VANITY CAN MAIM –
Dec. 14, 2023 – Some have even needed to be hospitalized for severe nausea, vomiting and stomach pain, but their cases seem to have resolved after they were given intravenous fluids and medications to control nausea. From Jan. through Nov., Poison Centers reported nearly 3,000 calls involving semaglutide, in 94% of calls, this medication was the only substance reported.
Semaglutide was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in 2017. It is sold as Ozempic when used for diabetes and Wegovy when used for weight loss. Even when used as directed by a doctor, people can have stomach and bowel side effects, including nausea, vomiting and constipation, especially when they start the drugs.
After celebrities began openly embracing Ozempic on social media in 2022 as a way to lose weight, demand overwhelmed supply. It went into shortage in the FDA’s database in March 2022, which opened the door for certain qualified pharmacies to make compounded versions.
The compounded versions of semaglutide are often different from the patented drug. Many containsemaglutide salts called semaglutide sodium and semaglutide acetate. The FDA says the salt forms of the drug have not been tested and approved to be safe and effective the way the patented form of the medication has, and thus they don’t qualify for the compounding exemption in the law for drugs in shortage. In other cases, the compounded versions are sold in unapproved dosages.
The FDA has sent letters to at least two online sellers warning them to stop. Drugmaker Novo Nordisk has sued to stop six medical spas, medical clinics and weight loss clinics from selling knock-off versions.
But these compounded versions are popular because they may cost less out-of-pocket, especially if the treatment isn’t covered by insurance.
