New evidence suggests that the pandemic may have caused millions more individuals to become overweight or obese. Studies conducted in the US, China, and Europe all point to a disproportionate impact on young people.
As an illustration, a study conducted in the United States revealed that the increase in overweight and obese young individuals during a single year of the pandemic was greater than the increment observed in the preceding two decades.
In the midst of this, a recently released study claims that Wegovy and other fat-loss injections may enlarge a person’s small intestine, placing them at significant risk of a potentially fatal blockage in their digestive tract. These injections mimic the actions of GLP-1, a hormone that slows the movement of food in the intestines.
Mice experiments have revealed that the swelling of the gut occurs after roughly 20 months of consuming GLP-1 medications. The research team highlights that the clinical trials for Wegovy, priced at over $1,000 monthly, concluded after just 16 months, potentially leading to the oversight of this substantial long-term complication.
In addition, the researchers analyzed past studies on people, which suggested that users of these sorts of medicines are up to four times more likely to have intestinal blockage.
The scientists stated that this group of drugs could induce persistent growth “in the intestinal length and villus height,” and “may become as inelastic,” potentially causing prolonged obstructions in the upper digestive system.
The small intestine may “become as inelastic,” which might result in long-term upper intestinal blockage, since these medications may produce ongoing increases in the intestinal length and villus height.
Intestinal obstructions happen when food and liquid can’t move through the intestines because of a blockage. This may be brought on by cancer, gastrointestinal tract injury, or an irritated or strained gut.
Constipation and lack of appetite are early symptoms of a blockage.
When an intestine gets too big and lacks the capacity to change its form, it may become obstructed, making it difficult for food to flow through.
Intestinal blockage may result in significant, sometimes fatal consequences, including tissue death, if left untreated.
The disorder may cut off the blood flow to a portion of the intestine, resulting in the death of the intestinal wall.
Peritonitis, an infection in the abdomen that may be fatal, is also more common in those with the condition.
Every year, about 30,000 people in the US die from having their intestines blocked.
Nevertheless, independent specialists who were not part of the study told DailyMail that the medicine should be safe for the majority of people and urged physicians to consider a patient’s history of gastrointestinal issues before prescribing.
But this is the most recent possible side effect to come to light.
Most patients have greater muscle loss than the fat loss when taking the medicine, physicians told DailyMail.com last month.
Also, studies reveal that people who stop taking the medication quickly put their weight back on.
Still, weight-loss drugs like Wegovy, Ozempic, and their analogous medications have gained immense popularity in the pharmaceutical industry, resulting in a shortage of supply for most of last year.
In their report, published last month in Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B, a renowned pharmacology journal in China, the research team emphasized the risks discovered in prior studies. They referred to two investigations, indicating a correlation between these medications and digestive complications.
One study, released by French researchers towards the end of 2020, employed data from VigiBase, the World Health Organization’s database for global adverse drug reactions.
After examining over 500,000 records, they discovered that persons who took GLP-1 medications for diabetic control were 4.5 times more likely to develop an intestinal blockage.
Wegovy was launched in 2017, while Ozempic, which employs the same active component, was accessible internationally in 2021—after the completion of this trial.
In a 2022 study, British researchers evaluated the prevalence of intestinal blockages among 67,261 users of one kind of diabetic medication and 25,617 users of GLP-1.
They discovered that the probability of intestinal blockage was 3.5 times higher among GLP-1 users.
Both of these studies, which were observational in nature and could not prove a causal link, demonstrated an association between GLP-1 consumption and digestive problems.
Obstruction of the intestines is also a known sign of diabetes, so the study could just be looking for proof of that sign on a large scale.
Dr. Shauna Levy, an expert in obesity medicine at Tulane University who was not involved says that it is extremely difficult to determine if the blockage is a direct effect of the drug.
When administering this drug, doctors should take the patient’s history of intestinal blockage into account, according to the expert.
And she added, “this does highlight an important point that GLP-1 RA are medicine. They should be prescribed by a health care provider who can screen the patient beforehand for a history of contraindications to the medication.”
She referenced research done in 2022 by academics from universities all across the world, including the University of Alabama in Birmingham and the University of Pennsylvania.
This study examined semaglutide users for two years and found no higher incidence of intestinal blockage in this group.
A North Carolina doctor who specializes in weight loss, Dr. Christopher McGowan, also agreed.
Speaking to DailyMail.com, he said, “While this discussion raises possible concern, it is difficult to extrapolate these findings to conclude any potential impact on humans.”
Clinical studies of GLP1 medications are relatively short-term, with a duration of less than two years. However, “the GLP1 medications” have been in use and studied for over a decade, which provides a certain level of “reassurance.”
According to the expert, the introduction of newer GLP1 medications, like semaglutide, to a much larger population (in the order of millions of people) may expose rare adverse events. This makes it essential to closely monitor and report any issues. As these medications are intended for long-term, chronic use, there is still a lot to learn about their cumulative risk after multiple years of use.
But the Chinese team backs up their claim with research done on mice in the past.
In a 2007 study conducted by Danish researchers, the width and length of the small intestines of mice treated with the medications increased by 9 percent and 31 percent, respectively.
It’s interesting to note that Dr. Lotte Simonsen, who oversaw that study, started working on obesity research for Novo Nordisk in 2010, which is a few years after the completion of that research. According to her LinkedIn profile, she works as a “Scientific Director” at Wegovy’s company.
Last year, German research revealed that GLP-1 medications expanded the length of the colon by 20 percent and the height of the small intestine by 34 percent.
Exenatide and dapagliflide were employed in this study’s investigation. Although GLP-1s are not the same as the semiglutide utilized in Wegovy.
But, according to Dr. Levy, there may not be much of an impact on human outcomes from the results in mice.
She said, “Also animal studies should be seen more as hypothesis-generating, rather than proof of outcome in humans.”
Yet, Chinese scientists are still concerned. In addition, they indicate how the medications are used to treat certain conditions.
People who take drugs like Wegovy and Ozempic give themselves an injection once a week.
Beginning with 0.25mg, the dose is gradually increased to 2.4mg per week throughout the maintenance period.
This is not how the body normally produces GLP-1 hormones. To control hunger, it instead makes them as required. There can never be so many hormones functioning in the body simultaneously.
Semgalutide has a half-life of around seven days, which means that when a person receives their weekly injection, a significant amount of the previous week’s injection is still in their body.
The Chinese team is uncertain, but they are concerned that this might induce intestinal troubles.
According to the experts, it is difficult to monitor the expansion of an individual’s gut, thus it is doubtful that it would have been detected in clinical studies.
Constipation, a common symptom of many different health conditions, is the first indication of a gastrointestinal problem.
Wegovy has been a cash cow for the Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk since its introduction in 2021.
In clinical studies, obese patients who took the medication coupled with a fitness regimen decreased their body weight by 15 percent over 68 weeks, outperforming other weight-loss medications by a significant margin.
The medicine, a repackaged version of its diabetic treatment Ozempic, was so popular that its supply for the second half of 2022 was virtually exhausted.
It has a hefty cost as well, costing consumers more than $1,000 a month if their insurance does not cover it.
Yet worries over its usage are growing. Others worry that instead of the more natural approaches of food and exercise, physicians are instead resorting to medications to address America’s growing obesity issue.
Another research discovered that when drug users stop receiving the weekly doses, they would completely restore whatever weight they have lost.
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