The world renowned ‘fat jabs’ appear to be working miracles and have an appreciative following in Bahrain where the injections, originally prescribed for diabetics, are being used under prescription as a weight loss solution.
In a country in which obesity is a growing concern, the medication is proving a vital tool in the battle against the flab.
A Bahrain-based expatriate woman, for example, has received a new lease of life after taking the medication. The homemaker from Hamala, who did not want to be named, suffered for years from Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, a common hormonal condition, and insulin resistance, which made losing weight difficult, severely affecting her quality of life.
When global attention focused on the success of its weight loss qualities, the 36-year-old carried out online research and sensibly decided to seek medical guidance.
She was prescribed Ozempic and has lost 44 kilos, going down from 144kg, over a period of two years of using the drug, supplemented by regular exercise and a low-carbohydrate-high-protein diet.
Weight loss injections are medications primarily developed as Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1, a class of medications that mainly help manage blood glucose levels) agonists for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, but scientific research has proven their effectiveness in significant weight loss. These drugs mimic a natural hormone in the body that regulates insulin, appetite and satiety.
“I’ve lost like a third of my body weight and my mobility is much better, which has massively helped,” the mother-of-two told the GDN.
“I also have further autoimmune disabilities so my mobility is not amazing and it attacks all my joints but not carrying around all that extra weight all the time has taken so much pressure off my joints,” she added, highlighting that losing the weight and restoring her physical health has helped her mental health improve massively.
Obesity and overweight affects around 60 per cent of the population in Bahrain, according to Royal Bahrain Hospital consultant endocrinologist Dr Wiam Hussein.
“Weight loss injections are becoming one of the best and most popular drugs in Bahrain and in the Gulf. However, in Bahrain it’s only available based on prescription and rightly so, as the dosage escalation has to be done under the supervision of a doctor,” he said.
“For instance, Mounjaro comes in six doses. So, you need to assess the results after each dose and then decide whether to go on the next one,” added the expert, highlighting that the drugs are also proven effective to treat other issues, like metabolic disorders, fatty liver disease, fatty liver fibrosis and sleep apnoea.
At present, Saxenda, Ozempic and Mounjaro are the only diabetic injections that are approved to be prescribed for weight loss in Bahrain.
However, Saxenda will soon no longer be available in Bahrain’s private sector and pharmacies, according to the medical expert, who also revealed that the National Health Regulatory Authority (NHRA) has recently approved Rigovir, a higher dose of Ozempic, which will be available in the kingdom by the end of the year.
Weight loss pens come in different doses because your body needs time to adjust. Pharmaceutical companies have developed newer formulations requiring once-daily and later once-weekly dosing.
“There is one now being studied which will need to be administered just once a month. You cannot go straight to the highest dose because you might get side effects and that is what happens when people take it over the counter.
“The safe way to do it is to assess the results after each month and then progress to a higher dosage if required. For example, we start with a quarter milligram every week for a month, and the month after we go to half milligram every week for a month and see the body’s response. Some people can respond well to the smaller doses and some need to go to the higher doses.
“While social media often highlights negative personal experiences and side effects, millions of patients worldwide benefit enormously from these medications – improving blood sugar, reducing body weight, and enhancing overall quality of life. This highlights the importance of evaluating these drugs based on scientific evidence, not isolated cases, and following up closely with an endocrinologist for proper management,” he added.
The most common side-effect is a feeling of nausea at the start of the course and there has been a backlash from diabetics in some parts of the world where supplies have been hit by the demand from those trying to lose weight.
The costs can prove prohibitive too for some patients, with the average price of a private hospital prescription more than BD40 a month.
melissa@gdnmedia.bh
SIDE EFFECTS
Some side effects based on a latest report by Dr Hussein:
Common Side Effects (usually temporary)
- Nausea: Around 15 to 20pc of cases, especially at the start of each dose.
- Vomiting: Around 5pc to 7pc.
- Stomach discomfort or pain: Around 6pc to 7pc.
- Constipation: Around 3pc to 7pc.
Rare Side Effects
- Pancreatitis: Occurs in less than 0.4pc of cases
- Non-Arteritic Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy (NAION): A very rare eye condition causing sudden vision loss, recently observed in some Ozempic users with an incidence of two to 10 cases per 100,000 people per year.