Why are many severely overweight people not using GLP-1 treatments?

[Donteatmychips]

Just a pondering when I was on a day out yesterday. I know of course that there is an economic cost to GLP1s, but is there really really any excuse to such widespread obesity these days? I was walking around a seaside town and a National Trust property, and I would say a good half of those around were still large. I understand they are not that easily prescribed on the NHS, but I believe you can shop around and find deals from various online pharmacies. Is it just more that people don’t want to?

For full disclosure, I am on a GLP1 that I acquired elsewhere by walking into a pharmacy and just asking for it. Yes, it cost a lot of money and I know I am lucky to be in a position to have done that. I fought being on one for a long time and it’s not a magic bullet, but it does help and I’m grateful for that.

I know that modern versions of obesity are skewed, but I am talking really about people maybe 250lbs or over now, not just a stone to lose.

It's a medication that you are expected to take on a long term basis. Many people simply would not be suitable candidates based purely on health reasons. You must know, as you take it yourself, that there are a myriad of questions to be answered when you request your GLP-1 prescription. Just because you can tick "no" to them all, it doesn't mean it's that straight forward for everyone else.

And people are absolutely right to be wary of starting any long term medications.

In my case it's because I know I'd take it, lose the weight but not successfully change my habits. I'd therefore put the weight back on again in the future.

I'm also scared of the side effects.

I do think I'll end up going on them at some point, but I really want to figure out good habits that I am actually able to stick to first.

I had a gastric bypass 3 years ago and have lost 13 stone, I still am ‘overweight’ but now not morbidly obese. Im not likely to lose anymore for a while (if at all) but I’m still a size 16. Am I not allowed to walk around in public unless I’m a size 8?
You’d think because you’re having to use injections that you particularly would have a bit of compassion and understanding for people struggling with their weight and not be a judgmental idiot but evidently not.

I took the drugs and it was the worst weight loss medication I ever tried. It made me feel like I had the flu. It was awful. Obesity is a medical condition. Many fat people have chronic disease and being fat is a side effect of their disease or the medication they have used to treat it.

That's ridiculous. I haven't cut my food bill by £250+ per month by eating slightly less! In fact my food bill is probably a bit higher because I'm now buying speciality vegan protein bars and powders to make sure I meet my protect goals, and I eat far less in the way of cheap carbs and more fresh veg, tofu, seitan, tempeh and other things that aren't cheap. Also my whole food bill is £500 a month for 3 people and two animals so the idea that it will be offset by lower food bills is bonkers. I've never been a big takeaway eater, always take lunch with me to work etc.

Wtf!! I am just into the obese category. I put on weight recently because I just had a cancer scare and surgery. As soon as my boob was healed enough I joined the gym and now going a couple of times a week and eating less crap. I could afford WLIs if I wanted but I don’t want the side effects. Neither do I think that would be a good message for my teenage daughter!

When I was obese, I wouldn't have been allowed GLP-1s because I have a history of restrictive eating disorders.

At the end of the day, you have no idea what someone is going through or why they are overweight. For that reason, it's best to keep your opinions to yourself.

I'm fat, would probably qualify on NHS, could afford them if I want to and am going to a NT property in the North East soon, is this allowed? 🤣

"Big pharma are very clever." "Who knows what the as yet unknown effects are"

I wonder if any theoretical future side effects would "turn out to be" nudge nudge wink wink, due to the patients earlier obesity.

This.

Other medical issues would be my guess. That’s why I’m not taking them.

A male colleague I know is taking them and whilst he’s lost weight his hair has thinned massively over the last few months. That’s put off several other colleagues that were considering taking them.

Some people are just not bothered about their weight/ and or health.

Even Those who care a bit about their weight might not sufficiently care enough to go to the bother of taking injections and spending a whole lot of money.

Others would if they could but can’t afford it.

Others may have medical issues which complicate things so can’t do it on that basis.

Some people aren’t keen on taking medication they feel is not necessary for fear of side effects known and unknown.

And especially don’t like the idea of potentially having to take them for the rest of their life too to maintain any weight they have lost.

4 years ago I would’ve been one of the overweight people you saw in a town. I am 5ft 3, was 80kg, now 64kg and my BMI is 24/25 now down from 32.

I refused to take WLI, as slow as my weight loss was I learnt a lot from the journey and find it rewarding getting on top of my emotional eating and addressing the root issues. I have also recently had to take other medication for something else and I am glad I don’t need to worry about how it interacts with WLI. I have about 4kg to lose now before I get to my goal weight. Nearly there.

Well done on losing so much weight and for remaining stable.

I too had surgery but took the weight loss too far and starved myself. I still thought I was fat when I was buying XXS. Size 8 was often too big for me and I couldn’t find clothes that fit.

Fattening food is often very cheap.

A lot of people use food, to deal with the untreated, ongoing effects of trauma. That is often overlooked. I believe that therapy should also be part of the treatment for a good number of people.

Yes, so OP could spend the money she would have spent on WLI on therapy then?

Because they have a lot of unwanted side effects and nobody really knows the long term impact of taking them.
So it's an individual balancing act between the potential benefits Vs potential side effects plus the obvious financial considerations.
Or maybe they just don't want to and it's none of your business?

Even if I was overweight which I'm not I wouldn't take wlj even if they were prescribed as there are no long term effects known and it's been shown some people put the weight back on plus some. That defeats the object of the jabs in the first place.
I wouldn't buy online either because how would you know if you were receiving the pukka injections and not some rip off rubbish?

My DP is overweight and could afford the medicines .
he doesn’t want to as he is happy as he is and isn’t ill from being fat.

Not all bigger people are unhappy and sick, as a PP said fat people are not a homogeneous group.

Wekl- when so many (including us) are already in an overdraft before the next pay day I think it's perfectly clear that a 'mere coupla hundred a month' is beyond doable for many.

If not a goady post, then a classic example of how someone has no vision of life outside their own little bubble.

This!

I’m waiting to see the secondary effects and complications after several years. At this time it is too early to judge if these treatments are actually a good thing. At the end of the day they have only been tested in rats and they do not live long enough to show effects in the long term.

Three months on a GLP-1 (Saxenda, back in the wilds of 2022, and three months was all I could afford!) saved my life. Kickstarted my weight loss (which I mostly did through IF and VLC) and led to me losing 6.5 stone and going from a size 26 to a size 14-16. I feel great. So I am all for them.

BUT.

I absolutely hate that they have emboldened even further the rampant fatphobes that we had barely managed to escape from after the heroin chic of the 90s and early 00s. Christ alive, don't you all have anything better to do with your lives than to wang on endlessly about other people's bodies?

My parents were told that they were bad for the pancreas.