Labour should invest in weight loss medications immediately

[HowToSaveTheNHS]

AIBU to think the Labour government should seriously consider rolling out weight loss drugs to the obese population, to tackle obesity, diabetes and cut NHS waiting lists? Traditional public health measures to tackle obesity are not working.

We spend so much money treating disease associated with obesity and it’s only going to get worse as increasing numbers of people are living for decades with multiple health conditions associated with obesity. Even dementia’s leading cause is Type 2 diabetes.

Looking at the Mounjaro thread on here, huge numbers of Mumsnetters are successfully losing weight and improving their health. But people on lower incomes won’t have access because the drugs are expensive.

A course of drugs for a year will surely be money well spent if we can reduce heart disease/ diabetes/ dementia/ cancer etc… even hypertension.

Obesity is patently a political problem in part given that high levels of obesity are correlated with high areas of poverty.

Also given that our state funded health service is treating obesity-related chronic and acute disease.

And because the government is in charge of policy and regulation governing agriculture, food production and sales?

And the government funds meal delivery in state schools and the sports curriculum. And the availability of public parks in which people can exercise.

Even public transport, especially bus routes, can determine whether people on low incomes can source healthy food in supermarkets.

Surely it’s a a mix of personal responsibility and public policy?

We need to take personal responsibility for over eating. With the NHS in the state it’s in we really need to get people to help themselves rather than the good old NHS sorting them out. Other countries such as Japan don’t have large amounts of obesity. We need to look at places that don’t have the issues we have.

I have a friend who insists they don’t eat very much. They are looking to lose about 3-4 stone. They refuse to list out for 7 days what they are actually eating to see where the issues are. They joined Weighwatchers and lasted a few weeks and then the excuses started as to why they couldnt go They are looking at quick fix weight loss options but generally it’s all about what sort of food you are eating and what portion size you think is normal which quite honestly has increased massively since I was a child.

This isn't true. The average overall loss on Mounjaro is still 14% (down from 25% when on the medication) - so still a net loss

How about reintroducing Home Economics in schools? Lots of families don't know how to cook and live on Uber Eats etc.

I WANT to buy them a treat though. Just not a fucking doorstep sized portion and not all the bits on top of the hot choc. It’s the same for adults. We might fancy a little treat but the cafes sell us huge portions with added extras. It feels criminal to me and makes me so fucking angry. I think in 50 years we’ll look back and realise how mindlessly damaging it was to sell and normalise these things, like smoking has thankfully become.

It's also said, your body will ask for food until it's protein needs are met. But you don't see people taking much notice of that I've found.

If you're obese exercising hard would take like ten minutes and it's also pointless vs eating less, it's like an alcoholic doing a liver cleanse

The reason it's hormonal is because metabolism changes (for some,not all) I put on nearly 4 stone in perimenopause eating and exercising exactly as I had done before. The problem was that my metabolism had changed and I only needed 1400 calories a day. So yes, I was 'overeating' if I ate 1500 calories a day.

Eating to lose weight for me means 900 calories a day. 900 calories is very hard core 'eating less', it is very difficult to do that long term. It's not laziness or greed that makes it difficult, it's the fact that it's a tiny amount of food.

Just because you read a couple of posts where people are doing the work alongside does not make it untrue when others, including myself, who have seen loads who don't follow a great diet plan or try to be healthy

I'm sure they wouldn't say if they were eating upfs and high sugar foods.

This seems like a 'plastering over the cracks' solution. Whatever was fundamentally wrong in people's lives would still be there, just hidden. It's better to find out why people are getting obese in the first place, even with a knowledge of the consequences, and do something about that.

My thought is that we live in a fractured and unhappy society. 'Naughty' treats are a momentary fix for feelings of unease. I am reminded of the experiment on rats many years ago. One group lived in small, cramped cages but were allowed to administer a 'feel good' drug to themselves via a lever. They promptly became addicted and pulled the lever incessantly until they died. Another group were given an interesting environment and social contact with other rats. They also had free access to the drug but did not become addicted - they were too busy living a full life.

My opinion is that we are like those rats. An upgrade in quality of life would help some people a lot more than giving out drugs to counter an 'addiction' to unhealthy food.

