As the market for weight loss drugs grows, how will diabetics pay the price?

Dubai, United Arab Emirates (CNN) — The drug Jeremy Mitchell is taking to manage his diabetes, known as “Ozambik,” has become a new weight-loss fad. Today, Mitchell is having a hard time finding it.

Mitchell, 39, of Kansas was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 2020.

It was reported that his father died last month at the age of 62 due to complications from diabetes.

“I have three children that I want to see grow up and I want to see my grandchildren grow up,” Mitchell said. “Uzbek has helped me manage my blood sugar.”

New tools for weight loss

Millions of Americans turn to corsets at the end of the year, promising to lose weight in the new year.

Between 2017 and 2020, 2 in 5 Americans were diagnosed with obesity, with a BMI greater than 30, a 10 percent increase from 1999 and 2000, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Control.

Until recently, these people relied on the limited help of their medicine cabinets.

And 3 FDA-approved pills led to a 5% to 10% reduction in total body weight in clinical trials.

In 2014 Saxenda entered a new era.

The diabetes treatment became one of the first drugs approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for weight loss.

It belongs to a relatively new family of drugs that mimic the effects of an appetite-regulating hormone, GLP-1.

These drugs work by stimulating the release of insulin, which helps lower blood sugar. It also slows down the passage of food through the alimentary canal.

Mitchell said of the drug “Ozambik”: “It always makes you feel full to a large extent … you won’t want to eat.”

Semaglutide, also known as Ozambik, is given once a week.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved it for diabetes management in 2017, under the brand name “Ozambik,” and for weight loss, under the name “Wegovi,” in 2021.

Studies show that the drug helps people lose 10 to 15% of their original weight. And once you stop using it, it will be easier to put on the weight you’ve been trying to lose.

“There have been a number of patients who started Wigovi and weren’t able to continue,” said Dr. Kimberly Judson, medical director of the American Board of Obesity Medicine.

“Due to the inability to get Wegovi, many doctors have started prescribing Ozambik to treat obesity,” he continued.

As a result, many of these injectable GLP-1 mimics are in short supply.

Novo Nordisk, which manufactures both Wegovi and Ozambik, said in a statement that it is experiencing intermittent supply disruptions for some doses of Ozambik due to overwhelming demand.

While it is aware that some healthcare professionals may prescribe Ozambik for people who want to lose weight, the company “does not promote, suggest or encourage the use of any drug outside the scope of the label.”

Novo Nordisk said it is currently working on making Wegovi doses available later this year.

“The enthusiasm for these drugs right now is a double-edged sword,” Goodzon said. “I’m glad people are excited to have a treatment option for their obesity.”