If you’ve researched weight loss methods in the past year, you’ve probably heard about Ozempic, a new medication that causes people to lose weight very quickly. But is it a healthy way to lose weight? To understand if Ozempic is the right choice for you, you should consider some risks and alternatives to this treatment.
What is Ozempic
Ozempic is a medication for people with type 2 diabetes. This injection is administered once a week and improves blood sugar through its key ingredient: semaglutide, which releases insulin and regulates appetite by reducing hunger.
However, because of the rise in popularity of Ozempic, and more specifically, medication containing semaglutide, there has been a global shortage of drugs designed for both type 2 diabetes and weight loss. People taking it just for weight loss purposes may have other options, but patients with type 2 diabetes rely on this medication. Furthermore, there might be other reasons why not to use Ozempic as a weight loss drug.
Reasons to not use Ozempic
Ozempic has become very popular due to its quick effectiveness, but there are some disadvantages caused by using it that should be taken into account:
- If you are suffering from other illnesses, or you are pregnant or breastfeeding, Ozempic is not the safest option for you. As with any kind of medication, you should talk to your doctor and consider your situation.
- A side effect that is not extremely serious but rather an aesthetic issue is what’s known as ‘Ozempic face’. Obviously, if you’re rapidly losing weight while using Ozempic, your face is also going to experience some of that weight loss. Because of the high speed of weight loss, the skin tissue can’t adapt as quickly, which makes your face look older and saggy.
- One of the biggest disadvantages of Ozempic as well as other weight loss medication is that its effects stop once you stop the treatment, and sometimes you can regain the weight you lost in a few months. This is because the treatment is designed to be a long-term solution for people with diabetes, so if you are considering using it for a short while, it might not be the best option.
- Some of the side effects caused by Ozempic are related to gastrointestinal issues such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or constipation. These side effects are very common within the first weeks when the body is getting used to the new way of eating, but if they last longer, you should discuss it with your doctor.
- However, as with every medication, there is the possibility of other more serious side effects, such as vision changes, hypoglycemia, kidney issues, allergic reactions and more. In general, the use of Ozempic as merely a weight loss drug has not been a thing long enough to determine what serious side effects could cause in the long run.
- As we said, Ozempic is administered as a weekly injection, so if you are someone who experiences uneasiness when it comes to needles, you might want to consider other options.
Alternatives for those who don’t want to try Ozempic
If you have decided that Ozempic is not for you, several alternatives are available on the market:
- If you are worried that your Ozempic usage is causing people with type 2 diabetes to not be able to find their medication, there are other similar drugs that contain semaglutide specifically designed to lose weight. You could use Wegovy or Saxenda or talk to your doctor to know which one would work best for you.
- If you have tried several weight loss methods and haven’t been able to lose weight, you could consider bariatric surgery. In this procedure, over 70% of your stomach is removed. The decrease in size results in a smaller appetite and prevents the patient from overeating. This option is the most drastic one, as you can’t reverse it and there are many risks associated with going through surgery.
- For those who want to avoid going to the operating room and prefer a less invasive option can opt for a non-surgical gastric balloon. Instead of going through surgery and removing a part of your stomach, in this procedure you get a balloon inserted in your stomach through your mouth and filled with saline solution so that there is less space for food and the patient feels full quicker, and therefore, loses weight. This is less invasive, and it’s often removed after 6 months. Of course, some pros and cons of gastric balloons should be considered. The patient has to be willing to make some lifestyle changes so that once the balloon is removed, they won’t regain their weight back by not maintaining their new eating habits.
What these three alternatives to Ozempic have in common is that, no matter what you do, if you want these options to work in the long term, you will have to change your diet and practice exercise. Perhaps the best alternative, and the most reliable, is switching to a healthier lifestyle.
There are a lot of factors to consider when thinking of starting Ozempic. If you are considering it, discuss it with your healthcare provider to know what’s best for your circumstances.
