To wonder if there will be any fall out from skinny jabs?

[TheLemonGuide]

Everyone I know is now suddenly very slim. Okay, im exaggerating slightly, but genuinely, most of my friends who were previously overweight are all now slim thanks to skinny jabs. I am delighted for them! It seems unbelievable to think that a jab can cure this obesity crisis, but I am so pleased my friends and a couple of family members are able to live a healthier life thanks to this.

My only slight concern is, is this something that is going to be too good to be true? Do you think there will be any long term repercussions, or are we right to just celebrate this medication as a cure for something that so many have been battling for so long?

I'd like to read the study also. I am not interested in arguing about bullet points amassed from other studies.

If you can't see the problem with a young person losing muscle and bone without their awareness, or an older person already at risk of frailty losing more muscle and bone, I can't help you.

That’s not what I’m saying, you’re suggesting that I think that’s fine, not me. I’m saying that I’d like to understand the claims that are being written here third hand from the original source. If it’s alarming then I can understand that and respond to it.

@icecreamflowerslike everything in life we have to make decisions based on least harm and best likely outcome. The fact is that most people eating in a deficit will lose lean muscle mass and bone density. The amount will be determined by the composition of your diet and the lifestyle changes you make.

The only way to completely avoid it is to not eat in a deficit but that would mean staying obese or getting more obese which comes with its own multitude of health issues.

I have lost 50% of my bodyweight, literally a whole persons worth of weight that I was carrying around putting strain on my heart, joints and putting me at higher risk of pretty much every illness going.

I lost my weight while eating between 1400 and 1800 calories a day, high protein, high fibre, moderate fat and low carb. I do swimming and resistance exercises, I also walk a lot. Mounjaro made it easier for me to be consistent in this approach because I was not starving hungry all the time, it also regulated my blood sugar which I know for a fact because I have type 2 diabetes and wear a glucose monitor. All of my blood tests and medical exams have shown dramatically improvement in my health markers across all organs and systems, so I am satisfied that Mounjaro has had an overwhelmingly positive impact on my health and wellbeing and am more than comfortable recommending it as a treatment for obesity based on my experience.

I have already posted that I saw this on TV, and looked it up online and could not find any links to the study. I hope they do put the results online at some point.

Here is what the "AI overview" said just now:

"Exercise & Sports Science Australia (ESSA) has warned that rapid weight loss from GLP-1 drugs (such as Ozempic) can lead to the equivalent of 20 years of age-related muscle decline in just one year if not managed properly. 1, 2]

Key Findings from the ESSA Warning (May 2026):
Muscle Loss Rate: Up to 40% of the weight lost using GLP-1 drugs can be lean body mass, including muscle.
Premature Frailty: This rapid loss of muscle (sarcopenia) creates a high risk of frailty, falls, and balance issues, essentially accelerating the body’s age-related muscle decline.
"Ozempic Face/Butt": The loss of fat and muscle, combined with reduced skin elasticity, can cause saggy "Ozempic face" and "Ozempic butt," making users look older.
Recommendation: ESSA is calling for mandated referrals to Accredited Exercise Physiologists (AEPs) at the point of prescribing these medications to protect muscle health. 1, 2, 3]"

From the Facebook link:

"ESSA CEO and Accredited Exercise Physiologist Katie Lyndon has been featured on page 3 of The Adelaide Advertiser, highlighting concerns that the rapid rise in GLP-1 weight loss medications is leaving some patients muscle-depleted and at risk of premature frailty.

ESSA is calling on governments to mandate referrals to Accredited Exercise Physiologists (AEPs) at the point of prescription, ensuring patients receive appropriate support to protect muscle health.

Today at the Activate Conference in Adelaide, ESSA is hosting a session: Exercise and weight loss in a world of lifestyle, stigma and pharmacology.
Presented by Dr Fiona Willer, AdvAPD, PhD, Dr Adelaide Boylan, Winthrop Professor Daniel Green and AEP Sara Slayman. Attendees will hear how, without appropriate intervention, these medications can accelerate muscle loss equivalent to up to 20 years of age-related decline in just 12 months."

Can someone put it in basic terms why I am more likely to lose muscle and bone density losing weight on a GLP 1 compared with losing weight without a GLP 1? I have done both and both times I ate the same diet, all the GLP 1 did was enable me to stick to the new eating plan. What makes the GLP 1 steal more muscle and bone density?

Im not challenging the idea btw, I just struggle to process information and find it far easier to read basic terms than articles and studies

I don’t think it does. It’s just that many taking a GLP1 jump up the doses to get high suppression, they then don’t eat enough calories or protein and they don’t lift weights so they lose muscle.

if you look on the weight loss threads when someone only loses 0.5kg a week (ie normal without a GLP1) they are concerned about slow losses.

