Summary (The TLDR) * Alarming data is coming in: Some patients on Wegovy & Ozempic are seeing 50% to 60% of their weight loss come from lean tissue. (muscle). Patients may be getting lighter on the scale but increasing their body fat percentage. This is concerning. (One study here) * As a comparison, when losing weight naturally, it is typical that about 25% of your weight loss will come from lean tissue and muscle mass. * But, there is a SOLUTION! To combat this, patients taking these drugs need to strength train and eat a high protein diet. This will help retain and build lean tissues, muscle mass, connective tissue, & retain bone density. * Wegovy & Ozempic are miracle drugs for fast weight loss. Some patients are losing up to 60lbs in 6 months. But there are real risks to be aware of. * If you take these drugs and don’t change your diet & lifestyle, you will be forced to keep injecting & paying for them forever. * If you ever stop them in the future without lifestyle changes, you’ll gain all the weight back & possibly a lot more. I explain why below. * It is worth noting: The drugmaker behind Ozempic & Wegovy disclosed paying health care providers in the US over $25,000,000 over the past decade to promote these drugs. It paid $1,400,000 to one doctor alone*. * Disclosure: I am an investor in the maker of these drugs, Novo Nordisk. I’m very excited by the results of these drugs but I’m growing increasingly concerned about what I’m observing in my friends that are using them and the mounting evidence about their side effects. Year Of The Opposite - Travis Stoliker's Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Full Article: I’m Concerned about Wegovy & Ozempic. Here is How Patients Can Protect Themselves Ozempic is everywhere. Not since Viagra & Botox has a drug become so popular so quickly. You’ve probably heard of a friend taking it, seen a commercial, or heard of a celebrity talking about “Ozempic Face”. ("Ozempic face" refers to a condition where facial skin may sag and appear aged following the use of these drugs. This effect is likely attributed to the loss of lean tissue, a topic we will explore in detail.) The technical name for these drugs are “GLP-1 receptor agonists” and they go by the names like Semaglutide, Wegovy, Ozempic, and a few others. It’s understandable why they have grown so quickly. They work incredibly well, and globally approximately 1-3 billion people are overweight or obese (depending upon which statistic you trust). This is a tragedy and it leads to many long term negative health consequences. What troubles me most about that statistic is that obesity rates in children have skyrocketed. Approximately 300-600 million kids are overweight or obese (depending upon which statistic you trust). This is quite concerning. Safety of these drugs becomes even more important due to these two factors. * The fast and widespread adoption of them and * the fact that they were recently approved as a treatment for children. Before we begin, the first two questions that people ask me when we talk about this topic are: * Did you use these drugs to lose the 62lbs? * No. I did not use any medications to lose the weight. But I’m not against these drugs. I just personally didn’t want to be on any medications anymore. * Are you an investor? * Yes. I invested in Novo Nordisk before the popularity of these drugs exploded. So it’s fair to judge my writing with a skeptical eye. These drugs have exploded in the past few months. It’s likely that one of your friends or family members are taking them and I hope you will share this article with them without any judgement or condescension. “Ozempic and Wegovy brought in $4.8 billion of sales during just the third quarter of 2023, and the drugs account for 52% of Novo Nordisk's $23.6 billion of total revenue through the first nine mont