Ozempic, a medication primarily used to treat type 2 diabetes, has taken the weight-loss world by storm. While it boasts impressive results and many celebs admit to have taken it, the question remains: is Ozempic a safe and effective option to load off unwanted kilograms?
According to Lerato Matona from Johannesburg who has been battling with her weight for a long time, her experience using Ozempic has been amazing. She states she has managed to lose a total of 12kg by using Ozempic.
“I started using Ozempic in December 2023, and I saw results from the second week. My starting weight was 117kg. I’m currently weighing 101kg. I’ve only experienced nausea after two days of using Ozempic and no other side effects thus far,” she says.
“I consulted with a doctor who specialises in weight loss before taking the medications, and I always have follow-up check-ups every month. It’s a really good medication for morbidly obese individuals, and like any other illness, obesity needs medication so that one can avoid things like hypertension and diabetes,” explains Matona.
For Lynn Hendricks from Cape Town, using Ozempic for two years resulted in her losing 5kg. She says it is expensive and can be life-changing, but it must be used under the guidance of a doctor.
‘I was scared to inject it the first time’
“When I started using Ozempic, I was experiencing severe arthritis due to unexplained weight gain. My results came back as prediabetic, and my medical team recommended the treatment.
“I started with a low dose of 0.25mg for four weeks, then moved up to 0.5 mg for four weeks, then 0.75 mg for four weeks, and then 1mg. I didn’t experience any side effects. I was scared to inject the first time but quickly got used to it,” Hendricks says.
She explains that it stopped her from gaining more weight. Although she did not experience sudden weight loss, her appetite was suppressed.
“My arthritis pain subsided, and my blood work started to normalise. More importantly, my hormone readings normalised. I experienced no side effects except a reduced appetite,” Hendricks shares.
Beyond Duromine: Weighing pros and cons of weight-loss meds
‘Expensive and not easy to find‘
A Durban resident who has been wanting to lose weight for several years just to be healthy and to look good, says he heard about Ozempic after reading an article in the NYTimes.
“I used Ozempic for one month and a half. However, that was not long enough for me to see tangible results. I also started going to the gym at the same time.
“The first challenge with Ozempic is visiting the doctor and getting your blood work done to get a prescription. However, there’s also a massive challenge around the stock and availability of the medication. I first went and found stock, after which I decided to go see the doctor. My doctor is the one who suggested I start adjusting my diet first; however, I have tried that numerous times and had no success. I really just wanted the Ozempic.”
After failing to find any stock, he says he decided to look for an alternative and started using Duromine, which he says was much easier to find and also more affordable.
“Although I love Ozempic, finding stock is problematic. Although I can afford it, I can imagine it can be challenging for most to spend R4 500 every month on it.”
Specialising as a medical weight loss doctor with a special interest in obesity medicine, Dr Tracy Nelwamondo from Johannesburg explains that Ozempic is a medicine that is used for diabetes, with its active ingredient being semaglutide. She says this is also used for people living with opportune obesity.
Use with caution
“In South Africa, when we use Ozempic, it is an off-label use, which doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s an illegal or wrong thing to do, but we’re not using it for the indication that it’s registered for,” Nelwamondo explains.
“Because we know that elsewhere it is being registered or other people are having the other version, which is called Wevogy, recovery is the same with the same active ingredient; the only difference is the dosage.
“Ozempic is a smaller dose, whereas Wegovy is a bigger dose, and then the indication for Wegovy is obesity, whereas the indication for Ozempic is people living with diabetes. However, both medicines have an identical active ingredient called semaglutide.”
She explains that we are seeing an increase in people using Ozempic for weight loss because the one that is supposed to be used for weight loss is not yet registered in South Africa. In other countries, however, they do have the semaglutide component that is supposed to be used for weight loss.
“People are using semaglutide or Ozempic for weight loss because we know it’s evidence-based medicine, meaning that we have proof through articles and research that the medicine can be used for people who are living with obesity and also for diabetes.
“The unfortunate thing is not having enough volume or not having enough units.”
Dr Tracy Nelwamondo
“But the fact that maybe the people living with obesity are just having a matter of time before they are diagnosed with diabetes if nothing changes, does give us a good indication to say that maybe we should actually use it for them as well because the science is there and it’s clear that these medicines are to be used in people who are living with obesity.”
Nelwamondo emphasises that there are risks to using any pharmaceutical medicine, whether it’s for weight loss or flu, and that’s why certain medicines cannot be an over-the-counter situation. There need to be medicines that you get prescribed by a medical doctor who is registered, who’s going to help you with side effect management and explain the medicines and how to use them safely.
“So there are risks not only for people using Ozempic for weight loss but for people using it for diabetes as well.”
Dr Tracy Nelwamondo
“That’s why there is a qualification criterion where you need to have a body mass index (BMI) of 27 with the complications of obesity, which are high blood pressure, diabetes, and cholesterol, or you can have a BMI of 30. So it’s not a good idea if you don’t fall into those categories to use their medicines because they haven’t really been tested on people who are in your population group.
“But risk factors or side effects are the nature of medicines. Pharmaceutical medicines have side effects but we know about them, we know how to look out for them, and we know how to advise you in order to avoid them. So not to fear, but actually to be the right candidate, and also just to use and follow it as it’s been instructed by a medical doctor,” Nelwamondo advises.
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