Ozempic, Saxenda, Wegovy: The European Medicines Agency announced on Tuesday that it was looking into the possible adverse effects of these three increasingly prescribed anti-diabetic drugs for weight loss. This announcement comes after reports that these molecules could cause patients to have suicidal thoughts and self-harm.
GLP-1 is used primarily for the treatment of diabetes, but is increasingly being prescribed, in the form of different drugs, to promote weight loss.
The Amsterdam-based EMA “reviews data on the risks of suicidal thoughts and self-harm with medications (…), including Ozempic (semaglutide), Saxenda (liraglutide) and Wegovy (semaglutide).”
150 reports analyzed
“The review was prompted by the Icelandic Medicines Agency, following reports of suicidal thoughts and self-harm in people using medicines (whose active ingredients are) liraglutide and semaglutide,” the AEM report said, citing GLP-1 analogue active substances. . “So far the authorities (…) are analyzing 150 possible case reports,” said the MEA.
But, the agency said, it has not yet been determined whether the reported cases are related to the drugs themselves or to underlying problems in patients.
The cases do not “necessarily mean that a drug caused the adverse effects in question,” insists the EMA.
Saxenda and Wegovy are authorized in the European Union for the management of obesity, while Ozempic is used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, but also for weight loss, although it is not its recognized indication either, according to the EMA.
Ozempic, social media star
Danish firm Novo Nordisk, which makes Wegovy and Ozempic, reported a 39% rise in first-quarter profit from sales of obesity treatments in May.
Ozempic, an injectable anti-diabetic drug, contains a molecule, semaglutide, that mimics the action of human GLP-1, a hormone that reduces appetite by slowing stomach emptying, resulting in a feeling of fullness.
Experts have raised concerns as Ozempic has become a social media star as a “miracle” weight loss product.
Semaglutide is also the active substance in Wegovy, which has been approved for the treatment of obesity in several countries, including the United States, since June 2021.
Source: BFM TV
