Insight and knowledge from qualified medical professionals
If you’ve utilised Instagram for an extended period of time, it’s quite likely that you’ve seen an advertising for the ‘Skinny Jab.’ In the year 2021, Gemma Collins, star of the reality television show The Only Way to Live in Essex, and Kerry Katona, formerly of the band Atomic Kitten, ascribed their recent weight loss to the product in a series of paid-for posts.
The notion is straightforward: a series of injections spread out over four weeks is all that is required for quick fat loss. In order to accomplish weight loss, Skinny Jab claims to “remove hunger from the equation.”
Doesn’t that appear a little too good to be true? Women’s Health was interested in the expert viewpoints on the subject.
Okay. Therefore, what is the Skinny Jab?
As part of the Skinny Jab regimen, a daily or weekly injection of liraglutide is administered. These are injected into your stomach at home using a pen-shaped instrument, and they significantly reduce the amount of hunger you experience. This leads to decreased caloric intake, which almost certainly results in weight loss.
Numerous companies currently provide this drug under a variety of brand names; however, the Skinny Jab brand appears to be the most well-known because to the endorsements of renowned celebrities who have vouched for the product’s efficacy.
Liraglutide, which is manufactured by the pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk and marketed under the trade name ‘Victoza’ when taken at a dose of 1.2 micrograms, was originally envisioned as a treatment that may help type 2 diabetes patients.
Since then, liraglutide has also been approved for use as an obesity treatment. Saxenda, with a higher dose of 3 micrograms, was released by Novo Nordisk in the United Kingdom in 2017 for use in private clinics for weight control. People who are overweight or obese can now obtain a prescription for this medication, which regulates the amount of glucose in the blood and, as a consequence, reduces their appetite.
“Patients with type 2 diabetes are hyperglycaemic,” which, in layman’s words, means that their blood glucose levels are consistently elevated, according to Dr. Jane Leonard, a general practitioner and cosmetic medicine specialist.
Victoza was administered to these patients in an effort to maintain normal blood sugar levels.
As a result of its appetite-suppressing effects, patients taking the higher dose of Saxenda experience less hunger, and as a result, they consume less calories overall.
It is important to note that Victoza is indicated for the treatment of diabetes, not obesity, and that Saxenda is indicated for weight management, not diabetes – an important distinction to avoid off-label promotion for diseases they are not licenced for, according to the drug’s manufacturers.
Before commencing a four-week programme of liraglutide or Saxenda administration with Skinny Jab, you will have a physician consultation and clinical examination to determine your suitability for the treatment.
Is it OK to utilise the Skinny Jab?
It is legal, and the European Union approved its use in therapeutic contexts in 2009. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends that the medication should not be prescribed to people with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher (which indicates obesity) or between 25 and 30 (which indicates overweight status) unless they also have another weight-related condition, such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, or sleep apnea.
NICE has recently suggested Saxenda as a therapy for obesity that the NHS should use. Recommendation for persons with a body mass index (BMI) of 35 or above who are pre-diabetic and have a high risk of developing cardiovascular disease due to risk factors such as high blood pressure or high cholesterol. Saxenda is intended for use by those who satisfy all of these requirements. It will be administered alongside a regimen to reduce caloric intake and increase physical activity, and will be stopped if the individual does not lose at least five percent of their body weight within twelve months.
In order to treat obesity with semaglutide
Recent research has demonstrated that the weight loss drug semaglutide is effective.
In contrast, semaglutide has not yet been authorised for the treatment of obesity. Ozempic® is the brand name for the weight loss drug semaglutide, which can assist individuals with type 2 diabetes in losing weight. Once the licence for utilising Semagalutide for weight loss is granted, the medication’s brand name will change; it will no longer be called Ozempic®.
STEP1: Study on Semglaglutide
The objective of the Semaglutide Treatment Efficacy in People with Obesity (STEP) research is to compare the efficacy of Semaglutide to a placebo in terms of weight loss, safety, and tolerability in obese and overweight individuals. The first stage of the trial, designated STEP1, indicated that a weekly injection of semaglutide 2.4 mg is an effective weight reduction medication. Those who got a once-weekly Semaglutide injection lost around 15 percent more weight compared to those who received a placebo over the course of 68 weeks (2.4 percent weight loss).
Ozempic®, a brand name for semaglutide that is licenced for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, is provided at a dosage that is much lower (up to one milligramme) than the one used in this study for the treatment of obesity (2.4milligram).
In conjunction with a healthy lifestyle strategy, the research indicates indisputably that the injection benefited patients in reaching their weight loss objectives. A growing number of individuals have ceased taking this injection due to its undesirable side effects. Among the most often reported adverse events to semaglutide are nausea and diarrhoea.
Following its publication in a number of tabloids as well as on the BBC’s website, this study has received considerable attention. As previously stated, the pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has not yet received permission for this obesity treatment medication.
The newly established therapy for Type 2 diabetes management also promotes weight loss.
As the prevalence of type 2 diabetes increases worldwide, more research is being performed to aid diabetics in keeping their disease under control and preventing complications. During the preceding decade, a number of brand-new medications have been introduced. In ninety percent of instances, individuals with type 2 diabetes are either overweight or obese. We all know that weight loss improves glucose control and, in some cases, completely reverses type 2 diabetes. In recent years, diabetes therapies have increasingly emphasised both decreasing patients’ blood glucose levels and preventing weight gain.
