According to the WHO, obesity has tripled worldwide in recent years.
This is something unprecedented in humanity's history.
Studies also show that 47% of the American population says they want to take medication to lower their weight.
How is the rise in global obesity explained?
Science has concluded that the quality of processed foods consumed in modern society deprives our body of the ability to send satiety signals to the brain.
Processed foods have altered our brain in some way; we haven't yet isolated them in concrete or identified the chemicals that cause them, but the end result is already clear: these foods have transformed our eating habits, both in terms of quantity and quality.
How do the new miracle drugs for weight loss work?
What the so-famous modern medicines to lose weight do (mostly injectable) is basically restore that ability and return what was normal until you introduce this type of food.
In fact, it is an artificial solution to a problem that has been artificially placed in our body (and this is philosophically controversial).
There are several brands of these drugs on the market, and so many others are in development and may enter the market by 2024.
Take OzempicR as an example.
OzempicR causes a person to lose about 15% of their body weight in a year, and it is estimated that the next drugs to be released can bring about a reduction in the percentage of body weight loss by 25 to 30% without effort or diets. Only bariatric surgery has so far achieved these values.
Avoidable cause of death
It is now known that obesity is the leading preventable cause of death from heart problems or cancer, among more than 200 other health conditions.
Fortunately, a reduction in obesity rates within a few years can drastically reverse this percentage.
At the moment, everyone wants to resort to these medications to combat obesity, whether they have in mind only the aesthetic issue or not. The truth is, health is what benefits most from this weight loss.
Miracle drugs
Approximately every 20 years, a new “miracle drug” appears to combat obesity. However, as has happened in the past, the drugs that have appeared so far have brought with them enormous side effects, many of which left behind a large volume of deaths or were still dose-dependent drugs; that is, the body easily gained tolerance to the same drugs, forcing increased doses after side effects and inherent dangers.
In addition to the immediate balance issues, there are a number of other issues that are also cause for concern. For example, what is the position of these drugs with regard to the great achievement that has been achieved at the social level of acceptance of one’s own body and increased self-esteem? What is the position of these drugs when talking about problems like eating disorders, anorexia, bulimia, etc.?
What are the side effects of these new drugs?
I’m obese; what now?
Being obese brings great challenges at cultural, psychological, and even health levels.
There has to be a fairly honest conversation about the evils that obesity brings to the world. The benefit-risk of these drugs should be seen in a fairly broad way and based on everything that is known about obesity versus the side effects of these medications.
For instance, obesity significantly increases the risk of developing diabetes, a disease that carries numerous health complications. Obesity, for example, is the main cause of diabetes and amputations and reduces life on average by 15 years, even with all the medications and advances achieved so far.
One way to see the benefits and disadvantages of these new weight-loss medications is when compared to the results that bariatric surgery has achieved.
Bariatric surgery, for example, is quite risky; one in 100 people dies in the operating room, quadrupling the risk of suicide, in addition to all the physical discomfort associated with the postoperative procedure.
If analyzed coldly, it is something horrible, but still, the risk benefit between doing the surgery and remaining obese is much higher, so you continue to do so much of this surgery.
Stigma over obesity
Let’s talk about the stigma around obesity.
Some people believe that when they stigmatize someone, they are doing it for the sake of the obese person. They believe that by doing this, they can encourage or motivate the obese person to change their behaviors and habits, leading to weight loss and a reduction in stigma. But in fact, and there is a lot of research in this field, the stigmatized person follows the opposite path. How can a person take good care of something he hates? In reality, these purchases cause the individual to despise themselves, leading them to seek out more food as a psychological escape from their sadness.
Stigma is therefore a counterproductive tool for achieving this change, and it can make the problem even worse.
What is the mechanism of action for these medications?
After eating food, the pancreas releases a hormone called GLP1 into the bloodstream.
Of course, all of this is more complex, and there are more stakeholders in the process, but let us focus on GLP1.
This is released when enough food has been ingested, giving the brain information that you have reached a state of satiety, so we normally stop eating if we respect this signal.
However, GLP1’s signal only stays in the system for a few minutes, allowing us to continue eating if we so choose.
What these drugs do is mimic the signal emitted by GLP1 at the brain level, but this time staying in the body for a long time. So much so that if you try to ignore this sign of satiety and continue eating, the end result is nausea or a total inability to swallow more food.
Side Effects
Depressive states or increased suicide from the use of these drugs have been reported, but the cause itself is controversial, as many people find pleasure in food and the release of serotonin. If such a scenario occurs, it will also lead to a reduction in this method of experiencing pleasure.
But compared to the percentage of obese people who commit suicide because of low self-esteem or bullying, the numbers are much lower.
When you consider the safety of these medicines, there is a very valid argument for their advocates.
As is known, and by other mechanisms of action, these drugs were initially introduced for the control of blood sugar levels in diabetics and are being used for at least 18 years without significant side effects.
Regarding dose-dependent effects, we know that the primary indication for its use, diabetes, did not experience this effect. We cannot yet conclude the same with regard to hair loss because the mechanisms of action are different, but the longest study to date, which is 62 months, has not yet shown the need to increase doses to maintain similar effects on weight loss.
Conclusion
The author of this book does not take sides and shows us that there is a great cultural and psychological complexity around obesity and weight loss that should not be ignored.
This book helps us evaluate the risks and benefits of using these medicines and allows us to travel with this information, knowing both sides of the coin.
Only in this way can you, individually and in consultation with your doctor, make the best decisions.