to feel uneasy about what this means long term rather than surprised by the weight regain itself?

[HazelMember]

I’ve just read a BBC article about research into weight loss injections like Ozempic and Wegovy showing that people who stop taking them tend to regain weight quite quickly.

I’m not shocked that weight comes back. That happens after most weight loss attempts whether they involve medication or not.

These drugs are increasingly talked about as something people might take for years or even indefinitely. That raises questions for me about what happens when someone cannot afford them anymore, when supply changes, when side effects become an issue or when a person simply does not want to stay on a medication for life.

If stopping leads not just to regain but to a fairly rapid rebound, it feels less like a temporary aid and more like something that is very hard to step away from once started. That sits oddly with how casually they are sometimes discussed.

AIBU to think the real issue here is not that people regain weight after stopping, but whether we are quietly normalising a treatment that may be difficult to discontinue once begun? Or is this simply the reality of managing a chronic condition?

The pharma companies will be rubbing their grubby little paws in glee.

The NHS will never be able to justify funding this for the many many many people taking it who weren't actually obese, it will only be available to people who are dangerously unwell through obesity/diabetes etc for whom the alternative is likely to be other costly medical interventions down the line.

So the vast majority will get it privately and the companies will be able to charge whatever the hell they want for it.

It will become a poverty indicator not to be able to afford it.

We don’t know enough about the possible side effects of long term use do we. And whether they are safe in pregnancy, or whether they are safe in conjunction with other medications including hormonal contraception.

We do however know a lot about the long term risks of obesity.

Also I was told it could interfere with some forms of hormonal contraception, thought that was generally agreed?

We do know about contraception, it affects it, women are advised to ensure that they take alternative methods as it makes the pill less effective.

I dont know if pregnant diabetics are taken off their medication for the pregnancy? I wouldnt have thought so given the risk of complications.

They keep posting to balance out the nonsense. Should they just stay quiet and let people express their faux concern and ‘horror stories’? This is a forum where people can post their opinions and experiences.

There are low cost generic versions being worked on right now ready to launch once the patents have lapsed. Reason I know is that my partners work is wrapped up in it. I see them as being like a statin as time goes on. The data around these drugs are showing them to be excellent for lots of health conditions alongside Metformin which is now being touted as the new anti-aging drug. It’s pretty exciting and not anything to be worried about.

I was thinking more about possible effects on the foetus.

Further research is needed but there have been a number of studies and they have not found increased risks of major congenital malformations. They have also compared women on GLPs with overweight and obese pregnant women - pregnancy losses in 1st group 23%, second group 29%.
Study from last year found: the prescription of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist within 24 months preceding a pregnancy was associated with a reduced risk of several adverse obstetrical outcomes, including gestational diabetes mellitus, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, preterm delivery, and cesarean delivery. This suggests that the use of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists may be a powerful tool to improve perinatal outcomes in high-risk populations.

Does it say that? I thought it said weight loss injections followed by sustained behavioural change (which I took to mean healthy diet and an active lifestyle), maybe I’ve interpreted it wrong.

I know my friend who was on it before and regained weight didn’t changed what she ate, just ate less of it on the injections the first time.

This time she has changed what she is eating and is more active. She is losing weight more quickly and looks more healthy. She’s not where she wants to be yet but is hoping to keep it off this time.

My sister lost almost 6 stone, not on jabs but on a total change of habit. After decades of being morbidly obese her DH died. She did love him but he gave her a sort of constant low level misery which none of us knew about as she hid it. It’s almost 8 years now and she has put back on 1 stone. She now looks at her very best.

Obesity should not be seen as a medical “condition”. Weight gain is not something that “happens”. It’s a very simple result of eating too much.

I don’t care if people regain weight after stopping their anti-greed jabs. They need to learn that hunger is not an emergency and won’t hurt them.

The screenshot said the best results were likely to come from using WLI whilst using another method for long term habit change. Gave SW and Noom as examples. I don't know know anything about Noom but the SW suggestion is rather optimistic!

Sorry am trying to quote Leafy here. It disappeared!

Once it's available in pill form, I see it being a bit like statins.

Obesity should not be seen as a medical “condition”.

Have you let WHO know they are wrong?

They're not only available to people who can afford them though, are they? They are not currently widespread available for weight loss on the NHS but there are strict criteria for prescription - as with many other medications.

As for 'rich', you really need to define what you mean by thtat. I am a very average earner (teacher) and make a choice to afford them - largely funded by eating out less and a reduced food bill. Not entirely, but mainly funded in this way. It's tough - I should reap the benefits of better health with more cash in my pocket but hey ho, that's life. It's working. I will live longer as a result. It's the price I need to pay.

I dunno, it doesn't surprise me really.

I always thought there's never really been any proper help with the long term effects of drugs, especially new ones or something used off label. When things go wrong, people are never given much help. They're just told to put up, shut up and get on with life.

