A new generation of weight-loss drugs are being touted as an exciting breakthrough in the fight against obesity. Users say the drugs have helped them lose weight rapidly, and even stopped them constantly thinking about food. With almost two-thirds of British adults either obese or overweight the government is pouring millions of pounds into trying to ensure more people can access the drugs.
As with other weight-loss solutions, celebrities have been quick to jump on the bandwagon and extol the virtues of drugs such as Ozempic or Wegovy. But, notes Nicola Davis, the Guardian’s science correspondent, critics say the drugs are not a magic bullet – and that societal change is needed to help prevent excessive weight gain. Nosheen Iqbal hears that some users have found the side effects of the drugs to be prohibitively severe.
But with the NHS creaking under the strain of the obesity epidemic, do these drugs offer hope for a healthier future? Or will they be used as a sticking plaster to put off a radical overhaul of our food industry?
Photograph: Andrej Safaric/Alamy
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