New Semaglutide Weekly Injection Treatment Approved for Adults with Obesity
Obesity is one of the world’s most common health problems.
Studies by the Global Burden of Disease stated that 4.7 million people died prematurely in 2017 as a result of obesity.
What is Obesity?
Obesity is a disorder that exposes the body to other health issues. In addition to being a cosmetic concern, it is a medical condition that increases the risk of other diseases and health problems such as high blood pressure, diabetes, certain cancers, and other heart diseases.
Obesity is an abnormal accumulation of excessive body fat that can negatively affect health and result in health challenges. It is defined as having excess body fat or a body mass index (BMI) over 30.
Diets and medications can aid in the treatment of obesity with a proper dedication to healthy diets, increased activities that involve movement, and regular workouts. Obesity can be classified based on a person’s body mass index, which is the body mass divided by the square of the body height. Obesity is defined as a BMI greater than 30kg/m2.
Causes
Usually, obesity results from a lot of factors ranging from:
- Genetics
- Psychological
- Environmental (combined with diet, physical activity, and exercise choices)
- Medications
While these factors come into play, obesity mostly occurs when you take in more calories than you burn. Generally, it can be caused by eating too much without complementary body movement.
Complications
Many of the challenges of obesity can reduce your quality of life and also shorten your lifespan.
People with obesity are more likely to develop several potentially serious health problems, including:
- Digestive Problems: Obesity increases the risk of developing gallstones. This is when bile builds up and hardens in the gallbladder. This may require surgery.
- Liver Disorder: Fat can build up around the liver and lead to liver damage or even liver failure.
- Heart Disease and Stroke: Obesity makes you prone to high blood pressure and abnormal cholesterol levels which can result in conditions like heart diseases and strokes due to blockage of the blood vessels by cholesterol plaques.
- Diabetes Mellitus (type 2 diabetes): Obesity can affect the way the body utilizes insulin to regulate blood sugar levels. This raises the risk of insulin resistance and diabetes.
- Reproductive System Disorder: Women with obesity have a higher risk for reproductive health issues. Such women have a risk of infertility, low conception rates, and pregnancy complications.
- Certain Cancers: Obesity can result in a higher chance of getting certain types of cancer which include cancer of the ovaries, kidneys, liver, pancreas, upper stomach, gallbladder, thyroid, colon and rectum, breast, uterus, multiple myeloma, and adenocarcinoma of the esophagus.
- Metabolic Syndrome: Also called insulin resistance syndrome, this is a group of five conditions that act together. Excessive weight, particularly in your abdominal region, increases your risk of metabolic syndrome.
- Osteoarthritis: Obesity increases the pressure on joints and also increases inflammation within those joints due to the friction between the joint capsules. These factors may lead to complications such as osteoarthritis.
Treatment
Although there is no specific cure for obesity, it can be managed and controlled through
- Dietary changes
- Physical activity
- Weight loss medication
- Surgery
- Hormonal treatment
- Browning white fat cells
One innovative treatment that has revolutionized the management of obesity is semaglutide injection treatment.
Semaglutide Weekly Injection Treatment
Semaglutide is an FDA-approved medical treatment for type 2 diabetes. Experiments have shown that diabetes treatment medication can be used as an anti-obesity medication. Those who got the drug lost about 15 to 20 percent of their weight.
How does it work?
Semaglutide is an artificial version of the naturally existing hormone glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). This acts on appetite centers in the brain and gut, producing feelings of satiety or fullness. It can regulate your appetite and food intake.
Patients are expected to take it for a lifetime to prevent weight gain from reoccurring.
Who is it for?
Semaglutide is an FDA-approved injection for chronic weight management for adults with obesity or weight-related problems. It should also be used alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased body activity. It shouldn’t be taken while using other products containing semaglutide.
Benefits and Risks
Semaglutide has been proven to be effective in substantial weight loss, and this reduces the possibility of developing health challenges that can accompany obesity. It has been approved for use by the FDA, unlike other weight loss drugs available on the market.
Researchers found that the mean change in body weight through semaglutide injections results in a 14.9% reduction in weight.
Nonetheless, there are certain side effects attributed to the medication. The most common side effects of the injection include nausea, dizziness, diarrhea, vomiting, constipation, abdominal pain, headache, indigestion, abdominal distension, eructation, hypoglycemia in patients with type 2 diabetes, fatigue, and gas buildup, gastroenteritis, and gastroesophageal reflux disease.
However, these side effects may not be very significant and may not occur in some individuals.
How to Inject Semaglutide?
Semaglutide injection comes as a solution in a prefilled dosing pen to be injected under the skin. It should be injected once a week on the same day and time it is usually injected.
Your doctor may start you on a low dose of the injection and increase your dose after a month depending on how your body responds to the drug.
It can be injected into your upper arm, stomach area, or thigh.
Conclusion
Today, around 63% of all UK adults are categorized as being overweight, with half living with obesity. Many people struggle with weight-related issues, and obesity can have serious implications including premature death. The semaglutide weekly injection produces significant weight loss, which is an effective option if you struggle with losing weight.