despite the risk posed by the highly contagious Delta variant, Covid-19 vaccines prevent severe illness, hospitalizations, and death. Masks have also been shown to prevent transmission.
Alan is a writer, editor, and news junkie based in New York.
