SAN ANTONIO – It’s being called the “miracle weight loss drug.”
Ozempic is used to treat diabetes and obesity, but with its new-found popularity in the general population, scammers are cashing in.
It’s prompting an international warning about “faux-zempic,” a term coining the fake version of Ozempic and the similar weight loss drug Wegovy.
The main component in both drugs is semaglutide.
“With off-brand semaglutide, we do not know what they contain, what is the concentration, the sterility circumstances,” said Dr. Carolina Solis-Herrera, the leading endocrinologist with University Health and an associate professor and Endocrinology Division Chief at UT Health San Antonio.
Solis-Herrera said the rampant problem is fueled by a shortage of the legitimate drug.
The new weight loss popularity just one of those factors.
“The shortage is historical between COVID, between the shortage of the device that goes inside the pen that is also not available,” she said.
With that short supply, criminals are swooping in and creating fake products. Doctors are saying the injection pen and the packaging of the dupes are made to look very similar to the real deal, so people should completely avoid buying the off-brand version.
“If it says semaglutide and it’s not coming from the manufacturer Nova Nordisk, you shouldn’t get it. They don’t sell it online. You need a prescription from a specialized physician,” Solis-Herrera said.
The off-brand injections can lower blood sugar, which legitimate semaglutide injections do not do.
“If you have severe hypoglycemia and you’re driving, you can pass out, cause a motor vehicle accident, you can have a seizure. You can have more severe complications and even death,” Solis-Herrera said.
Doctors across the world want to educate the community, so people don’t end up playing roulette with their health.