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Author: Admin | 2025-04-28
Whether it’s media speculation about celebrity weight loss or viral TikTok content promoting before-and-after body transformations – you’ve probably heard about semaglutide (the brand name is Ozempic) and its benefits for weight loss. The headline-making medication was actually developed to manage type-2 diabetes but was later found to result in substantial and sustained weight loss alongside exercise and healthy eating. Given two-thirds of Australians are overweight or obese, with significant impacts on their health, the concept of an effective weight loss medication is understandably compelling. However, off-label use has led to widespread shortages, meaning those who use the drug to treat diabetes or would benefit most from its weight loss effects, are going without. That’s why it’s important to know what exactly Ozempic is, what it should be used for and whether it’s right for you.What is Ozempic?We’ve used the term Ozempic because it’s what most people are familiar with, but Ozempic is a brand of the medicine semaglutide. Semaglutide belongs to a class of medications called glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists. These copy the action of GLP-1 — a naturally occurring hormone produced by the pancreas that helps to release the right amount of insulin when blood sugar levels are high.A weekly injection of semaglutide, along with diet and exercise, improves blood sugar in adults with type-2 diabetes. In people with heart disease, it reduces the risk of stroke, heart attack or death.Semaglutide can reduce your appetite and result in weight loss, but this is not what it was designed and originally approved for.The effects of the medication only last as long as you take it. One year after stopping semaglutide, study participants regained two-thirds of the weight they’d lost. Is Ozempic available in Australia? Is it still hard to get?Ozempic and other GLP-1 receptor agonists are approved for use in Australia when prescribed by a doctor, subject to certain conditions. These drugs are not widely available at the moment. The pharmaceutical company that produces semaglutide has advised that supply will still be limited throughout 2024 due to a global shortage. Prescribers are still advised to not start new patients on Ozempic unless there’s no other option, and patients already on it should consider changing to an alternative.Other GLP-1 receptor agonists registered with Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) include sulaglutide (sold as Trulicity), liraglutide (sold as Saxenda) and Tiezepatide (sold as Mounjaro), but only Ozempic is subsidised on the
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