You share

The NHS doesn't automatically provide stop smoking nicotine replacement patches etc anymore for free or even on prescription...yet smoking still kills or causes huge health burdens.
The evidence is that people who have support to change their lifestyle while on injectables do better at keeping the weight off longer term. BUT who is going to pay for this support??? And who is going to insist or ensure that everyone getting NHS provided injectables does attend exercise classes and cookery classes and healthy eating classes etc ..?
It's not just the cost of the injections.
We know that a lot of diets work...ww and sw for example but people mostly regain the weight when they stop going.
It's because unless you can accept personal responsibility for what you shovel in your mouth and your lifestyle then whatever adjunct therapy you have won't have long term benefits.
So I'd be happy for people to get one month prescription but no more unless they have attended classes, been to therapy and lost a certain amount. And then this is repeated every month.
But ..there isn't a money tree whatever Wes , Kier and mates claim.

Looking at the Mounjaro thread on here

You mean the injection that causes thyroid cancer in mice and has irreversible gastroparesis as a side effect?

Don’t like it don’t buy it

@StickItInTheFamilyAlbum I actually think £1560 per person per year is an absolute bargain (and thank you for your calculations!) compared with estimated costs for obesity co-morbities.

In addition the costs of drugs used at the moment will significantly reduce when they can go generic (2025 for Ozempic? I may be wrong).

These drugs provide a solution for some people and will save taxpayers a hell of a lot of money. It would be a shame to refuse to to prescribe them for purely judgmental reasons, which seems to be the prevailing theme on this thread.

I find it bizarre if you know about this issue ans work in public health that you're not advocating doing anything about the cause of the crisis, which is the food industry and its immense power to shape what food is available, accessible and appealing. They've done such a number on us convincing everyone obesity is a problem of individual failure, and can be fixed by people exercising more etc. Obesity and diabetes around the world have shot up as food corporations have arrived. Many countries have dual crises of starvation and obesity. Let's fix the cause, rather than treat the symptoms with a pill. We need to regulate the food industry in so many ways, and reduce poverty, if we want to start truly addressing the obesity and diabetes epidemics.

To answer the question op I would far rather the government invested in cooking lessons in schools, the provision of healthy food in deprived areas, good bus routes, firmer regulation of fast food outlets and supermarket profits. Also in supporting our farmers, and instigating measures to ensure that our main supermarkets limit the amount of ready-prepared food and high sugar foods, in relation to the proportion of space reserved for selling fruit and veg.

Also fair access to swimming pools, parks, and leisure centres and sports lessons at subsidised rates.

These measures would be much more beneficial imho than investing in a drug which targets the symptoms not the root cause and has potential damaging side effects, and the benefits of which are not long lasting once the pills are stopped.

Also an economy which supports opportunity and equality, where good public services function well, is far less likely to lead to enclaves of impoverished people, or people waiting for an operation, who are physically inactive, don’t dare to leave their homes, or have nothing to leave home for, in which cheap food becomes their only means of feeding their dc or lifting their mood.

We need to take personal responsibility for over eating. With the NHS in the state it’s in we really need to get people to help themselves rather than the good old NHS sorting them out. Other countries such as Japan don’t have large amounts of obesity. We need to look at places that don’t have the issues we have

I can tell you how the Japanese stay thin: shaming. When you gain a bit of weight people will absolutely comment on it lol and being fat will make you a less desirable hire in the workplace

Simple isn't it. Cut the cake in half. How many excuses is it possible to make.

This. The lack of awareness as to what some people are eating, is a huge part of the problem. Learning to take the time to read the ingredients in a product, is so important. Also understanding of the types of ingredients that should be avoided at all cost. There needs to be a huge cultural shift in how food is seen here, imo. Too many times on MN for example, I have seen posters displaying the attitude that cooking is boring, time consuming, drudge work etc.. I see cooking with wholesome ingredients as investing in my health.

I believe adult obesity sometimes starts with not getting enough food in childhood, so the government should look at ensuring that wages are high enough & good, nutritious food is cheap enough that no child grows up feeling anxiety about food supply. If we were to eliminate the need for food banks, that would be brilliant.

@HowToSaveTheNHS So to be clear OP, you are a health professional working for the NHS?

Would you mind sharing your weight, height and BMI with us, please? Just out of interest.

Also, out of interest, do you follow NHS guidelines about smoking and drinking? Do you cook from scratch and avoid UPF? Do you exercise for at least 30 minutes several times a week?

Because I would really, really like to know. To put things into perspective.

I have lots of other questions but those can follow after your replies.

No
I think we should put huge taxes on
processed and sugary foods.

Making city centres car free aswell might help from an exercise perspective.

Exactly, we are suffering from the effects of capitalism running wild and unfettered.

We ideally want a mix of a lively economy tempered by sensible, but not stifling, regulation, with public interest at the heart of policy.