Since Elon Musk spoke enthusiastically about the drug, the hype surrounding semaglutide in the United States has been endless. Originally developed for the treatment of diabetes, the active ingredient semaglutide is also considered revolutionary in the treatment of obesity. It is expected to be available not only as an injection but also as a tablet in the near future.
Semaglutide has received worldwide attention in recent months. The active ingredient mimics the effect of the body’s own glucagon-like peptide-1, leading to a feeling of fullness and delayed gastric emptying.
As a weekly injection under the skin, the drug has led to desirable reductions in blood sugar levels and reductions in HbA1c levels in type 2 diabetics. At the same time, weight loss of up to 15 percent of body weight has been established in clinical studies.
Trend reaches Europe
Weight loss has led to a real semaglutide hype in the US. There have even been supply bottlenecks for diabetics because of the drug’s off-label use as a weight loss aid. This trend has also spread to Europe.
The active ingredient has been approved in Europe since 2018 as a diabetes drug to lower blood sugar levels. From early 2022, it will also be approved under another brand name for use in weight loss and control. It is intended for people with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more (obesity) and overweight people (BMI of 27 or more) with at least one weight-related comorbidity.
Until now, the drug was not available as a medicine to help people lose weight in European countries. Now the next stage of development seems to have been reached: the Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has developed a tablet form of semaglutid in addition to the injectable form. This would make it much easier to take, especially for obese people.
Weight loss up to 15.1 percent recorded
According to Novo Nordisk, the scientific data seems to support this. “In a study that included nearly 700 obese or overweight adults who took one pill of semaglutide daily, there was a weight loss of 15.1 percent versus 2.4 percent with a placebo over a 17-month observation period,” the pharmaceutical information service wrote. “Fiery”.
Equally effective for tablets and injections
That would correspond almost exactly to the weight loss effect also proven in clinical studies for the injectable form of the drug. The most common – moderate – side effects are gastrointestinal problems, such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. In addition, there is apparently also a potential increased risk of retinal damage in diabetics.
Source: Krone
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