“That’s not to say that our circumstances can’t lead us to gain weight. But there’s little evidence that overeating causes obesity on an individual level and no real reason to think that anyone can lose a lot of weight by dieting.”

I think the author is over-simplifying the articles he cites, and both articles are worth reading for some clarification of what Engber’s trying to say. I was just taken aback by the whole “overeating doesn’t cause obesity on an individual level” thing because let me tell you, the number of bags of Smartfood I eat per week has a direct correlation to how tight my jeans feel.