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This content has been automatically translated. View original in Arabic
Peace be upon you, dear audience. Previously, we had published a survey about the use of "Ozempic" for weight loss, which was kindly participated in by many followers. Based on this, we wrote a scientific paper that was published in a prestigious journal, by God’s grace.
In this segment, I would like to share the research findings with the general public outside the medical and research fields, out of respect for the many brothers and sisters who expressed a desire to know the results. For those in the medical research field, we will dedicate an interactive session where we will review the precise scientific findings and answer your questions, as this will be beneficial for researchers seeking to learn optimal scientific methods and critical thinking.
Our paper, dear audience, did not include side effects or reasons for discontinuing the medication, which we intend to address in another paper, God willing. Instead, our paper focused on three key aspects:
A total of 626 participants from 29 countries met the research criteria and completed the survey in full. Of these, 45% were male and 55% were female. 31% had diabetes, and the average weight of participants was 101.4 kg.
Regarding user behavior, it was found that 30.6% of users took the medication without a prescription or medical advice. Among these:
The lesson learned from this is that a significant proportion of users (about one-third) take Ozempic without medical supervision, which carries potential risks, misuse, and haphazard increases or decreases in dosage. We found that the highest rate of unsupervised use was in Jordan.
Additionally, 60% of users discontinued the medication prematurely. In our study, "premature discontinuation" was defined as stopping the medication before three months of use, with at least one month at a dose of 1 mg. Ideally, the medication should be given a chance to take effect over a period of no less than this duration; stopping it earlier is considered premature discontinuation and is a form of waste, as it is used for short periods known in advance to be of little benefit. We observed that those who followed their doctor’s prescription continued the medication for longer periods.
The vast majority (92%) took the medication solely for weight loss or for both weight loss and diabetes (70% for weight loss only, and 22% for both purposes).
An important observation is that 31% of users started the medication at doses higher than recommended (more than 0.25 mg), and 80% did not follow the gradual increase recommended (from 0.25 mg to 0.5 mg, then to 1 mg).
Here, we note that this use is called off-label use, meaning it is outside approved recommendations. The active ingredient semaglutide, marketed as Ozempic, is not originally approved for weight loss according to official therapeutic recommendations. Instead, the approved medication for this purpose is Wegovy, which contains the same active ingredient but under a different brand name and with doses specifically designed for obesity.
Regarding the effectiveness of Ozempic, we found that the average weight loss was "clinically significant," meaning it equaled or exceeded 5% of body weight for most groups who used it for a period of at least 8 to 12 weeks, even at lower doses (0.25 mg or 0.5 mg).
To clarify: If a person weighed 100 kg and lost weight to reach 95 kg, this is considered clinically significant weight loss because it reduces the risk of heart and artery diseases.
Our real-world experiment did not detect a statistically significant difference in the effect of the three doses (0.25 mg, 0.5 mg, and 1 mg) on weight loss. This does not necessarily mean there is no difference in reality, but the nature of real-world experiments faces challenges such as bias and confounding variables that may affect the accuracy of results. In general, longer use was associated with greater weight loss before users reached a plateau.
User opinions on satisfaction with the medication’s performance varied:
In conclusion, should we recommend the use of Ozempic for weight loss?
For my part, I always advise good dietary habits, strengthening willpower, and exercising. I lament the enormous sums spent on these medications instead of being used to feed the hungry and for other beneficial purposes. Capitalism, which perpetuates unhealthy dietary patterns, is the same entity that profits from selling these medications for billions of dollars annually. We ask God to rectify the situation.
On a related health note, I would like to emphasize the need to be cautious of fake AI-generated videos that falsely depict me promoting counterfeit medical products. I do not promote any products at all; I only announce our courses through "Madwan Academy."
For colleagues in the research field, we will provide a link to register for a special session where we will discuss the scientific paper and research skills in detail.
And peace be upon you, and God’s mercy.