Inject and forget – Style – Kommersant

The soaring popularity of the Ozempic drug as one of the most powerful means of losing weight made it a household name and caused a lot of controversy in the professional environment as to whether such weight loss methods are generally correct. “Kommersant Style” finds out the details.

The story with a new weight loss drug arose unexpectedly and developed incrementally, much like with Thai pills (if anyone remembers such a phenomenon of the late 1990s). Around November of last year, reports began to appear about a miraculous drug that, as if by magic, eliminates extra pounds. This remedy was called “Ozempic” (Ozempic) and was originally intended for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, as containing semaglutide as the active substance. A powerful booster in the development of this situation was the news of celebrities who openly declared that they resorted to the help of Ozempic to lose weight – Elon Musk and Kim Kardashian were among them. It is worth noting that the drug is not cheap and prescription, the cost of one syringe (and this is one dose for subcutaneous injection) was about $ 1 thousand, but this did not stop anyone: according to Google Trends, the number of search queries for semaglutide on the Internet has increased dramatically.

The way Ozempic works is that it mimics the action of a hormone produced by the body when it senses food in the stomach, which helps the pancreas produce insulin when glucose levels are high.

This slows down intestinal motility, we feel full longer, and there is no desire to eat something (and this is usually one of the important points in weight gain – endless high-calorie snacks). Also, the drug affects the food center in the hypothalamus, and you easily skip meals, if at all remember that it’s time to eat. That is why drugs containing semaglutide (this is not only the notorious Ozempic, but also Mounjaro, and Wegovy) lead to a rapid decrease in body weight – up to 15–20%. These studies were published back in 2021 in The New England Journal of Medicine and for the time being were known only to a narrow circle of specialists.

Every drug has side effects, and in the case of appetite blockers, even more so. The most common side effects of taking semaglutide are nausea, diarrhea, constipation, and indigestion. Some people may experience vomiting, belching, or gas, and many gastrointestinal side effects have been described. However, someone may have one or two such manifestations, and someone may not have them at all. Therefore, at the moment the question is posed as follows: what do we pay for such a striking effect of losing weight besides money and how long will the plateau of the cherished weight figures last?

Andrey Zhukov, founder of Pro Trainer Studios, is generally skeptical about such methods of weight loss. “I know about this drug and I know that it is prescribed for obesity, but I believe that with proper training and nutrition, it is possible to lose weight without drugs. Otherwise, a person will not learn and return to his habits – no pills will make you stronger, will not pump up your muscles. Any drug is a disclaimer of responsibility, and this will never be durable, ”he says.

His words are supported by scientific research: once people stop taking semaglutide drugs, there is a sharp increase in weight that is difficult to control. A study published in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism reports a clear pattern: Most people regain weight within a year of stopping the medication.

Weight jumps lead to a change not only in the body, but also in the face. The term “ozempic-face” appeared, that is, the face of a person who noticeably lost weight, and at the same time seemed to have aged dramatically.

Andrey Iskornev, plastic surgeon, head of the Platinental clinic, says: Ozempic has really revolutionized the pharmaceutical market. In America today, every second patient is begging their doctor to prescribe this expensive drug. In fact, in addition to being overweight, he has strict prescribing criteria – this is either diabetes mellitus or going through the roof of cholesterol. Ozempic-face occurs when, against the background of a sharp weight loss, you lose the most valuable fat on your face, because on Ozempic, all fat leaves the body evenly, and if you do not stop in time, then protruding cheekbones and bags under the eyes remain, as fatty bags under the eyes just practically do not “lose weight”.

It turns out that before searching for and starting to use any magical remedy, you need to think about how many kilograms you want to lose, and why these kilograms accumulate at all. It is believed that in people with obesity, the catalyst for the physiological sensation of hunger is primarily an emotional component.

Clinical psychologist Anastasia Borodkina emphasizes that work with obesity should be a team effort. “The effect is achieved together with an endocrinologist, a psychiatrist and a psychologist working in conversational psychotherapy. It is important to understand that excess weight does not occur on its own, she believes. Overeating is the body’s signal that something is wrong. It can be both overwork and RPP (eating disorder.— ”Style”). If a person has gained weight and decided to lose weight with the help of the drug, it is important for him to understand that without curing the cause of the gain, everything will happen again.

While the manufacturer of Ozempic, the Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk, is trying to maintain a stable supply of the drug, Ozempic has already become a scarce commodity in many countries, in Russia the situation is different. A month ago, the company announced the reduction of its presence in our market until the end of the year. You really will have to engage in an integrated approach, visit fitness rooms and work with a psychologist and not risk your health, even if for an alluring goal for many – an ideal, slender figure.

Irina Kirienko