Paris (awp / afp) – On TikTok, the keyword #Ozempic peaks at more than 500 million views: this antidiabetic is all the rage on the social network for its weight-loss properties, a phenomenon that is causing supply tensions and worrying consumers. doctors.
“I started Ozempic six weeks ago,” says an American tiktoker in a video viewed nearly 100,000 times. In leggings and a sports bra, the young woman, visibly much thinner than in her “before” photos, continues: “I didn’t do any exercise, I just injected myself with the product!”.
Ozempic, a miracle cure? This injectable product is in fact indicated for “the treatment of insufficiently controlled type 2 diabetes” in adults, specifies the Novo Nordisk laboratory, which has marketed it in France since 2019.
Semaglutide, its active ingredient, acts by attaching itself to the receptors of a hormone which has a role in the control of blood sugar and stimulates the release of insulin when the level of glucose in the blood is high.
It also slows the emptying of the stomach, thereby reducing appetite and causing significant weight loss, around 10% in one year. A property that has enabled the manufacturer to obtain the marketing of semaglutide in many countries, including the United States, at a higher dose and under another name, Wegovy, for the treatment of obesity.
“Falsified prescriptions”
In France, Wegovy received a favorable opinion from the High Authority for Health (HAS) in the treatment of obesity at the end of December. It is currently limited to very obese people with an associated disease.
Pending a decision from the authorities on its price and reimbursement, Wegovy is delivered in dribs and drabs, “unlike Ozempic which is available with a normal prescription”, notes Professor Jean-Luc Faillie, from the University of Montpellier. .
Result: “pharmacists found prescriptions” for Ozempic for people without diabetes as well as “falsified prescriptions, used by several people”.
The National Medicines Agency (ANSM) called doctors to order, asking them to strictly respect the indication of diabetes for the prescription. The ANSM does not note any “particular peak or sudden increase in consumption in recent months”, but Ozempic has experienced “supply tensions” due to the increase in world demand.
Novo Nordisk admits that its “current supply capacity does not always meet this excess demand”, lamenting “intermittent availability and periodic stockouts”.
Jean-François Thébaut, of the Diabetic Federation, is worried regarding a possible “rush” of the French on Wegovy when it is on the national market, especially since semaglutide is “extremely effective” once morest diabetes.
Obesity specialist Karine Clément, of Inserm, insists on the need, when Wegovy will be available, to “fit your prescription well”. “It is not a + magic + drug. As always in obesity, it must be accompanied by comprehensive care”.
Side effects
Doctors are also worried regarding the side effects of semaglutide, “under-notified” according to Professor Faillie, in charge of its pharmacovigilance. “This is the problem + out of the way +: neither patients nor prescribers are motivated to declare” possible side effects.
In addition to nausea, “there are also rarer but more serious risks such as acute pancreatitis, which can occur even at low doses, biliary disorders, rare cases of severe constipation which can lead to intestinal obstruction”, notes- he, also pointing to an “increased risk of thyroid cancer” following several years of treatment.
Are we risking a new health scandal like that of the Mediator? “We have more perspective on this pharmacological class,” reassures Professor Faillie. However, if the risks of semaglutide are “controlled” in view of the benefits in diabetes, “there are always uncertainties, especially in obese patients over the long term”.
“If we use it to lose a few pounds, there the therapeutic benefit is zero, it’s just aesthetics while the risks are always present,” he warns.
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