by Vladimire Herard
Before you leap head first into the celebrity craze and commercials over Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro as wonder drugs against fat, take a moment to learn how the three prescription diabetic medicines work.
Your doctor would not have you swear off using any of them on an off-label basis as they could help you succeed with weight loss.
However, he or she would also not recommend them if you are not overweight or obese nor diabetic.
In fact, your physician would caution against diving into their uses full throttle because of the side effects that come with slimming down.
Researchers with the journal Aesthetic Surgery published a study in January 2024 finding that public interest grew in Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro in the previous two years.
The study focused on an analysis of public web searches for the words “Ozempic” and “Wegovy” between March 2018 and February 2023.
Analysts found that the number of search results for “Ozempic” and “Wegovy” zoomed substantially after December 2022 and after February 2023, respectively, though the National Institutes for Health, or the NIH, had worked with the elements of both drugs 10 years before.
Public enthusiasm came after the U.S Food and Drug Administration, or the FDA, approved of both drugs and when celebrities and media moguls like Oprah Winfrey, a board member of WeightWatchers and actress in its commercials for a decade, revealed by late 2023 that she used weight-loss drugs in her daily regimen.
This stems from the fact that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the CDC, finds that 74 percent of residents in the United States are living with obesity.
The FDA approved of Ozempic to treat adults for type 2 diabetes after clinical research linked it to improving blood sugar levels.
Also referred to as semaglutide, Ozempic helps you manage type 2 diabetes while following a proper diet and exercising regularly. It is injected into the stomach, thigh or arm by a pen-like device typically used for insulin.
This medication controls blood sugar levels and decreases the chances of a heart attack or stroke. Results do include maintaining a healthy weight.
It is to be taken at a particular dosage once a week for four weeks. Yet, it is not insulin and ought not be mixed with the hormone.
Aside from helping with weight loss, Ozempic also aids in lowering blood pressure or hypertension by having patients feel full when eating and regulating their appetites. Overweight patients are known to experience and seek to lower high blood pressure.
Physicians will counsel patients to use the drug if they carry a body mass index or BMI of 30 or more and cannot lose any or sufficient weight to stay healthy after six months of seeking to change their lifestyle.
Otherwise, patients also qualify to use Ozempic if they have a body mass index of 27 to 29.9 and have a weight-oriented health problem such as diabetes, prediabetes or high blood pressure.
The side effects of the drug include constipation as it slows down metabolism with food remaining in the stomach for a short time, dehydration, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting.
In rare cases, patients can also experience “Ozempic face” in which patients can age quickly in their face due to fat loss, gallbladder issues, kidney problems, pancreatitis and thyroid cancer.
The diabetic drug Wegovy is also called semaglutide and works exactly as Ozempic does but at a higher dosage.
Both drugs are produced by the pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk but are approved for different uses by the FDA. Namely, Ozempic is used for diabetes while Wegovy is approved for weight loss.
To be prescribed for Wegovy, patients must hold a body mass index or BMI of 27 with high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes or high cholesterol or a BMI of 30 on a standalone basis.
Aside from blood sugar level regulation and appetite suppression to achieve weight loss, Wegovy also keeps the liver from releasing too much sugar.
Just like Ozempic, Wegovy is injected into your system but with a epipen. Injections take place once every week in the arms, legs and stomach for four weeks.
Side effects with Wegovy mirror that of Ozempic: constipation, diarrhea, nausea, stomach ache and vomiting. Rare and severe ones also include the same as that of Ozempic: gallbladder issues, kidney problems, pancreatitis and thyroid cancer. Doctors also warn against patients using Wegovy while pregnant.
Finally, like Ozempic and, to an extent, Wegovy, Mounjaro, manufactured by Eli Lilly, assists you in managing type 2 diabetes with a healthy and regular physical exercise. The FDA approved the use of Mounjaro for adult diabetics in 2022 and against obesity on an off-label basis.
However, the drug also interacts with two hormones that controls blood sugar and enables patients to lose weight: GLP-1 and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide, or GIP.
Like both Ozempic and Wegovy, Mounjaro is injected weekly into the stomach, thighs or arm. It can be used before or after insulin but must not be mixed with this hormone.
Again, like both drugs, the side effects for Mounjaro are appetite suppression, constipation, diarrhea, indigestion, nausea, stomach pain and vomiting. Mounjaro also shares the same rare and severe ones such as allergies, low blood sugar, gallbladder problems, kidney issues, pancreatitis and thyroid cancer.