Speaking from experience with being injured by off label psychotropic drugs that gave me a neurological involuntary movement disorder. I've spent a decade living with the effects and never had much support from medical professionals, only from the other patients who've been harmed.

I'm biased obviously, but it's one real reason why I'm so cynical about all these so-called "treatments". Does it never cross people's minds what might happen long term, or if they stop? 😫😳

this in itself is not an issue with WLI - other than they exist - this is the abuse of WLI and, at some level, the laxness of the prescriber. I have used a number of different online pharmacies - the ' burden of proof' varies - they are the people that need to be held accountable, not the injections themselves.

This, and for some of us they just don't cost that much. Mine rush me less than £30 a week all considered.

Certainly there are some people who couldn't possibly afford that, but it's also not remotely unusual to have twenty odd quid a week spare. My household are comfortable enough, but it's the sort of income level where if I dared to call myself rich on here, within hours there'd be a 1000 post thread arguing with me about it.

@Binus exactly. It's not an extortionate amount of money. I find it bizzare that the cost to an individual becomes the concern of strangers. People cut their cloth and so on. My current dose is cheaper than my council tax. Circumstances can change, but why would you be paralysed by that in case you slip into poverty in a hypothetical future scenario. I don't understand that. People take way greater financial risks than that. Children. Morgages. Part-time work. It is a tiny amount of money to be worried about in the grande scheme of things. It also shows me that these posters probably don't understand how people stay on them long-term. Many tapper down or spread out doses.

What's this argument about the poor not being able to afford them? So nobody should have them? I cannot afford a private jet, so can we make sure please that nobody in the world has one? Thanks.

My intuition here is that the manufacturers of weight loss injections have more to gain by making them affordable for ordinary people.
Manufacturers of highly addictive food-like substances however would probably prefer it if they were priced such that only the well off could afford them.

very few people are obese because of health conditions. Mostly it’s psychological. It’s baffles me that you wouldn’t think treating the underlying causes is better than just taking a jab and covering up the issue

it baffles me that
a) you don't consider psychological issues to be 'health conditions'.

b) that you think 'a jab' covers up the issue of obesity. It won't work if you don't make changes. I don't understand why people don't get that.

Been taking WLI for 6 months now. Prior to taking them, I did some serious self-reflection at where I was at with life generally. I made many changes, wanting to lose weight was only one of the things I needed to address. It has been a multi-pronged attack on improving my life and my lifestyle. 'A jab' is only a small part of the bigger picture. Getting friends and colleagues to recognise that I no longer want a big plate of food, a biscuit with my coffee etc. has probably been the hardest part. Support for being thinner has come from unexpected sources and I am grateful to those people, really grateful, for their continued, quiet support. There are too many who feel confident in looking me up and down and sneering or discussing the latest 'you'll only put the weight back on and for what?' article they read on Facebook very loudly within my earshot. There's your problem - society as a whole and its attitudes towards the overweight. Bascially, whatever I do it's wrong. So doing what works for me. I don't need you, or anyone else, to be OK with that.

I think the guidance is correct. Use it for medical reasons not cosmetic. If you’re overweight with no issues like high bp etc the risk of using this outweighs the benefit.

If you’re morbidly obese to the point it’s affecting your mobility and causing other health conditions you should get it on the NHS / privately.

The one other big thing people need to consider is that if you do lose a huge amount of weight you are going to either be on the jabs for the rest of your life or likely end up regaining, whatever approach you take. You might keep it off for years but something can trigger you to regain as that’s how your brain is wired.

Your body might take years to stop defending its highest weight and trying to get you back there. Also losing 4-5 stone upwards might leave you needing cosmetic surgery afterwards and that won’t be on the NHS. Also psychological issues when you find yourself in a slim body, battling with hunger everyday (if you’re not on the jabs) and dealing with a lot of loose skin. Celebs will get cosmetic surgery but the average person can’t afford that and might have been happier reducing down to a slightly higher weight but one where they don’t have loose skin.

I wouldn’t enter into the decision lightly. There’s a lot to consider. If you aren’t morbidly obese I would stick at the exercise and diet first.

@lbooboo Those are excellent points. The WLI thread I am on has a lot of people who are worried about taking their first dose, putting it off for months etc. I think a good proportion of people does not take this decision lightly.

If you aren’t morbidly obese I would stick at the exercise and diet first.

Sigh. Do you really think that obese people have never attempted a diet before? Most obese people have spent years if not decades on various different diets.

Re your other points about loose skin and regaining weight… are you suggesting an obese person just stay as they are then? Facing obesity related illnesses and compromised joints?

@SwingTheMonkey Today I say I won't mind loose skin as the disadvantages of being obese are higher, but I do wonder how I will feel once I actually have loose skin. I do imagine it will be difficult too. I can't say whether it would bother me enough to do something about it or if it's just going to be a niggle. I agree obesity is a ticking time bomb so I hope it won't go off on me and loose skin will seem easier to deal with.