The phenomenon worries doctors and creates supply tensions. On TikTok, the hashtag #Ozempic peaks at over 500 million views. This antidiabetic is all the rage on the social network for its slimming properties. “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! “.
Could Ozempic be a miracle cure? Originally, it was prescribed for a completely different use.
For the treatment of diabetes
This injectable product is actually 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 to the receptors for a hormone that has a role in blood sugar control and stimulates the release of insulin when blood glucose levels are 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. 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.
Supply voltages
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” of Ozempic for non-diabetics 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. 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. For her part, obesity specialist Karine Clément, of Inserm, insists on the need to “fit your prescription well”. “It is not a ‘magic’ drug. As always in obesity, it must be accompanied by comprehensive care”.
“Underreported” side effects
Doctors are also worried regarding the side effects of semaglutide, which are “under-notified” according to Jean-Luc Faillie. 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. An “increased risk of thyroid cancer” is also pointed out following several years of treatment.
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”, according to the professor, who warns: “if we uses to lose a few pounds, there the therapeutic benefit is nil, it’s just aesthetics while the risks are always present”.
