The producer of the pharmaceutical weight loss film Wegovy expects the bottlenecks to be resolved in the coming months as production ramps up.
The drug has taken the country by storm since it was approved in 2021 to treat obesity, a condition that has only recently been reconsidered due to numerous genetic and environmental factors beyond a person’s control.
Celebrities and influencers sang its praises and exploded in popularity. Famous users include Elon Musk, who credited Wegovy with his body transformation. Kim Kardashian also reportedly used the injections.
An increase in demand coupled with production issues shortened the supply chain last year, leading to shortages of Wegovy and its sister drug Ozempic.
The demand is so great that the Food and Drug Administration database lists semaglutide, the drug’s active ingredient, as “currently in short supply.”
Wegovy is a GLP-1 drug that has been praised for its value as a weight loss supplement.
However, executives at drugmaker Novo Nordisk reassured investors on Wednesday that the company is ramping up production at several manufacturing sites to meet its profit forecasts, of which anti-obesity drugs are a significant part.
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Novo Nordisk CFO Karsten Munk Knudsen said: “As you know, we have one [production] Driving in house, two more are in full swing and we have one line on track to be online for the first half of this year and another line on track to be online for the second half of this year. We have therefore taken a big step forward in Wegovy’s production capacity.’
Company executives praised the tremendous gains of the weight control drugs in its portfolio. Sales of anti-obesity drugs are set to rise 84 percent through 2022, fueled by widespread belief that Wegovy and Ozempic are miracle weight-loss drugs.
But the increasing demand has led to a mad scramble for the limited supply. Suddenly, diabetics who depended on Ozempic, originally approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, could not get the weekly injection to lower their blood sugar.
The shortage became so long that the most desperate people bought the active ingredient semaglutide from shady online marketplaces to mix the ingredients for a homemade version of the drug.
Lars Jorgensen, the company’s chief executive, admitted there was ‘pent up demand’ for the drug, adding: ‘We are sure patients are coming.
“We are of course encouraged by the trend line we are seeing, but we also believe that there will be normalization.”
The active ingredient semaglutide is a GLP-1 or glucagon-like peptide-1 that mimics the satiety hormone GLP-1 in our bodies.
The FDA approved Wegovy for weight loss in adults age 20 and older with a body mass index of 27 to 30 in June 2021 after impressive studies showed it can reduce a person’s body weight by about 15 percent in 68 weeks.
Wegovy and Ozempic work by stimulating the body to produce a hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1, which is naturally released from the gut after meals
Celebrities like Elon Musk, Jeremy Clarkson and Remi Bader have spoken about the “really amazing” Ozempic, which suppresses appetite and helps users feel fuller for longer
It also received regulatory approval in December to treat obesity in people under the age of 20, marking a seismic shift in the treatment of childhood obesity.
However, the move raised doubts among some pediatricians and weight-loss experts, who feared that promoting a supposed panacea for obesity, especially in children, would underestimate the importance of a healthy diet and regular exercise.
Not only is the drug currently difficult to obtain, it is also expensive. Wegovy and Ozempic are weekly injections that cost more than $1,300 for a month’s supply. And most of the time the insurance doesn’t pay the bill.
And early scientific evidence from long-term use shows that someone who starts taking the drug and sees positive results should continue to use the drug to maintain those results.
Common side effects include nausea, diarrhea and other gastrointestinal problems.
Wegovy may also have some rare but serious side effects, such as possible thyroid tumors, pancreatitis, gallbladder problems, and kidney failure.
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Crystal Leahy is an author and health journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a background in health and wellness, Crystal has a passion for helping people live their best lives through healthy habits and lifestyles.
