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I'm currently on it and it was prescribed by my doctor for my diabetes. I just started it. Yes, the side effect may be weight loss for me, which will also direc

I'm currently on it and it was prescribed by my doctor for my diabetes. I just started it. Yes, the side effect may be weight loss for me, which will also directly help my diabetes in and of itself, but the weight-loss is only a side effect. But since so many are using it JUST for weight-loss, which their insurance probably doesn't cover, I sometimes have to wait because it's sold out. So me, having a legit reason to be on it due to my diabetes, can't always get it because someone else wants it just to lose weight.

aantix 3y ago
>just to lose weight You mean they "just" want to reduce their blood pressure, reduce their cholesterol, reduce their glucose, reduce their chances of cancer, stroke, coronary heart disease, all the while moving easier, having more energy, and not feel embarrassed by their weight any longer.
- smileysteve 3y ago
  and reduce their chance of developing into diabetes. (There is high correlation between overweight to obese to be pre-diabetic or undiagnosed/untreated diabetic)
- Aaronstotle 3y ago
  Those people could also lift weights and eat less. Ozempic works because it makes people feel full and stop eating, to lose weight without Ozempic. eat less and move more.
  - aantix 3y ago
    Taking Semaglutide gives an adherence advantage (with diet and exercise) vs. just diet/exercise alone. There was a 16% weight loss for those that received semaglutide/diet/exercise/counseling versus a loss of 5% for placebo those that received diet/exercise/counseling without semaglutide. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33625476/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33625476/
  - kthejoker2 3y ago
    Spoken like someone who's never had an eating disorder. Thanks for the non-helpful "advice" that's obvious to everyone on the planet.
    - GoofballJones 3y ago
      It's tantamount to people telling others with clinical depression to "just cheer up and stop feeling sorry for themselves. Have you tried not being depressed?"
- zzzeek 3y ago
  i think the parent's point would be that most people can achieve all those things without using a drug (the cholesterol and BP parts are often chronically high for non-obese people but there are other medications for those things that target them more directly)
  - aantix 3y ago
    >can achieve The longterm success number for those that lose significant weight and keep it off for many years, are abysmal.
    - zzzeek 3y ago
      sure, but my anecdotal hearsay unsubstantiated information on this is that people who are only a little bit over their ideal weight are using it so that they dont even need to apply modest efforts at staying healthy. People who are chronically morbidly obese are likely better off with the bariatric surgery approach.
      - aantix 3y ago
        There’s a huge cohort in between those two states.
- AdamH12113 3y ago
  You're talking about people who are medically obese, GP is talking about people who are consuming the limited supplies of a valuable drug because they want the optimal "beach body". They're not the same thing.
  - projectazorian 3y ago
    I don't think the medical bar for obesity is as high as you might think it is. A lot of people who you and I might regard as simply overweight if we saw them on the street are, in fact, obese according to the BMI criteria. Moreover these drugs are not going to get people an "optimal beach body"; they might at best help to get weight in the range where work can start on that. In fact for people at normal weight looking to improve their appearance these drugs would probably be counterproductive, for the reasons mentioned in the study. When the goal is to optimize for aesthetics a low body fat percentage is key. That requires a solid amount of muscle mass, and a drug regimen that catabolizes muscle is going to be counterproductive.
    - AdamH12113 3y ago
      That is largely a sensible comment, but unfortunately none of what you're saying affects the actual demand for fad weight loss treatments. Look at the "alternative medicine" industry if you want to see how much demand there can be for products that literally have no effect on the body whatsoever. And there is certainly a very large demand for minor, purely cosmetic weight loss.
      - aantix 3y ago
        Over 2/3's of the American population falls in the overweight/obese category. https://www.healthline.com/health/obesity-facts#statistics https://www.healthline.com/health/obesity-facts#statistics It's probable that the demand is overwhelmingly coming from that large cohort. Which wouldn't be "cosmetic" weight loss.
      - projectazorian 3y ago
        If you have a normal BMI, no diabetes, and want Ozempic for aesthetic reasons you first have to find a willing prescriber - not easy although I'm sure there are shady online services out there. Then you have to pay for the drug out of pocket, that's a 5 figure sum annually. You can get a nutritionist, personal trainer, and meal prep for less in a lot of the country. Oh yeah and it also requires injections, a lot of people hate needles. As another poster pointed out, 2/3 of the country are overweight or obese. There's plenty of medically qualified patients around, no need to assume some epidemic of already-thin people taking Ozempic to try to get six-pack abs.
AdamH12113 3y ago
Same. My A1C went down 1.5 points (7.9 -> 6.5) after I went on Ozempic with minimal behavior changes. I've also had trouble getting prescriptions filled because it's the hot new weight loss drug.
- CyberDildonics 3y ago
  You could always just stop eating sugar
  - GoofballJones 3y ago
    Oh, good lord, why didn't I think about that?!?! WOW! Hey everyone, just stop eating sugar! CyberDildonics has solved it! Collect your Nobel Prize in medicine! /s
    - CyberDildonics 3y ago
      What is wrong with what I said? If you want to lose weight without a pill, stop eating sugar.
bookmark1231 3y ago
I highly doubt insurance would refuse to cover a medication that will almost certainly drastically lower their long term expenses

aantix 3y ago

>just to lose weight You mean they "just" want to reduce their blood pressure, reduce their cholesterol, reduce their glucose, reduce their chances of cancer, stroke, coronary heart disease, all the while moving easier, having more energy, and not feel embarrassed by their weight any longer.

