Your Physical Health: Weight Loss and… Drugs?
An unnerving trend in weight loss is starting to raise more questions than answers.
Good Morning!
If it’s not already apparent, I’m not a huge fan of “hacks,” gimmicks or anything that guarantees results fast. I spoke earlier this month about Long-Term Fitness and how an investment in yourself is not something that always has immediate return.
Still, with attention spans and satiety for bodily images shrinking, people are finding ways to hack themselves healthy. With every hack, though, comes a hidden caveat.
When liposuction came onto the scene many years ago, it seemed the hack for losing weight was simply getting it surgically removed. Poof. No more fat. But while fat cells are removed from the area (and shrink in size after the operation), the procedure doesn’t stop new fat cells from forming.
In fact, a study published in the Journal of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery in 2019 found that many patients who underwent liposuction felt dissatisfaction with their results after a while. The study surveyed 360 patients who had undergone liposuction between 1999 and 2017 and found that 33% of patients reported that they had gained weight after the procedure. Additionally, 28% of patients reported that they were unhappy with their results, and 22% said that they would not undergo the procedure again.
If you’re going for weight loss, I hate to say it (I really don’t), but you gotta do it the old fashion way.
Drugs, Drugs, Drugs
Or do you?
Lately, there have been stories of quick and unheard-of weight loss testimonials. The people who are making these incredible strides to drop hundreds of pounds are taking advantage of semaglutides, or hormone therapy that tricks your brain into thinking you’re full.
This sounds great on paper — eat fewer calories without feeling like you’re starving and the number on the scale will start to drop. But it isn’t that simple. These drugs that are being used — Ozempic, Mounjaro, and WeGovy, to name a few — are typically used to treat Type II diabetes. Diabetics have too much glucose (sugar) in their liver and need to slow the absorption of it to their intestines so that other more serious comorbidities can be avoided.
So when non-diabetics take these medications to curb cravings and limit their caloric intake for a quick weight loss, it limits the availability of these drugs for people who actually need them. 40% of our country is obese, meaning 40% of our country is at risk for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and certain cancers.
The Need Versus The Want
Now, we’re dealing with a shortage of these more advanced semaglutides. This has forced obesity and diabetic patients to resort to less effective treatments that don’t have the desired outcomes. And even though the manufacturers themselves — Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, respectively — have advised against non-diabetic use, celebrities and people with the loopholes to get these drugs off-prescription are still getting them. What gives?
This has classism written all over it, and the indolence of the upper class has never been more glaring. As with liposuction, people are trying to buy their way to skinny, regardless of the consequences. What are those consequences, by the way?
Let’s listen in to the Ozempic Ad and its 30 seconds of potential risks (and this is what they tell diabetes patients, by the way).
“Stop taking Ozempic and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, itching, rash, or trouble breathing. Serious side effects may happen including pancreatitis…common side effects are nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach pain and constipation. Some side effects can lead to serious dehydration, which can worsen kidney problems.”
So yeah, just know if you’re one of those people who got that prescription (shame on your doctor, by the way), you’re not only taking medication away from someone who actually needs it, but you’ve got all that possibly working against you, too. Is it really worth it?
The Even-Uglier Side of This Weight Loss Drug Fad (Sorry, Paid Subscribers, only down from here)
What’s even worse about the lackadaiscal prescriptions being handed out by doctors is that it’s not just the doctors cashing in on them; according to The Wall Street Journal, digital health start ups are also capitalizing on the uptake of prescriptions by advertising the drugs to people who don’t need them.
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