Obesity as a Disease - Medication

Semaglutide is license or obesity treatment. You are mistaken. This has been explained multiple times.
I'm aware that has been reported in the paper. But that's simple a lazy reporter not knowing as much as say a medical professional.

Sure, if they have very little supply, and a queue of diabetics waiting, then it could be valid. And for completeness that would also apply withhold from a single diabetic on maintenance in order to dispense to 4 others who need a starting dose.

But supply was not the context we were discussing was it?

You claimed it Doctors should not be prescribing the drug because it's not licensed. But that's was incorrect, as was explained, Semaglutide is license for both.

Then you claim that the dose was different. But as pointed out, that wasn't true either.
There further claims from other about being unsafe, untested etc. Nonsense.
Supply issues in the past do not justify peddling lies now.

If there was another shortage in future, a pharmacist could and should dispense wegovy pens to diabetics. I wonder would people cry about licensing then?
It would be far better off is prescriptions were generic. Branded drugs are simply another way pharma rips people off.

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If this has changed in the last three months, please provide a link. Thanks.

Starting doses are .25ml-.5mg pens. I'm not sure what was confusing.
A person needing 1mg could use multiple starting dose pens or they could be allocated to people needing the lower dose. I think withholding in that case is fine too, as the starter pens are the ones really limited in supply.

Ozempic is marketed for diabetes. Wegovy is marketed for weightloss. Same manufacturer, same dose, and same doses (currently, the 2mg ozempic is not licensed afaik).
Semaglutide is the actual drug in both cases. Semaglutide is currently licensed for weight loss in Ireland, and has been since the start of 2022.

This has been explained multiple times, in the thread. But if you want a link, see HSE: https://www2.hse.ie/conditions/obesity/medicines-and-surgery-for-obesity/ Or the links to the actual license below.
It's like getting a prescription for a particular brand, and the pharmacist giving you the generic form. Really common.
Or Neurofen vrs Ibuprofen, etc

How is weight loss medicine "your business"? I understand you are diabetic, but didn't you also say you were not on ozempic.
I'm really sorry, but I fail to see how anything I have said is a comment on your business.

As was repeatedly explained, Ozempic is a brand name not an actual drug. The active drug, is Semaglutide, and also as explained above, Semaglutide IS licensed for both diabetes and weight loss. Links to misinformed articles are not helpful. Nor where the false claim about testing from others. See links below to the actual licenses.

http://www.hpra.ie/homepage/medicines/medicines-information/find-a-medicine/results/item?pano=EU/1/17/1251/005-006&t=Ozempic

http://www.hpra.ie/homepage/medicines/medicines-information/find-a-medicine/results/item?pano=EU/1/21/1608/002&t=Wegovy

Key point is the active ingredient is each list. Based on above licensing doctors can prescribe semaglutide for weight loss, pharmacists can dispense semaglutide for weight loss. They should do that subject to their own supply issues, obviously

My last post on this, as you are literally trolling the thread at this point and I'm not indulging your nonsense beyond this.

Semaglutide / Ozempic is licensed in Ireland, but that licence extends to the treatment of diabetes ONLY.

You've already been provided with multiple links, including an Oireachtas report that confirm this, yet continue to insist they are "misinformed" and what matters is the active ingredient, and not the purpose it is licensed for.

So ask yourself this, if that were the case why do doctors have to prescribe it "off-label" for weight loss patients? Maybe you don't understand what prescribing off label means. It means prescribing a drug for a purpose other than it's approved for.

Note, the link you provided from the HSE website is a copy and paste job provided to the HSE by the NHS in the UK where Ozempic is also not licensed for for weight loss.

OP, good luck with the rest of your weight loss journey.

I do wish you the best and hope you achieve your goals, however you may get there.

If there was no availability of 1mg pen, and you need to make it up. That’s really not hard to understand.

I wasn’t aware you were on it, but I explained the sides are you previously were mistaken about them in this thread.

Semaglutide is licensed is multiple forms. I literally linked to the license above. You’ve gone from confidently incorrect to head in the sand ignorance.

no pharmacist is giving out 4 .25mg pens in place of a 1mg pen. you're talking nonsense.

Me:

I know what the starting doses are, thanks. Ive been on it 2 years. Why would someone on a 1mg even be considering getting 4 .25mg pens of a single 1mg pens? You're making no sense at all.

You:

If there was no availability of 1mg pen, and you need to make it up. That’s really not hard to understand.

you suggested they might. which is complete nonsense. no pharmacist would even consider that.

and this

they’d be entitled to withhold it from a diabetic in favour of somebody needing

Diabetics are the ones needing it. that is who it is for. you are very dismissive of the people like me that actually need it. i can only describe it as trolling. on the ignore list you go.

They have been advised to do so by the HPRA . As said before .

No I am not on the drug .

I am a health professional . Semi retired but know my semaglutides from my dulaglutides , thank you .