smileysteve 3y ago
and reduce their chance of developing into diabetes. (There is high correlation between overweight to obese to be pre-diabetic or undiagnosed/untreated diabetic)
Aaronstotle 3y ago
Those people could also lift weights and eat less. Ozempic works because it makes people feel full and stop eating, to lose weight without Ozempic. eat less and move more.
- aantix 3y ago
  Taking Semaglutide gives an adherence advantage (with diet and exercise) vs. just diet/exercise alone. There was a 16% weight loss for those that received semaglutide/diet/exercise/counseling versus a loss of 5% for placebo those that received diet/exercise/counseling without semaglutide. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33625476/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33625476/
- kthejoker2 3y ago
  Spoken like someone who's never had an eating disorder. Thanks for the non-helpful "advice" that's obvious to everyone on the planet.
  - GoofballJones 3y ago
    It's tantamount to people telling others with clinical depression to "just cheer up and stop feeling sorry for themselves. Have you tried not being depressed?"
zzzeek 3y ago
i think the parent's point would be that most people can achieve all those things without using a drug (the cholesterol and BP parts are often chronically high for non-obese people but there are other medications for those things that target them more directly)
- aantix 3y ago
  >can achieve The longterm success number for those that lose significant weight and keep it off for many years, are abysmal.
  - zzzeek 3y ago
    sure, but my anecdotal hearsay unsubstantiated information on this is that people who are only a little bit over their ideal weight are using it so that they dont even need to apply modest efforts at staying healthy. People who are chronically morbidly obese are likely better off with the bariatric surgery approach.
    - aantix 3y ago
      There’s a huge cohort in between those two states.
AdamH12113 3y ago
You're talking about people who are medically obese, GP is talking about people who are consuming the limited supplies of a valuable drug because they want the optimal "beach body". They're not the same thing.
- projectazorian 3y ago
  I don't think the medical bar for obesity is as high as you might think it is. A lot of people who you and I might regard as simply overweight if we saw them on the street are, in fact, obese according to the BMI criteria. Moreover these drugs are not going to get people an "optimal beach body"; they might at best help to get weight in the range where work can start on that. In fact for people at normal weight looking to improve their appearance these drugs would probably be counterproductive, for the reasons mentioned in the study. When the goal is to optimize for aesthetics a low body fat percentage is key. That requires a solid amount of muscle mass, and a drug regimen that catabolizes muscle is going to be counterproductive.
  - AdamH12113 3y ago
    That is largely a sensible comment, but unfortunately none of what you're saying affects the actual demand for fad weight loss treatments. Look at the "alternative medicine" industry if you want to see how much demand there can be for products that literally have no effect on the body whatsoever. And there is certainly a very large demand for minor, purely cosmetic weight loss.
    - aantix 3y ago
      Over 2/3's of the American population falls in the overweight/obese category. https://www.healthline.com/health/obesity-facts#statistics https://www.healthline.com/health/obesity-facts#statistics It's probable that the demand is overwhelmingly coming from that large cohort. Which wouldn't be "cosmetic" weight loss.
    - projectazorian 3y ago
      If you have a normal BMI, no diabetes, and want Ozempic for aesthetic reasons you first have to find a willing prescriber - not easy although I'm sure there are shady online services out there. Then you have to pay for the drug out of pocket, that's a 5 figure sum annually. You can get a nutritionist, personal trainer, and meal prep for less in a lot of the country. Oh yeah and it also requires injections, a lot of people hate needles. As another poster pointed out, 2/3 of the country are overweight or obese. There's plenty of medically qualified patients around, no need to assume some epidemic of already-thin people taking Ozempic to try to get six-pack abs.

AdamH12113 3y ago

Same. My A1C went down 1.5 points (7.9 -> 6.5) after I went on Ozempic with minimal behavior changes. I've also had trouble getting prescriptions filled because it's the hot new weight loss drug.

CyberDildonics 3y ago
You could always just stop eating sugar
- GoofballJones 3y ago
  Oh, good lord, why didn't I think about that?!?! WOW! Hey everyone, just stop eating sugar! CyberDildonics has solved it! Collect your Nobel Prize in medicine! /s
  - CyberDildonics 3y ago
    What is wrong with what I said? If you want to lose weight without a pill, stop eating sugar.

bookmark1231 3y ago

I highly doubt insurance would refuse to cover a medication that will almost certainly drastically lower their long term expenses