We look at the highly topical new book about Ozempic and it’s potential far ranging impact. See more about Off the Scales: The Inside Story of Ozempic and the Race to Cure Obesity by Aimee Donnellan here.
The Inside Story of Ozempic and the Race to Cure Obesity, reviewed
At this stage if you have not heard the word ozempic, or one of it’s close relatives, then you may well have been living under a rock, for perhaps at least half a decade and beyond. This book is clearly tackling a topical book, asking some important questions about ozempic and considering if it is the miracle cure for diabetes. As has often been the way, think viagra, where the byproduct benefits outstrip the initial use case for the drug, ozempic became the go-to weight loss drug for many users.
Donnellan does a good job of looking at the history of obesity, and the, often associated challenges of diabetes too. The explanation of the identification of a relevant and effective solution are clear and well written. The chapter on the growth of super-size-me portions and it’s impact on, US in particular, dietary habits felt a bit superfluous. However it did serve the purpose of setting the scene for some interesting big picture observations, and good points to consider. Over the last few decades there has been a healthy, and important move away from size zero dresses and the models who starve themselves to wear them. Real bodies, and more natural body shapes have been encouraged to better reflect the reality of our actual bodies, rather than holding up unrealistic and unnecessary body shapes and sizes, especially for women to feel pressure to conform to. Now however, as Donnellan highlights, the arrival of ozempic, and it’s ability to enable many to rapidly lose 20% or more of their body weight, has perhaps created a counter weight to these body positive messages.
For anyone using ozempic they will also be more than aware that this is not a trivial drug to take and experience. Self injecting is immediately not something that everyone will wish or be able to do. Then, once administered, there is often nausea, constipation and also diarrhea too. It can be a tough cocktail to endure, and, for some, there is a permanent loss of appetite, and a disinterest in food, which is naturally potentially a bridge too far. At the same time the drug could be a massive life saver for those suffering with obesity, for whom nothing else has worked. As well as suppressing internal noise about food, it looks like it may also have the same impact on alcohol and drug related tendencies too. This could naturally be a game changer, both for addicts, but also perhaps for consumption trends among the wider population. Donnellan cites one major gin investor, who has reduced their exposure as they feel ozempic will have a negative effect on alcohol sales, as it may well also on fast food and processed food consumption.
These aspects are among the elements that make this book most interesting, as it triggers a debate about the potentially positive, but unintended consequences and byproducts of successful weight loss products coming onto the market. While ozempic currently may be grabbing the headlines, other evolutions and iterations, potentially by other major drug companies are being developed and could come to market very soon. It does raise many interesting questions about what is healthy living, and how we achieve it. Our weight, our body shape and size have always been areas that can impact both negatively on our mental health, as well as our potentially addictive cravings too. If these can be medicated, safely, we may well be entering a whole new domain and area of public discussion too. Well worth reading.
More about The Inside Story of Ozempic
The inside story of the race to develop Ozempic – the world’s first truly effective and safe obesity drug – and its potentially revolutionary effects on public health, and our deeper culture and values.
A ‘cure’ for obesity has long been the holy grail for the pharmaceutical industry, one that seemed unattainable until recent breakthroughs in type 2 diabetes research led to the development of Ozempic, a weight loss medication that makes people feel fuller for longer. The treatment is so effective that it is already disrupting many industries – from healthcare to fast food to fashion – and it has quickly made its creator, Denmark’s Novo Nordisk, the most valuable company in Europe. But the impact of these drugs goes far beyond billion-dollar profits; a true long-term cure for obesity could significantly reduce dangerous preventable illnesses. And as their success continues to grow, one question looms in the minds of investors, healthcare workers and politicians: are they too good to be true?
In Off the Scales, journalist Aimee Donnellan illuminates the history of the latest medical breakthrough that is poised to change the world, while bringing difficult social questions about inequality and morality to the forefront. Through original reporting and rigorous research, she forecasts the future of Ozempic and similar medications like Mounjaro and Wegovy, and examines what their explosive popularity tells us about our ideals of beauty, the lengths to which people will go in order to become thin, the current state of healthcare and the inner workings of the pharmaceutical industry.
Along the way, Donnellan profiles the scientist whose contributions to the discovery of GLP-1 were overlooked and her fight for recognition, and offers new insights into the ways that the food and beauty industries made billions while promoting unhealthy and unrealistic body image standards and accelerating the obesity crisis. She also reveals the lengths that the celebrity class went to obtain this medication when supplies were limited and prescriptions were costly, and relates the first-hand accounts of several early Ozempic users and the transformative effect the drug has had on their weight loss journeys. Above all, Off the Scales is a gripping and informative study of the unexpected social consequences of finally getting what we’ve wanted for so long.
See more book reviews here.
