Is Ozempic a Weight Loss Miracle?

Empowered Nutrition

Unless you’ve been living off-grid for the last few months, chances are you’ve heard of Ozempic (or semaglutide)– the newest FDA approved miracle injection for weight loss. Social media has ignited feeds across the world with weight loss transformation posts from semaglutide injections- and 812 million views on TikTok to be exact.

Tailored to diabetes, this drug works by stimulating insulin secretion and therefore lowering fasting and postprandial glucose levels in four mechanisms. During the Ozempic drug trials, it was noted that weight loss was such a consistent and dramatic side effect that the FDA approved semaglutide for weight loss under the brand name Wegovy in 2021.

In this episode, I discuss:

• The four mechanisms of Ozempic
  • Changes in insulin sensitivity
  • Increased energy expenditure by encouraging stored fat to turn into energy.
  • Slows gastric emptying
  • The impact on appetite.
• And what current research is finding. (Hint: It might not be a long-term weight loss miracle!)

To sum it up, weight loss medications like Ozempic cannot have substantial results without compromise (i.e. losing lean muscle mass). Most importantly, NONE of the weight loss medications are fixing the root cause of the problem. The purpose of this podcast is to help you make an informed decision about your options for weight loss. If you are considering semaglutide injections for weight loss, talk to your doctor about the pros and cons!

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References used for this episode:

1. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30122305/

O'Neil PM, Birkenfeld AL, McGowan B, et al. Efficacy and safety of semaglutide compared with liraglutide and placebo for weight loss in patients with obesity: a randomised, double-blind, placebo and active controlled, dose-ranging, phase 2 trial. Lancet. 2018;392(10148):637-649. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31773-2

2. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33755728/

Rubino D, Abrahamsson N, Davies M, et al. Effect of Continued Weekly Subcutaneous Semaglutide vs Placebo on Weight Loss Maintenance in Adults With Overweight or Obesity: The STEP 4 Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2021;325(14):1414-1425. doi:10.1001/jama.2021.322

3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6769337/

Sargeant JA, Henson J, King JA, Yates T, Khunti K, Davies MJ. A Review of the Effects of Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists and Sodium-Glucose Cotransporter 2 Inhibitors on Lean Body Mass in Humans. Endocrinol Metab (Seoul). 2019 Sep;34(3):247-262. doi: 10.3803/EnM.2019.34.3.247. PMID: 31565876; PMCID: PMC6769337.

4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35441470/

Wilding JPH, Batterham RL, Davies M, et al. Weight regain and cardiometabolic effects after withdrawal of semaglutide: The STEP 1 trial extension. Diabetes Obes Metab. 2022;24(8):1553-1564. doi:10.1111/dom.14725

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