IFor you and your family could experience the benefits of a drug, which one would you choose? A recent straw survey in my local advertisement suggested by the Viagra would be a popular choice (annual world sales culminated at more than $ 2 billion in 2012). A retired colleague opted for humira, treatment for inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis ($ 21.2 billion). I opted for Diabetes / Drug Slimming Mounjaro.
I have never prescribed any of the new slimming baths only for weight loss, but I know a lot of people, patients and friends, who take them, all under the direction of private clinics. And the sales of Mounjaro (shooting), now the favorite choice compared to Ozempic / Wegovy (semaglutide) for many, should reach $ 34 billion per year By 2029. The benefits should easily keep my daughters in the style they used to.
And it’s not about losing weight. Barely a month goes by without new research suggesting additional advantages for this family of drugs. Yes, they help people lose weight quickly – both those who suffer from type 2 diabetes and those who do not – but there is proof more and more than they can protect against stroke, the heart attack, certain types of cancer and dementia. They can even have a role in helping people with alcohol, tobacco and opioid drugs.
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These are the beginnings and other research is necessary to explore these additional advantages, but there is already an indication that this is not only the impact on the weight that could reduce the risk of heart disease, dementia and cancers related to obesity, in particular the breast and the intestine. Indeed, a study which has just been presented at the European Obesity Congress revealed that the reduced risks of cancer far exceeded people expected from weight loss, the researchers proposing that a second anti-inflammatory action could be responsible.
Mounjaro sales will probably have a new boost here in the United Kingdom because, from next month, general practitioners like me in England will be able to prescribe it on the NHS. I say next month but, judging by the preparations for my county (Gloucestershire), there is still no clear plan on the way it will be implemented throughout the country.
And even when we have the green light, access will be strictly limited with gradual deployment in the coming years. Initially, it seems that the GPS will not be able to prescribe Mounjaro to very obese people with a BMI of 40 or more (37.5 for certain ethnic groups at higher risks) and at least four of the following elements: type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol rate, obstructive sleep apnea (severe snoring) or heart disease. Lower thresholds can apply for patients referred to specialized weight management clinics, but access is very limited.
No wonder so many people turn to the private sector, where the eligibility criteria are much lower: you must be over 18 years old and have a BMI of 30 or more, reduced to 27 if you have a problem linked to the underlying weight, such as high blood pressure. Costs vary but generally start at around £ 130 per month.
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Although I greet any advance that helps fight obesity and its myriads of complications, I have reservations on the use of these drugs to treat weight loss (these are well -established treatments for type 2 diabetes), especially that they will be considered as a substitute for diet and lifestyle measures.
I also worry about what will happen to the weight of people when they stop taking them and implications for the NHS. Can drugs save long -term money, but at what cost for other short -term services?
Finally, there are side effects. I have listed some below, but I have a particular concern about the impact of rapid weight loss induced by drugs on muscle volume and strength. A study following 140 volunteers on semaglutide showed that around 40% of the observed weight loss was muscular rather than fat, with more recent studies suggesting that this muscle loss can be even more marked by Tizepatid. Muscle loss (sarcopenia) comes to a certain extent with all weight loss programs but seems more pronounced with new gallery strokes.
Make sure that you eat enough protein and that you practice resistance / bodybuilding should help reduce this loss, but most of the people I know taking medication do not do either. And it shows, at least in my eyes. The older you are, the greater the meaning, because we all lose the muscle volume and the force of the average age – up to 10% during the sixties. Be careful.
Side effects
Research suggests that for most people to take these drugs to lose weight, shooting (mounjaro) is the most effective.
They all work by reducing appetite / increased satiety: you feel satisfied earlier and longer.
The lateral effects of shooting appear roughly as with semaglutide (Ozempic / Wegovy) and are mainly gastrointestinal, the most common complaints (1 out of 10 or more) being nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and constipation.
In rare cases, these drugs can trigger gallbladder problems (gallstones) and, more worrying, inflammation of the pancreatitis (pancreatitis).