I have no issue with you or anyone else using this medication as I have stated before , but trying to diss others as posting misinformation while you yourself are clearly posting incorrect information is a bit bizarre tbh.

Good luck to you if your doctor is prescribing it off label and you can get a pharmacy to supply it

I don't see anyone saying anything else .

The fact remains it is not licensed as yet here for use as a weightloss only drug because of specific supply issues for the target population , diabetics

Not that it doesn't work , not that it is unsafe , down to lack of supply for a vulnerable population only .

Both drugs you list from HPRA website ..those links do not refer to its uses . Which is the point we are discussing here .

The HPRA have been quite clear about this . This from last November .

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://www.hpra.ie/docs/default-source/Shortages-Docs/ema-mandated-victoza-amp-ozempic-direct-healthcare-professional-communication-(dhpc).pdf%3Fsfvrsn%3D2&ved=2ahUKEwiDrJev5uyGAxUFQkEAHQa_BvMQFnoECDEQAQ&usg=AOvVaw3KfDZDzRhxXbMh6ZvJR2w5

Are you really stooping to misrepresting/falsifying my posts. wow.

The above is NOT the link I provided in my last post (post #111). The fact you are screenshoting a different link is kinda sad. That's from post #106 - where I proved both licenses. Not you only screenshot one🙄
Here is the link from the last post https://www.hpra.ie/homepage/medicines/medicines-information/find-a-medicine/results/item?pano=EU/1/21/1608/002&t=Wegovy . And before you say wegovy is not available, nobody said it was. We are talking about licensing.

A reminder what you said (as the above posts shows you're willing to twist things and lie).

It was explained that ozempic/wegovy are two brand names for the same drug (semaglutide) and are licensed separately. I literally linked to the license. And you still claimed semaglutide was not licensed for weightloss (in post #108). You used the word semaglutide. I posted the license three times now, that should be enough But as you've lied above, here is a screenshot

It is a licence, but the licence does not say what you claim. I also searched the EMA website. Nothing there that says it either.

Did you really search the EMA website? I couldn't find anything to confirm my claims about semaglutide? I find that hard to believe, it's a very simple website. So really have to assume you are simply lying/misrepsenting my posts again. Which is weird. Anyway, here you go https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/search?search_api_fulltext=wegovy&f%5B0%5D=ema_search_categories%3A83&f%5B1%5D=ema_medicine_bundle%3Aema_medicine&f%5B2%5D=ema_med_status%3A100108&landing_from=73303 and a screenshot confirming what I've been saying.

Semaglutide, licensed for obesty treatment (under the brand name Wegovy), since jan 2002.

Your claim that semaglutide is not licensed for weight loss treatment is simply 100% false.

The distinction between ozempic/wegovy and the drug semaglutide has been explained multiple times. Please don't waste time with the strawman "but ozempic is not….yada yada". Nobody said it was. I've been very clear in my wording. Most peopel got that.

I think you may be mixing me up with OP or another poster. I'm not sure what my doctor "my doctor" refers to. As I haven't mentioned my doctor, nor am I on or need any medication. I'm simply providing information for others. Which is the point of the forum.

They have been advised to do so by the HPRA . As said before 

And as I have said, I've no issues with prescriptions being limited when supplies are limited. I've repeated that a few times.

The HRPA advise against starting diabetic patients on new treatments during shortages. Shortages of starter doses are and intentional supply action from NovoNordisk to avoid down chain pressure o namitenance doses.

The HRPA also recommend when supplies are limited to switch to another GLP-1 RA injectable. Which is what I referenced above - and was told was "nonsense".

I am a health professional . Semi retired but know my semaglutides from my dulaglutides , thank you .

I have no issue with you or anyone else using this medication as I have stated before , but trying to diss others as posting misinformation while you yourself are clearly posting incorrect information is a bit bizarre tbh.

If you are a health professional, and understand what semaglutide is (and dulaglutide, liraglutide, retratrutide, etc), then you understand its the active drug, available under multiple brand names. But I'm still unclear how I said "you don't know your own business".
I said you were mistaken about semaglutide licensing, and I provided the licence. I think that's reasonable. If you are retiring it's understandable if are not up to date on all brands of a drug.

I stand by my claim that the posts were misinformation (not necessarily intentional). And I believe I clearly proved that. For example.

A poster claimed Semaglutide was not designed and tested for weightloss. That is false. I said it was false, and I provided a link the the phase 3 study in 2021.

And above, a poster claimed Semaglutide was not licensed for weight loss. So I provided the license. Even though @LastApacheInjun clarified the licensing pages ago, poster where still repeating mistaken claims.

I'm not sure how providing that information, along with links to the study, licence approval etc is "dissing" posters. I think taking it as a diss is overly sensitive.

Good luck to you if your doctor is prescribing it off label and you can get a pharmacy to supply it

I don't see anyone saying anything else .