This article will discuss a new medication called Semaglutide, which is an analogue of GLP-1 (Glucagon Like Peptide-1). This product’s brand name is Ozempic®.
What precisely is a GLP-1 analogue?
GLP-1 is a naturally occurring hormone that controls glucose levels and appetite via many processes. The link between blood glucose levels and hunger is mediated by changes in both the pancreas and the brain. The hormone known as Glucagon-like Peptide (GLP-1) is a crucial component that plays a role.
GLP-1 stimulates insulin secretion in a glucose-dependent manner, implying that GLP-1 only increases insulin secretion when blood glucose levels are high and has no effect when blood glucose levels are low. Therefore, GLP-1 only functions when blood glucose levels are high.
When blood glucose levels are high, GLP-1 inhibits the secretion of glucagon. Glucagon is a hormone that increases blood glucose levels. When blood glucose levels are insufficient, the pancreas frequently produces glucagon. Glucagon is responsible for turning the liver’s glycogen sugar stores into glucose.
Part of the process that decreases blood glucose is a little delay in the rate at which the stomach empties after a meal. Semaglutide decreases the amount of insulin released during hypoglycemia, often known as low blood glucose.
It is also known to reduce body fat and weight by decreasing appetite and the amount of food ingested by the body. Additionally, Ozempic® reduces the urge for high-fat meals.
Despite this, there are commercial companies who give rounds of the medicine to individuals who may not meet all of these conditions. On the SkinnyJab website, it is stated that patients must have a BMI of at least 25 in order to undergo the procedure, however the “weight-related condition” criterion is not mentioned at all.
It is not a substitute for promoting a healthy diet and lifestyle, and should not be used as such.
Why? Caroline Balazs, the designer of SkinnyJab, explained to WH the logic behind this move. She noted that being even a few pounds overweight with a BMI of 25 might affect the likelihood of developing diabetes or cardiovascular disease in the future. It is up to the physician’s judgement to assess whether a particular patient is appropriate for therapy. It is not illegal to issue a prescription for a “off-label” version of a medicine.
Does the Skinny Jab accomplish anything?
Exists proof that the medication is useful for diabetics without type 2 diabetes? You might anticipate some weight reduction as a result. According to the SkinnyJab website, the average weight reduction over the program’s first four weeks is between 12 and 20 pounds.
According to Dr. Leonard, the effects of ligarglutide will be temporary. There will be issues if this causes you to develop an unhealthy relationship with your body or the food you consume. She says, “The issue is if someone were to go on it, lose weight, come off it, regain the weight, and then go back on it.” “It should not be used as a substitute for promoting a healthy diet and lifestyle,” which is the only thing that can maintain a healthy weight and increase longevity.
According to SkinnyJab, their programmes are thorough and involve access to a therapist as well as meal planning prior to and during the programme. In addition, they promise that the approach will result in permanent weight loss.
What is the cost of receiving the Skinny Jab?
The cost of a course of SkinnyJab is now fixed at either £250 for a series of daily injections or £500 for larger doses taken weekly. Following the initial four weeks, further injections cost £175 for a day dose and £400 for a weekly dose. Each cycle might last anywhere between two and four weeks.
According to the website, each programme includes “24/7 aftercare, a food plan, and help and counselling to maximise weight loss results.” This is included in the program’s pricing.
What are the potential side effects of this drug?
A 2017 analysis of previously gathered data on liraglutide revealed that “gastrointestinal side effects were the most common and often appeared early in the course of therapy.” Now we are discussing abdominal pain, nausea, and either constipation or diarrhoea.
And the bigger picture? According to general practitioner and aesthetic physician Dr. Ross Perry, it is too early to determine the long-term effects of liraglutide injections. According to the 2017 review, “more study is necessary to evaluate its long-term efficacy and safety profile.”) “However, as with any other type of medication, there are always potential side effects to be mindful of.”
Hypoglycemia, sometimes known as a dip in blood sugar levels below normal, has been reported as a potential adverse effect of the in issue medication. According to SkinnyJab, which quotes Novo Nordisk’s official statement, this is false: “Since liraglutide mimics the glucose-sensitive action of endogenous GLP-1, it does not cause hypoglycemia.”
Concerns over an increased risk of thyroid cancer arose when research on rats and mice found a significant correlation between liraglutide and cancer cells. To yet, no increased risk of this disease has been documented in persons who have used this medication. According to Balazs, “there is no well-examined human evidence of thyroid problems.” Every drug has the potential for side effects. Even commonly prescribed drugs such as paracetamol. For example, mixing Panadol or paracetamol and alcohol can be very dangerous.
To go straight to the point: is it safe to use the Skinny Jab?
The answer to this question will vary according on whom you ask and the context in which it was prescribed. According to Dr. Leonard, the risk of utilising liraglutide is shared by both the patient and the prescribing physician. “In a risk-benefit analysis, you may opt to prescribe it to a person with type 2 diabetes if the health benefit is higher than the potential risk provided by the drug,” adds one source. Direct Peptides
She says, “And I assume we’re prescribing these as physicians; these are either general practitioners or endocrinologists who have your medical history in front of them.” According to her, there is a risk of consequences if the medicine is prescribed by a physician who is uninformed of your medical history or the medical history of your family.
