You may have heard about celebrities taking Ozempic to lose weight. But what do we actually know about these GLP-1 drugs? Also, who should take it?
GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. — You’ve probably heard of a popular drug being used to lose weight. It was originally created to fight diabetes and then prescribed to people struggling with obesity, but people who didn’t even need it started using it, creating shortages and pitting people against each other.
So we decided to learn more about the drug, how it works, who is using it, whether it’s dangerous, and what the shortage is. We also invited two women who use the drug to come in and talk about their experiences. Shelley Appel is a type 2 diabetic and has had diabetes for 25 years. She started taking Ozempic last year.
“For years, I couldn’t lower my A1C and now it’s at 6.5. It should be below 7, but I couldn’t have done it without Ozempic,” Shell says.
Amy Belsole has struggled with her weight since she was eight years old. She tried every diet and fad but failed.
“I ended up having gastric bypass surgery about nine years ago after having my child. I was a mother sitting on a park bench, unable to play outside with my children, very sad, and my child It was hard to keep up with them,” says Amy.
After foot surgery last year, months of inactivity and menopause meant the weight was quickly regained. Feeling defeated and depressed, she was prescribed Wigobee.
“On a good day, I’ve lost about 25 pounds,” she says.
Diet, exercise, and other medications were not enough to control Sherry’s diabetes. Diet and exercise weren’t enough for Amy to maintain a healthy weight either. But drug shortages forced people to take sides.
“I drove 40 miles to find a pharmacy and decided to switch to Monjaro. I switched back to Ozempic probably two months ago,” Sherry says. “It was very frustrating that people who really needed it didn’t get it, but famous people got it,” she adds.
Amy admits that she was hesitant to talk about it on camera because she was scared of what other people would think.
“I still feel a lot of guilt, because I know people who have diabetes, and this drug is a life-sustaining drug, or part of a life-sustaining drug, for them, and for some of me, it’s a life-sustaining drug, or part of a life-sustaining drug. “There’s a part of me that feels very guilty about taking it, when I might be saving someone else’s life,” she says.
I think we can all agree that celebrities who are already thin shouldn’t be the first to have access to the drug, but are we putting obese people, whose health is at risk, in the same category?
“I like to say to a lot of people, or anyone that will listen, that these products are some of the best things that have ever happened to all of us, and also some of the worst things that have ever happened to us,” he says. Dr. Andrew Craftson In collaboration with University of Michigan Health.
As an endocrinologist, Dr. Craftson specializes in diabetes and obesity. He said the subject is complicated for a variety of reasons. But let’s first explain what these drugs are and how they work. Drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy are part of a group of drugs called GLP-1, or glucagon-like peptides. They mimic gut hormones that help suppress appetite.
“They help your body produce insulin so it can process the carbohydrates you eat,” says Dr. Craftson.
“It can also send signals to your brain that you’re less hungry, more full, and food is less noisy. It can also slow down the rate at which food passes through your stomach, so it’s easier to eat. It stays in your stomach for a long time and you may feel a little full,” he adds.
Ozempic and Wiegovi are manufactured by the same company.Novo NordiskOne is for diabetes and the other is for weight loss. So what’s the difference?
“Semaglutide is in both Ozempic and Wegovi – it’s exactly the same drug; the device used to inject it is different,” Dr Craftson said.
“Both have the same first three doses, but after that they become different. So, while Wegovy’s maximum dose is slightly higher than Ozempic, they are very similar,” he added. Ta.
Perhaps you have heard of Mounjurno and Zepbound.These two drugs Eli Lilly. Again, one for diabetes and one for weight loss. They include something called tirzepatide.
“They’re even closer. It’s the exact same device, the exact same dose. The only real difference is the label you see,” Dr. Craftson says.
And as more people become eligible for the drugs, there will be less available. But who should get them? Diabetics, of course. But Dr. Craftson says untreated obesity can lead to everything from diabetes to uncontrolled hypertension to heart disease. But cost and health disparities are barriers.
“People can’t afford it. It’s too expensive for people who don’t have insurance. And the insurance companies are deciding, this is too expensive, we can’t afford to put so many people on these drugs unless the drug companies lower the price.”
It is said that some pharmacies refuse to carry the medicine because it is too troublesome. However, the biggest problem is the lack of medicine.
Novo Nordisk did not respond to our request for an interview, but its website states: Message to patients Regarding the shortage of Wegovy.
Doug Langa, executive vice president and president of Novo Nordisk’s North American operations, said the company is running its production facilities 24/7 to address the shortage.
“Our goal is to support new patients at a level that does not exceed our current supply capacity,” he continued.
“I think what we should have done with these drugs is the same thing we did with the COVID-19 vaccine: We have a limited supply, so we need to ration it and get it to people as needed. So at the front of the line there would have been people with diabetes and people who were extremely obese, both of whom have great needs,” says Johan Hari.
Hari spent a year researching these drugs and wrote a book about them. “Magic medicine” He also takes Ozempic to lose weight, and he agrees that cost and scarcity are the biggest issues.
“Americans are being ripped off with all sorts of drugs. They pay very high prices for everything. This should be dealt with as a political scandal. I hope people don’t get more outraged about this and become more politically active.” I’m always surprised that they don’t,” Hari said.
“So we could end up in a dystopian situation where Real Housewives of New Jersey gets skinny to the bone, while real New Jersey elementary school kids get diabetes at age 12. That’s not a good situation.” he added.
So let’s say you have access. Should I also take these medications? Are they safe? The cover of Johan’s book lists 12 alarming risks of taking these drugs, he says. This includes a possible increased risk of cancer, the impact on people with eating disorders, and long-term effects that are still unknown. It is a personal decision that must be weighed against the risks and benefits.
“In this society, in this culture, we are full of processed foods from the moment we are born. We are trapped, aren’t we? We have to dismantle the trap for the next generation. We are children. We need to make sure this doesn’t happen to us, but for people in their mid-40s like me, it’s like being offered a dangerous rusty trap door. I don’t know if it was the right decision or not, but if you find yourself in a trap, you have to acknowledge where you are and think calmly about how to get out. To tell.
Dr. Craftson said he thinks these are good drugs for now, but they just need to be made more readily available. He also says that obesity cannot be cured with drugs alone. These drugs must be taken in conjunction with diet and exercise and under the supervision of a doctor.
And for the two women we interviewed, it was a life-changing event.
“This is a game changer,” says Sherry.
“Of course I’d do it again, no questions asked,” Amy says.
When deciding whether these drugs are the right path for you, Dr. Craftson and author Johan Hari caution you about how to do so. Some people approach it through the back door and obtain drugs through other channels.
“Whenever there’s a shortage of an FDA-approved drug, there’s an opportunity for certain pharmacies to get a prescription and some ingredients and replicate the drug to make up for the shortage. The process isn’t completely transparent. There are many different types of compounding pharmacies with different levels of oversight, and there simply aren’t enough people to audit all of these pharmacies. So you have people putting in substances that are supposed to be exactly the same, that haven’t been studied in humans, with things that aren’t necessarily the same,” he says.
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