The fact remains it is not licensed as yet here for use as a weightloss only drug because of specific supply issues for the target population , diabetics

As I said, I think you've confused me with somebody else.

And many posters have made claims outside the supply issue. You literally just made one regarding licensing, as above that is incorrect.

Not that it doesn't work , not that it is unsafe , down to lack of supply for a vulnerable population only .

That's not quite correct. This whole conversation started when a posters claimed that semaglutide was safe or tested for weightloss, and it was simply a test dummy side effect. That is demonstrably false and has nothing to do with supply issues.

Both drugs you list from HPRA website ..those links do not refer to its uses . Which is the point we are discussing here .

Well sure, the HRPA link does not refer to it uses. Because that's not what the HRPA website lists directly, for that the HRPA links to the EMA (European medicines agency) website. I felt the HRPA website link was enough in that case as the intended use for other semaglutide labels was established in the thread.
I'm surprised the HRPA link confirming the license was not sufficient for you given your statements above. But for completeness, here's the EMA information. Confirming the authorised usage, and that it's been licensed for almost 2.5 years. Screenshot is in my previous post.

https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/search?search_api_fulltext=wegovy&f%5B0%5D=ema_search_categories%3A83&f%5B1%5D=ema_medicine_bundle%3Aema_medicine&f%5B2%5D=ema_med_status%3A100108&landing_from=73303  

Seems there is another two. Diary of a CEO podcast again. Both are however more woman orientated. Which is interesting in itself because all too often new drugs and treatments and modalities are not specifically studied in women.

Latest episode. This time with a Dr Tyna Moore.

Her take on it is a little more (but not totally) geared towards women - and heavily geared towards relatively "microdosing" Ozempic and the effects this appears to have. So a bit of a different take than the previous two podcasts I mentioned on the thread. But overall quite an interesting take.

About a week ago. This time with a Dr Mindy Pelz.

She is slightly more against it but not in any big way. She is more geared towards self control, discipline, fasting regimes like intermittent fasting and so forth. But a lot of what she says might cover the concerns you were expressing in post #124 @LastApacheInjun if I remember correctly. Though it was a week ago I listened to it.

hi guys, I have type 1 diabetes and I’m 17 stone, my bmi is obese!!! I asked my diabetes consultant about ozempic and he told me to try lose weight the “old fashioned” way first! Ya I’ve been trying that with years doc! Anyways it’s so hard for me to lose weight. I’m also on medication and the insulin makes it hard for me to lose weight. My weight is affecting my social life, it’s non existent as I’m repulsed by my fat looks. I’ve never been fat before and I hate it. Where could I get ozempic? I want this weight off now. I’m 41 years old and my life is on hold with about 3 years now with this excess weight. It’s all well and good losing weight the old fashioned way but I’m 41, my life is not getting longer. Exasperated at this point!

hi, thanks so much for your reply. I have googled the place in dalkey and will Contact them. My diabetes consultant told me that I may not heed his advise and go to a doctor to get ozempic and I think I will. It’s so easy to say “lose weight the old way” which I’ve actually lost a stone doing but it’s taking so long. I need a boost. What are the side effects? Do you feel nausea?

I completely agree with everything you're saying. I've kept going to the gym and my meals are mainly protein based. I'm just surprised by how "not hungry" I am. I do recognise that the pace of the loss is unsustainable though. I'm sure it won't continue at this rate !

dont take this personally but I have no idea why you are playing about with the dose as you are. there is a titration schedule and you have decided to completely ignore it and make it up for yourself. i don't know why a conversation with a relative would make you change your dose. unless they are a consultant endocrinologist.

So, we were away when I posted this and a different scales had me lighter. I'm home and this morning weighted 98.2kg so a loss of just over 8kg. Which is still fantastic.

I took the 1mg dose on Sunday (am following the titration schedule) and I definitely feel an increase in nausea - so much so that I don't really want to eat at all - I'm only forcing myself to. Mind you, I only took it Sunday night and today is only Weds. It's not impacting me massively, just coming in a few little waves. I'm going to hold off the scales until next Monday morning and I'll see how things are then. On Monday morning I'll have been on it for 7 weeks.

they are bouncing their dose up and down.

My own two cents, one thing people who have never been obese often don't appreciate is how bloody hard it is to exercise when you're very overweight. Even leaving g aside being self-conscious, it can be physically really hard on the joints and you can do alot of damage easily.

I've lost 24kg (lost 18kg before going on Ozempic) and it's like a new world, being able to move around and exercise and just go about my life so much easier. This has knock on effect to so many things in your life like your confidence and mental health and how productive you can be when you have more energy because you're not as tired as before.

I'm now running 10km (very slowly) a few times a week. I couldn't have dreamed of that two years ago.

Yep and that plays out exactly with the evidence - poor for weight loss (at lower volumes and intensities at least).