Yasmina Kattou
Intended for type two diabetics, Ozempic is used by some users to lose weight. The trend started on social media. Professionals warn of the dangers of Ozempic, misused, on health.
The Ozempic is a small syringe pen containing a liquid that is injected once a week by type two diabetics. Except that some people hijack it and use it to lose weight. This trend is gaining momentum on TikTok. Indeed, Ozempic works for weight loss but it is dangerous.
Lose two pounds in four days
The Ozempic-related hashtag garners over 470 million views on TikTok. Rarely overweight women, sometimes athletic, who are looking to lose a few extra pounds, film themselves injecting the antidiabetic in a few seconds and without pain.
The product has an appetite suppressant effect as noted by this Quebec user: “I weighed myself this morning. I lost two pounds (equivalent to two kilos, editor’s note) in four days. It makes me lose my appetite”.
Digestively poorly tolerated
This treatment is not without health consequences: “In 20% of cases, it is poorly tolerated on the digestive level, that is to say that you can have nausea, vomiting via a small signal on pancreatitis”, warns Jean-François Gauthier, endocrinologist in Paris.
As a precaution, the Health Security Agency recommends that professionals reserve Ozempic only for diabetics already treated with it, so as not to disrupt their treatment.