Posted on 09/07/2023 2:53:31 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Wegovy, the weight-loss medication, is now accessible in the UK through a controlled and limited introduction.
This medication, also referred to as semaglutide, will be prescribed in conjunction with specialised NHS weight management services, incorporating a reduced calorie diet and exercise regimen. It was available from Monday, September 4.
The Autumn Paradise For Brits
Earlier this year, the National Institute for Care and Excellence (NICE) granted approval for Wegovy’s utilisation within the NHS, with their guidance stipulating a maximum two-year usage period.
Trials of Wegovy, which is injected weekly, found those who used it lost around 12 per cent of their body weight, stated NICE.
Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of Wegovy, expressed its belief that the drug’s introduction in the UK will offer an additional avenue of support for individuals grappling with obesity.
In June, the government unveiled a £40 million pilot initiative to expand access to weight-loss injections as part of the effort to combat obesity.
Rishi Sunak remarked at the time that this drug could be a transformative factor in this endeavour.
The Prime Minister emphasised the substantial strain that obesity places on the NHS and asserted that employing cutting-edge medications to assist people in losing weight would be a game-changing development.
This approach is anticipated to alleviate the burden on hospitals and enhance the overall health and longevity of individuals while addressing the priority of reducing NHS waiting lists.
Nevertheless, Novo Nordisk has confirmed that semaglutide is currently in limited supply and expects this constraint to persist for the foreseeable future.
A portion of the available supply has been allocated to NHS services. This development follows a five-year study by Novo Nordisk, known as the Select trial, which revealed that the drug could reduce the risk of heart attacks or strokes in obese individuals with cardiovascular disease by one-fifth.
The study encompassed 17,604 adults aged over 45 from 41 different countries, all with a BMI exceeding 27 and established cardiovascular disease but no history of diabetes.
Does Wegovy have any side effects? Nice has said it will be approving the injectables for a two-year course of treatment at the most, with side effects minimal when used correctly.
Mild nausea, diarrhoea and headaches are some of the side effects but they were found to be “mild to moderate in severity and subsided with time”.
Experiencing suicidal thoughts is reportedly listed as a side effect on the leaflet.
When will Wegovy be available in the UK? The injection was available in the UK from Monday, September 4 on the NHS, though it is in limited supply.
It is already available privately through pharmacists and costs on average £130 a month, reported The Evening Standard.
The 2019 Health Survey for England estimated 28 per cent of adults in England were living with obesity and a further 36 per cent were overweight.
Government estimates indicate that the current costs of obesity in the UK are £6.1 billion to the NHS and £27 billion to wider society.
Are you for or against the injections, and why?
I lost 20 pounds in 3 months. It’s worked for me. It’s amazing you get full so fast and you no longer want to eat all day.
This article is wrong though. Constipation is the #1 side effect.
Sorry about the pun here - There is no free lunch.
You can expect something that so drastically alters how your body handles carbohydrates and calories (among other food ingredients) has lots of undesirable side effects.
That said, FASTING is very inexpensive and has mucho positive side effects.
The other thing interesting about these drugs is they greatly temper the desire of people to have a drink.
That’s a huge benefit to people with a problem with booze.
I know a bad alcoholic who got his life together with this drug.
Soyou take the drug... and diet and exercise? Um, why not just diet and exercise? I don’t get it. Weight loss is just not this dark mystery. If you do these two things your body responds, and amazingly, your body adapts and your desire to eat over and above your actual needs diminishes and your desire to eat around the clock also diminish significantly, no drug needed.
I don’t trust any drug that alters your body chemistry so much that you no longer eat. Your body needs a certain amount of vitamins and minerals derived from different food groups in order to function.
The key to losing weight is to reduce your portions and cut down on the carbs and sugars. When my husband was diagnosed with diabetes, I changed our meal menus and greatly reduced the carbs. I lost more weight than he did! I dropped from 145 to 100 pounds in two and a half years. My doctor ordered me to gain 10 pounds at my last yearly visit. I have done so. I gained it by eating ice cream and granola bars.
