(WXYZ) — It's been called the weight loss secret for Hollywood stars.
When asked about his weight loss on Twitter - Elon Musk credited fasting and Wegovy. Wegovy, Ozempic and Rybelsus are all brand names for the medication Semaglutide.
It's a medicine used to treat type 2 diabetes, but it's also approved for weight loss.
With increased demand, medicines like Ozempic are in short supply, and that has some people who need the medicine crying foul.
Amy Iatzko from Westland recalls a long battle with weight. She says she has tried it all – dieting, exercise and months of a medication called Adipex. Nothing worked. Being pre-diabetic and overweight in September, Amy’s doctor suggested Ozempic.
"I said, 'sure, let's do it.' And I could not be more thankful," Iatzko said.
It's a weekly self-administered injection. I asked Amy to grab her Ozempic pen to show us the medication that has her outlook up and weight going down.
Iatzko said she's lost over 50 pounds now, and it has helped her lifestyle, improving her sleep, energy, and overall health.
Dr. Jennifer Hanna is a family physician and obesity medicine specialist with Ascension Macomb Oakland. She said medicines like Ozempic and Wegovy slow digestion, which gives us a sense of fullness and reduces appetite. They also help regulate blood sugar and diabetes.
With obesity and diabetes on the rise, the FDA is reporting shortages of both Ozempic and Wegovy.
That’s firing up debate on social media with one person saying, "So sad that Diabetics can't get this med. Simply because it's being prescribed for weight loss," and another calling it "ridiculous."
But, Hanna said that’s not the right way to look at it.
"American Medical Association views obesity as a chronic condition. It is not cosmetic," she said.
Obesity is a risk factor for a number of other diseases that shorten lives and drive-up healthcare costs. Weight management is key to treating multiple those conditions
While the shortage is a problem, finding medicines like Ozempic is a struggle for diabetics and those managing weight alike.
"You know, once I found something that I. Something that worked for me, you know, the whole world decides to take it," Iatzko said.
She said she hopes to lose another 100 pounds and says she plans to continue taking Ozempic as prescribed by her doctor and maintaining a healthy diet and exercise routine, lifestyle changes that helped her husband drop 45 pounds without medication.
Hanna says these medications are indicated for both diabetes and weight loss. Both are chronic conditions, and both need to be managed.
She says the shortage is a sign of just how effective these medications are.
Bottom line - the answer is to increase production because these are long-term medications and most people who use them will remain on them -just like medication for blood pressure or cholesterol.
