Everyone Is Talking About Losing Weight with Semaglutide Injections: Can They Help Me?

In the United States, about 2 in 5 adults (42%) — or roughly 100 million American men and women — live with obesity, a serious chronic condition that’s defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or above. Obesity doesn’t just affect body size; it also affects health. It’s a major risk factor for:

• Type 2 diabetes
• Osteoarthritis
• Hypertension
• Heart disease 
• Certain cancers   

Weight loss specialist Tyneza Mitchell, FNP, and our team at Comprehensive Care Clinic know that lifestyle changes are indispensable to long-term weight control. We also know that for many people with obesity, prescription weight loss medication can be a game-changer that helps them move forward more quickly on the path to improved health.  

Here, we discuss the ins and outs of the latest anti-obesity medication (AOM) — semaglutide — including how it works, what’s behind the hype, and who can benefit.  

The latest AOM for long-term use

Until recently, the FDA had approved just five prescription AOMs for long-term use. Most of these weight loss drugs reduce your appetite, make you feel fuller faster, or both. One FDA-approved medication interferes with dietary fat absorption. 

Then, for the first time since 2014, the FDA added a new drug to its list of approved AOMs for long-term use in 2021: semaglutide. 

Approved for weight loss under the brand name Wegovy®, this injectable peptide medication had already been approved by the FDA in 2017 as a treatment for type 2 diabetes, under a different brand name — Ozempic®.   

How semaglutide promotes weight loss

When it was first approved as a treatment for type 2 diabetes, semaglutide was an exciting new drug for physicians and patients alike: When taken via low-dose daily injections or oral tablets, this GLP-1 agonist prompts the release of insulin to control blood sugar levels after eating.

It wasn’t until researchers realized that semaglutide was also highly effective at promoting weight loss that it became headline news and somewhat of a national sensation. 

Essentially, experts realized that when taken at higher doses, semaglutide interacts with the areas of your brain that control appetite and satiety (the degree to which you feel full after eating). When taken via weekly, self-injections, this AOM:

• Works to suppress your normal appetite 
• Slows the gastric emptying process after you eat
• Helps you reach satiation more quickly (with less food)
• Helps sustain satiation for longer after mealtime 

Many people who take semaglutide also report that it seems to help cut out “food noise,” or constant thoughts about food that can make it harder to stick to a healthier eating plan. 

Is semaglutide a viable option for me? 

Semaglutide — in combination with diet and exercise — has already helped many people lose a substantial amount of weight and lower their risk of serious health conditions. 

With so many success stories in the news, it’s not surprising that the drug has been affected by numerous shortages. It’s also not surprising that many people who are still struggling to lose weight have been asking: Can semaglutide help me, too?  

In its formulation under the brand name Wegovy, semaglutide is approved for use as a tool in chronic weight management for anyone who’s struggling to lose weight and has:

• A BMI of 30 or higher
• A BMI of 27 or higher, along with a weight-related comorbidity 

Weight-related comorbidities are chronic health problems like type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and heart disease — or any condition that commonly co-occurs with obesity, and often improves significantly with even a moderate 5-10% weight loss. 

For example, a person who’s 5’5” and weighs 165 pounds, giving them a BMI of 27.5, would qualify for treatment with semaglutide if they also have an additional weight-related health concern like diabetes. Without the presence of a weight-related ailment, the same 5’5” person would have to weigh at least 180 pounds, with a BMI of 30, to qualify for treatment.     

What to know about semaglutide 

Many men and women qualify for chronic weight management with semaglutide based on their current BMI and health status. If you do, too, it’s important to consider the treatment’s benefits and potential drawbacks before you start using this long-term AOM to lose weight. 

A few things you should know about semaglutide are:

• It’s a weekly self-administered injection
• It’s designed for long-term use; many people take it for years
• Most people regain some weight after stopping semaglutide
• Digestive side effects (i.e., constipation, stomach pain) are common from the start
• It can cause mild side effects like dizziness, fatigue, and headache

Most importantly, semaglutide is not a miracle drug; it works in conjunction with — not in place of — healthy eating and regular exercise, the two main lifestyle modifications that are vital to long-term weight control. 

Ready to find out if semaglutide may be right for you? We’re here to help. Call or click online to schedule a consultation at Comprehensive Care Clinic in Spring, Texas, today.