General

Here is a collection of articles covering the messy new frontier of Ozempic and similar drugs.

getpocket.com/collections/unpacking-the-ozempic-craze

I don't have a lot of places to talk candidly about a topic like this, and certainly not where I can talk about it's effect on feederism and its perception, if any.

The first thing I want to talk about is that these drugs are *expensive*. They can only be afforded the by the wealthy right now. On one hand, if this continues to be the case even as availability and variety grows, I worry that the feedback loop of conventional attractiveness in positions of wealth and influence will only grow.

Ideally, however, the cost of these drugs will go down to support the needs of anyone who wants or needs them. Don't get me wrong; this isn't about the moral or medical superiority of a thin body or something like that. I just think that people should have the freedom to choose their body type, and those who struggle with diet or exercise as a form of weight loss could find these drugs quite liberating, to say nothing of the benefit to those with type 2 diabetes.

That said, in a hypothetical world where a weight loss drug is widely available, where do you think that will leave feedists or even just people who don't care about whether they are thin or fat?

In many ways, I fear that the current biases against fat people would be exacerbated in a world where being fat was seen as an overt choice not to "treat a disease" even more than it is today.

And while I've been lucky enough to find two partners who don't think feeders are inherently predatory creeps--including one who is open to me feeding them once in a while despite not being part of the community--I can't help but wonder if mainstream perception of feeders would be damaged by an emphasized perception that we get off on inflicting preventable harm on others. If everyone around me is thin except my partner, that feels like it would start to raise questions.

I don't think this hypothetical future is imminent--even ignoring their cost, Ozempic and its cousins have quite the list of uncomfortable side effects. And who knows--maybe there's some positive to fat acceptance and appreciation to be found here, in a world where body weight becomes a choice. Indeed, maybe this focus on developing new drugs might yield a treatment that alleviates the health issues of being fat without eliminating fat itself.

But it's still an interesting discussion to have, so I'd like to ask for your thoughts on the matter.

I see it as just another money making scheme by big pharma. Someone shared this article before:
nypost.com/2023/03/17/patient-influencers-paid-by-big-pharma-to-mislead-followers-report/amp/ 

It honestly makes my skin crawl to think of all the people injecting themselves with this heavy-duty toxic stuff just for the side effect of having a decreased appetite.

My understanding is that the weight loss associated with it is more due to gastrointestinal disturbances rather than the actual mode of action of the drug (it slows digestion, leaving food in the stomach for days so the person isn't able to continue eating). I've seen it referred to as an eating disorder injection.

I read that, when treating diabetes, these are typically second-line drugs that are only prescribed when patients had not been successful treating diabetes with other drugs.

And yet, my wife's doc offered to prescribe it to her for off-label use to lose weight, even though she doesn't have any weight-related health issues.

I would definitely agree that this trend is bringing out a lot of negative sentiment toward being overweight. My hope is that it will be short-lived.

I doubt it will be. Many of the articles about this I've read have statements from the manufacturers of Ozempic its ilk which show enthusiasm for the potential market of weight loss drugs. They see it, as you indicate, as a money-making scheme.

What's more, I fear that the potential negative sentiment won't be a mere indirect cause of these drugs becoming available to the public.

As the article you shared indicates, corporations are more than happy to shell out a lot of money in advertising campaigns to shift public sentiment to be favorable to their product.

We are seeing something similar with the rise of SUVs in the US and now in other countries thanks to a shift in perception that they are safer (despite the exact opposite being true, with SUVs being held to lower safety regulations than other vehicles), as this video and its sources show:


The nightmare scenario is the resurgence of heroin chic (which I've read has started already) and the overt demonization of fat and fat appreciators fueled by the immense wealth available to the pharmaceutical industry.

Frankly it's insane that drug companies can have commercials and pay for advertisement in the US...

Hoo boy. Where do I begin?

I've worked in the health care industry for many years so I remember a time when Ozempic was just a medication for type 2 diabetic struggling to get their blood sugar under control. As in you tried diet, exercise, and other medications so it was time for the big guns.

Celebrities telling people they take Ozempic for weight loss is the worst possible thing. The first is that diabetics have been struggling to get their hands on this life-saving medication. I've spoken to countless diabetics telling me about how they've had to ration their medication or go without because the pharmacy is out.

The second is that taking diabetic medication when you aren't diabetic will mess up your internals. Plus, if you stop taking the medication, you gain it all back. I can understand taking this if you are severally obese, in poor health, and nothing works. But for everyone else? I can't justify it.

I wouldn't be shocked if there's a class action lawsuit about this in the future.

Something similar happened to my partner. He's not even diabetic. I was spitting mad.

But yes. I agree with everything you said.

I actually hadn't realized how Ozempic was supposed to be the last line of defense for diabetics; I knew the off-label use was causing shortages but... wow.

Isn't the Hippocratic oath supposed to prevent this sort of thing? Obviously it's not a binding legal oath, but...

This reeks a bit of the same stink around the opioid epidemic.

Nah, the opioid crisis is a completely different kettle of fish.

Check these out when you've got the time:






But yeah, it's mega shady. To be very clear, most doctors do have their patient's best interests in mind. Yes, there are some corrupt doctors out there. And sometimes a doctor might recommend something because they think it's the best thing for their patient.

As patients, the best thing we can do is to stay educated, be involved with our treatment, and don't be afraid to get a second opinion.

Ahh, John Oliver is fantastic. I watched the first one and I now i get to be angry at pharma all over again.

I guess you're right; doctors are kinda stuck as the middle-man here too. Pressure from phara companies, hospital administration, insurance, and more all are contributing to these issues and it's not fair to blame the doctors.

It would help too if primary care physicians were given more time with each patient--I remember starting care last week and talking about potential ADHD symptoms, and I walked out with a prescription for Adderall after a 6 question survey he seemed to pull from the internet. I would have preferred a diagnosis and a referral to specialist; instead I have amphetamine. Not to say I don't think it might be helpful for my case; but it some more time to talk about options seems like it could go a long way to avoid prescribing potentially addictive drugs.

Still, I think there are a lot of parallels. Language like "it changed my life" which Purdue used to market opioids is exactly the kind of thing that I hear in weight loss ads--and I'm sure we have all heard the "Oh, oh, oh, Ozempic!" commercial.

...Imagine heroin or other opiods being prescribed for weight loss.

Gotta remember that not every doctor will push for Ozempic for weight loss. Insurances in America will only cover it for diabetes, and the FDA only approves of Wegovy for weight loss as part of chronic weight management if you also have severe health issues to boot.

There is no governing body that approves Ozempic or Wegovy for short term weight loss or quick fixes.

Let's remember that this has blown up to the proportion is has due to a fad. Sure, there's something there for the severely ill and morbidly obese. But for everyone else? The cost is too high and the side effects are too much for this to have any real staying power. It'll be big for a bit until interest petters out - not before doing some damage unfortunately.

It’s become personal. Someone with a long history in our community (the fatosphere, but not on FF) with whom i became extremely close a year ago recently shared that her quality of life is tanking and possibly the remaining length of her life in measurable part due to the unavailability of this drug (i forgot which exact version) to her, for her on-label Type 2 diabetes + debilitating obesity issues. She and her doctors can’t get it anywhere, because too many rich f**ks are obsessed with an injection shortcut to thinness.

Side note: this individual has been very fat her whole life, and generally healthy for most of it. Only with the “help” of orthodox medicine in recent years and various side effects therefrom did she first develop Type 2 diabetes and other new, major un-health issues.