Words: Zoe Price (she/her)
CW: diet culture, substance abuse
Ozempic, the brand name for the drug semaglutide, has risen to fame in recent years as a miracle weight-loss drug. Its usage has been accelerated by aggressive marketing in the US combined with gluttonous media attention – both positive and negative. Though some think that the drug could be the solution to the obesity epidemic in the western world, others view it as setting a dangerous precedent, making patients lazy and overly reliant on medicines whilst neglecting diet and exercise. Ozempic works by making those that take it feel fuller for longer, reducing their appetite and promoting weight loss. However, it was originally produced as a treatment for type 2 diabetes, as its weight loss properties act as a vital management step in reducing the risk of cardiovascular complications. It also stimulates insulin release, which prevents diabetics from having to start complicated insulin therapy, providing the potential to dramatically alter their quality of life. Ozempic’s recent surge in popularity has stirred up an insatiable appetite for the drug, resulting in shortages across the rest of the world and leaving diabetics in the UK deprived of one of their most effective medicines.
So what exactly does Ozempic do to the body? Ozempic is a type of drug known as a GLP-1 agonist. It increases the levels of incretins in your system, which are hormones usually produced by the stomach when you eat food, and which act on GLP-1 receptors found around the body. The pancreas releases insulin into the bloodstream when activated by incretins or Ozempic. Insulin promotes conversion of glucose to glycogen (a storage form of sugar), which lowers sugar levels in the bloodstream, and thus helps prevent dangerous complications. In the digestive system, Ozempic slows gastric emptying, causing the stomach to be fuller for longer. Lastly, Ozempic acts on GLP-1 receptors within the brain to reduce the sensation of hunger and promote the feeling of satiety. These effects are vital to patients struggling with type 2 diabetes, whose high blood sugar levels can cause life-altering complications, including sight loss or nerve damage.
However, because Ozempic works so well at reducing appetite, it has become an immensely popular weight-loss drug amongst otherwise healthy individuals. Cravings for it have skyrocketed, fuelled by media hype and celebrity testimonials. From Elon Musk to Oprah Winfrey, there are endless examples of A-list celebrities who admit to using the appetite suppressant. Adverts for Ozempic are on television, social media, and even plastered on the walls of New York subway stations. With this suffocating volume of marketing, it is unsurprising that Americans in particular have a hunger for Ozempic which has no end in sight.
Currently, the patent for Ozempic is held by Novo Nordisk, a Danish pharmaceutical company, meaning that only they can produce the drug until the patent expires – which in the UK isn’t until 2031. Having exclusive rights to produce the drug means Novo Nordisk can charge high prices, as they are the only company with the ability to feed this demand. Despite investing £3.2 billion into increasing the production of Ozempic and other GLP-1 agonists, the unsustainable combination of high costs, high demand, and short supply remains. This is detrimental to the NHS’s ability to buy any substantial quantities of Ozempic for its diabetes patients, as private weight-loss clinics are hungry for the drug, and have financial support to satisfy their desires.
Since summer 2023, the NHS has been forced to limit Ozempic supplies to those patients already taking the drug, and new patients have been unable to get a prescription even if other drugs aren’t working. Shortages were initially cited as lasting until June 2024, but this period has now been extended until at least early 2025. Production of some other GLP-1 agonists has increased, but these drugs are more costly to the NHS and may be less effective than Ozempic at preventing heart disease and stroke.
In Scotland, 1 in 17 adults are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. This increases to 1 in 10 in areas which are allocated to the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) rank 1. The SIMD encompasses income, employment, education, health, access to services, crime, and housing, assessing 6,976 data zones in Scotland and ranking them from most to least deprived, and then evenly dividing them into 5 categories. SIMD 1 applies to an enormous 43% of areas in Glasgow, proving that type 2 diabetes is an especially prevalent public health problem in our city. Glaswegians have been hit hard by this drug shortage. Though we can hope shortages will improve early next year, it is a harsh reality that diet culture in the US has the capacity to deprive Scots of life-changing healthcare.
References:
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