Neither of us were greatly overweight at the time of his diagnosis although both were about 20 lbs overweight. The doctors concentrated so much on carbs, sugar, and weight-loss, I overdid it. Both of us lost weight but we also lost all of our energy and muscle tone. I’ve added carbs back into our diet. We both are feeling better and his glucose levels are now better controlled.
I lost 20 pounds in 3 months. It’s worked for me. It’s amazing you get full so fast and you no longer want to eat all day.
`````````````````````````
I too lost 20 pounds in a shot time.
Unfortunately, for me, I was never over weight to begin with.
Get back to me when you reach the point where you have to literally force yourself to eat because of zero appetite.
They don’t tell us in the story how it works.
As long as I can lose weight by cutting calories I wouldn’t go near this stuff.
The drugs ‘paralyze’ your stomach - food moves through so slowly you don’t get hungry. The problem people are having is that eventually, food is sitting so long in the stomach that vomiting happens. Then it progresses to cyclical vomiting. The ‘paralysis’ issue doesn’t necessarily go away if you get off the drug & can last a long time.
Serious side effects, one being thyroid tumors/cancer.
Big Harma drugs at their finest /s
I was 20 pounds over so I’m good now. But I eat typically once per day and MAYBE a light snack. I’m about to go to maintenance on the meds so I won’t have a weekly shot.
People who are obese lose weight too but it takes a lot longer as 20 pounds to them is just a drop in the bucket.
I don’t know about that. I’m drinking right now and I’ve been on it for 3 months :-)
I'm glad that worked for you. Unfortunately, you aren't everybody.
I am on a program now. While tests say that I "should" be able to eat about 2000 calories a day (6 foot tall, now 250 pounds, started at 296) on a closely monitored, carefully controlled diet of 1500 calories a day I gained weight.
You see they really don't know how the human body works. My body temperature is 97, my resting heart rate is in the low 40s, my respiratory rate is 12 to 14 a minute. I can exercise my way into a heart rate just over 100, but it will quickly drop back to the 60s in just a minute or so. I have above average muscle mass for a 61 year old guy. My job is fairly physical. I do have wicked sleep apnea (obstructive and central) and my heart does strange things that my cardiologist dismisses as a glitch in the monitoring equipment (funny, my Apple watch registers the same glitch, calls it afib, but it isn't, my heart just kinda stops).
Anyway, all that to say, you can't just say "eat less and exercise more". Talking to my bariatric doctor I got her to admit that there are a fair number of "mystery" patients that they used to right off as "cheaters" or "liars" that with technology are coming to find out are like me, just kind of...weird.
She thinks it is neurological (duh) but has not a clue how to "cure" it. They are treating me with a combination of a stimulant and an anti-seizure med. I have lost 46 pounds in about 12 months. When I am on the meds my heart rate shoots up to about 60 and I don't really care if I eat or not. I had a bad dizzy spell on Easter they say was a side effect of the anti-seizure med. Other than that, everything has been cool.
I find myself eating about 1200 calories a day and losing weight slowly. I go to the gym for 45 minutes to an hour 3 to 4 times a week. If I were a normal person I would be losing 2 pounds a week and I would have lost about 100 pounds by now. Instead I have lost half that and that is with meds speeding up my metabolism.
As an aside, we recently hired a couple of young girls in their 20s. Very sweet, very nice, kind of large...like nearing 300 pounds each, large. They eat...all...day...long. They bring food in with them when they come to work and eat before their shift. They snack while they are working. They break for lunch. They snack after lunch. They leave talking about what they are having for dinner. It galls me that I get tossed in the same corner as them!
There is nothing “mild” about diarrhea.
These drugs work by slowing your digestion. You have to be cautious, as if you’re having a surgery, you need to stop taking the drug for at least a week so you don’t aspirate and so the anesthesia will actually work.
It comes with constipation and being a forever patient. Unless you get your sh¡t together while on it, if you stop it, you WILL gain back the weight.
This should be limited to diabetics who are severely overweight. The average, “bad eater” should not have access to this drug for weight loss alone.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.