This injectable prescription weight loss medication has been claimed to help patients lose weight and keep it off.
This article reviews the medical research on Wegovy, determines its efficacy and safety, and discusses its side effects. Wegovy will also be compared to other popular weight loss injections such as Saxenda.
Wegovy is a weight loss medication designed for people who cannot lose weight. It suppresses the person's appetite by modifying certain chemicals, peptides, and neurotransmitters in the brain.
Study participants lost weight only after the study shifted from treating Type-II diabetes to helping them lose weight.
The drug had a promising start with a small clinical trial of 48 participants. When the trial proved successful, the test was expanded to include more participants.
Overall, Wegovy was tested in three clinical trials with 2,254 participants. Given this statistic, the results were largely successful.
A study on whether Wegovy injections could help overweight and obese patients lose weight was published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine in 2021. Wegovy injections were administered to half the patients and placebo injections to the other half. Additionally, both groups modified their lifestyles by reducing calories.
There was a significant difference in weight loss between the Wegovy and placebo groups. Compared with the placebo group, the Wegovy group had an average change from a baseline body weight of -14.9%, while the placebo group had an average change from the baseline body weight of -2.4%. A 68-week trial was conducted.
It was also found that Wegovy was effective in reducing weight in type-2 diabetic patients. Similar results were obtained. After 68 weeks, Wegovy injection patients lost 9.6% of their baseline weight, while placebo injection patients lost only 3.4%.
Even though the Semaglutide in the Wegovy trial was lower, its ability to produce weight loss was proven in a previous trial. Patients in this study, who were given Semaglutide dosages at 22-44% of the amounts in Wegovy, experienced more weight loss than those given the placebo. These doses are similar to the doses given when Ozempic is prescribed for weight loss,
Looking at the available evidence, Wegovy may be more effective than simply implementing lifestyle changes.
Semaglutide is the active ingredient in Wegovy. A drug class known as GLP-1 includes this chemical.
A compound mimicking the Incretin hormone action is called an Incretin mimetic. These hormones stimulate insulin secretion from the pancreas.
Therefore, these compounds are commonly used to treat Type-II diabetes. Weight loss can also be achieved through some of the reactions they produce in the body.
Wegovy can increase measures of satiation and decrease hunger by stimulating specific neurons (POMC/CART) and inhibiting certain peptides (neuropeptide Y) in the brain.
Semaglutide stimulates the release of pro-opiomelanocortin, a neuron responsible for curbing hunger.
This chemical is released in response to hunger signals. Still, it is believed that Wegovy alters how the brain receives those signals, which leads it to believe that you are satiated even when you haven't eaten anything. They're facilitated by the cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART) pathway.
Other appetite suppressants, like Phentermine, work by stimulating the body. But the difference is that Wegovy doesn't.
People who take Wegovy eat less and consequently have a lower caloric intake, which results in weight loss.
Besides slowing down the expulsion of food from the gut, Wegovy also promotes weight loss.
This can be achieved by increasing levels of gut hormones such as glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1).
In addition to causing a feeling of fullness, these hormones also decrease the likelihood of overeating.
Among the most reported side effects of Wegovy injections were nausea and vomiting, which 63.5% of patients reported. Other side effects include headache, dizziness, and fatigue. If you experience any of these side effects, stop using Wegovy and talk to a doctor at weight loss coach.
Some of the concerning side effects of Wegovy are the more severe side effects, such as the increased risk of thyroid tumours, which Wegovy displays on its homepage. These are only a risk for people who are pre-dispositioned.
A recent medical review of Wegovy reports that 7.7% of patients using the treatment-experienced severe adverse events, which is higher than the average. There were no reported cases of death because of Wegovy use..
People with a body mass index over 30 and an average weight loss of 10 pounds are the targets demographic for Wegovy. That would be considered obese. In addition to taking wegovy, a reduced-calorie diet and exercise are part of a weight-loss program.
There are a lot of people who are clamouring for Wegovy, but they aren't all obese. It's just a few pounds they want to lose. In addition to being unnecessary, this could also be dangerous.
Certain chemicals in the brain are altered when you take Wegovy weight loss medication. Losing a few pounds isn't the point.
Based on clinical results, both drugs have similar safety and efficacy profiles, which is unsurprising for their chemical compounds (Liraglutide vs Semaglutide).
Wegovy's active ingredient, Semaglutide, was more effective than Saxenda's active ingredient, Liraglutide, for weight loss in a meta-analysis of the two drugs. Wegovy doses were lower in this study than those used in Wegovy and Saxenda, so these results shouldn't be interpreted as superior to Saxenda.
Wegovy may be more effective, but we should conduct more research to confirm this. We advise patients diagnosed with one of these two medications to compare the cost since there is not much difference in efficacy or safety.
Often, patients need clarification about the difference between Ozempic and Wegovy.
The two drugs contain the same active ingredient: Semaglutide. Wegovy is prescribed for people who are obese, and Ozempic is prescribed for people with type-2 diabetes. The dose of Semaglutide in Ozempic is lower, and both medications are injectable.
Weight loss: based on recent research, Wegovy is likely to be more effective, as it is proven to have a dose-dependent effect. That means the higher the dose (to a limit), the more effective the drug is.
Consequently, because Wegovy contains a higher dose of Semaglutide than Ozempic, Wegovy is likely to be more effective in aiding weight loss.
Regarding diabetes, Ozempic should not be prescribed alone to our patients because the FDA has not approved Wegovy in the U.S. to treat diabetes, even though studies suggest it is effective.
For those with low incomes prescribed either Wegovy or Saxenda, we recommend comparing the costs between the two treatments since they have similar effectiveness in research. It is better to consult with a doctor at Weight Loss Coach to get the estimated price for both treatments.
Although some refer to Wegovy as a miracle drug, it isn't for everyone. It's meant for morbidly obese adults who have previously tried but not managed their weight by other means—those with medical conditions like Type-II Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, etc.
With many possible side effects ranging from mild to severe, the risks are high unless you are desperate to try anything.
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