Follow on Google News News By Tag Industry News News By Place Country(s) Industry News
Follow on Google News | Diabetics face critical medicine shortages as drugs are snapped up for weight loss treatment'Wonder' weight loss drugs, such as Wegovy, can help people shed 10%-15% of their bodyweight, largely by supressing their appetite. However, some of these weight loss jabs are based on semaglutide, first developed for treating diabetes. This means the boom in demand for 'magic bullet' weight loss jabs is contributing to a major shortage in key diabetes medication, says a leading expert. Leading blood testing expert, Dr Avinash Hari Narayanan (MBChB), Clinical Lead at London Medical Laboratory, says: 'There is now a global shortage of semaglutide- Both Wegovy and Ozempic are produced by the Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk. The problem is that Ozempic has increasingly been prescribed off label (outside of its approved licence) for weight loss as an alternative to Wegovy. Now Novo Nordisk is warning of shortages of Ozempic stretching into 2025. However, there is some welcome news of another GLP-1 analogue drug just about to reach the UK. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has approved the use of tirzepatide (brand name Mounjaro) for treating type 2 diabetes. Again, it's vital this new medication is prioritised as a further treatment for diabetes, rather than for other purposes. It, too, is likely to be in hot demand by people seeking to lose weight the easy way Unmanaged or undiagnosed diabetes is one of the leading causes of mortality. Diabetes is usually linked to factors such as weight, lifestyle, age and family history. 1 in 10 people will have diabetes by the end of the next decade, and 1 in 3 will be at a much increased risk of developing it. The concerning thing is that it is quite common for people to have diabetes and not know about it. 'Fortunately, there is a simple blood test (https://www.londonmedicallaboratory.com/ End
|
|