To be fair, there will be plenty of posts telling them that’s a normal and decent rate of loss and not to be discouraged or chase higher suppression.

Sure but the fact that they are asking. And that some claim to have lost so quickly, like a stone per month

Well I lost a stone in the first month, but I was huge, so as a percentage of my body weight it wasn’t an extreme amount of weight. It’s not dissimilar to the amounts that obese people would lose on the first weeks of Fast 800, or the kind of liver shrinking diet that is used pre surgery, or the kind of VLCD replacement diets that are prescribed for morbidly obese people. And I was eating a decent amount of calories including protein, and increasing my activity.

I’ve not given the skinny jabs a single thought, let alone be concerned about them. If there are potential problems then that’s for a scientist to think about or the people who use them to raise their own concerns about. But if you don’t use them and nobody close to you uses them, it’s not your job to worry about them.

Not just this I think but also the way they are being managed.

I've had two adds for how I can access these drugs online legally, with no real medical supervision, just this morning.

People's expectations seem to be built around what they are seeing in places like Hollywood.

In fact, a few weeks ago here on MN there was a thread where someone was concerned that a person they knew was accessing the drugs fraudulently. By getting them online and lying about their real weight. Many many people in the thread said the same thing as this one - it's fine, these drugs are safe, mind your own business, you are just a jealous nasty person who wants people to be fat.

People are being very weird and defensive even about people saying that there should be significant supervision, guidelines, care taken while we see how use for weight loss pans out long term. Its that attitude that, to me, is most concerning. If it was a drug for reducing bp, I can't imagine people would be so strange about it.

Yes and VLCD carry the same muscle loss risk.

Oh here we go again, defend yourself with a reasonable argument, why are you being “defensive”, oh sorry we mustn’t dare counter argue! We must take on board what you say and agree! 🤦‍♀️

I think though that the levels of supervision that people seem to think is necessary is way and above anything that’s done for any other medication. I am not supervised with respect to my blood pressure medication, I submit self taken home readings via a text once a year that no one verifies as accurate and if the readings are different I might get a call with a pharmacist to adjust dosage. I would only see the GP if I had a big variation in my readings.

I was not supervised when I was sent home with clexane self injections, and a new born. Many other serious medications are prescribed and the patient is left to it unless they report an issue.

Were people like this about other meds back in the day?! Chemotherapy, insulin, polio jabs, statins: 'is this something that is going to be too good to be true? Do you think there will be any long term repercussions, or are we right to just celebrate this medication as a cure for something that so many have been battling for so long?'
Or did people go, yay isn't science great, how amazing that there is now a fully trialed and safely licensed medical solution to help with that problem.

The key here is although the diet was the same, the consistency was not. The GLP 1 meant you were more consistent. More consistent weight loss, which includes muscle and bone. The same for putting on weight, you put on weight by consistently consuming excess calories.

TBH, everyone should be doing resistance training and increasing their protein. It’s probably the single best thing you can do to slow the aging process.

You don’t get to increase your dose of your blood pressure medication though without a consultation… And with weight loss jabs no one checks how much muscle you lost.

My guess is that a lot of the people who talk about supervision don't realise how much reliance there is elsewhere in the healthcare system on self-reporting and monitoring. Usually there isn't much response when it's pointed out.

People; and let’s face it women. Want supervision, of again. Let’s face it. Other women. as they know no resources are available to do that, not without huge cost and staffing, so it’s just another silly way to try to stop other women getting the injections.

its utterly crazy. The horse has bolted. It’s not going to change. They aren’t going away. People best get their heads round it ans accept it. Medical supervision isn’t required in the main. Most of us can lose weight without it lol.

we can now take medication and be slim. We can do it for life. No matter how much you hate it, you can’t stop it.

It’s done.

That's true, but you most certainly get to stay on various meds based on nothing more than your self reporting, and those come with risks. For example, back when I took the contraceptive pill, I had multiple prescriptions issued based on what I'd told them about my weight and blood pressure. If I'd wanted to stay on the meds I had a clear incentive to lie, and it would've been easy enough to google what those figures were 'supposed' to be.

You also don't typically get monitoring on muscle loss if you go to your GP for weight loss support and are issued some version of the usual eat less and move more. Now granted, that doesn't work in the long run. But many people do lose weight doing it, even though it usually goes back on, and we know that lost muscle mass is a risk of traditional dieting.

@MeridaBrave I could easily increase my BP medication dose on my own, I get 3 months of tablets in one go. It would take an age for my GP to notice if I was requesting my prescription a bit early each time and taking more than was prescribed. Or I could easily take less too, or stop taking them.

You’re right. No one checks you when you’re down slimming world either to see how much muscle you’ve lost. It’s an odd requirement and you’re sounding a little silly, almost grasping at straws.

check how much muscle you’ve lost lol.

Sarcopenia in midlife, lol. Osteoporosis ditto, lol.