{"id":30701,"date":"2023-03-15T13:50:53","date_gmt":"2023-03-15T18:50:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wholehealthchicago.com\/blog\/?p=30701"},"modified":"2023-03-15T13:50:57","modified_gmt":"2023-03-15T18:50:57","slug":"peptides-for-weight-loss-what-you-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wholehealthchicago.com\/blog\/2023\/03\/15\/peptides-for-weight-loss-what-you-need-to-know","title":{"rendered":"Peptides for Weight Loss: What You Need To Know"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

You\u2019re tired of being overweight, and now you\u2019re teetering toward actual \u2018obesity\u2019. You\u2019ve tried everything. You\u2019ve been dieting as long as you can remember and nothing happens. You starve yourself, exercise to exhaustion, lose some pounds and gain them back. No matter what you do, your \u2018tummy\u2019 is still there. You know you\u2019re not alone. There are well over 50,000 book titles on Amazon when you insert \u2018diet\u2019 in the search engine. Diet pills, prescription or not, give no lasting benefit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And now you see articles and TV ads for the new semaglutide peptides (Wegovy, Trulicity, Mounjaro, Ozempic). These look good. Really simple, once weekly injections, originally FDA approved for Type 2 (adult onset) diabetes, had a marvelous additional benefit: users of the semaglutides lost weight.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then, when the FDA approved one of them for obesity (Wegovy), everyone wanted it. Not surprisingly, Big Pharma priced the semaglutides quite high (Wegovy et. al are $1,300 a month without insurance). The insurance companies, fully aware that 70% of Americans are overweight and 42% are obese, took one look at these prices and pressed the denial<\/strong> button every time a doctor wrote the prescription for a semaglutide when prescribed for obesity. The meds are covered for diabetes only after other therapies have been shown to fail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nevertheless, there are national shortages of weight loss peptides, reminding you there are no shortages of rich overweight people for whom $15,000 a year to become and remain svelte is considered a good investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do semaglutides work?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The last two Health Tips have been about peptides<\/a>, short strands of amino acids either injected (insulin) beneath your skin or sprayed into your mouth. Semaglutide, once injected, works by increasing the amount of insulin produced by your pancreas and decreasing the amount of a second hormone (glucagon) which raises blood sugar. This combination lowers your blood sugar, reduces your hunger and increases your energy levels. The end result is that you lose weight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Studies show that semaglutides work fairly fast: with no change in eating habits, patients lose 2% of their weight in 4 weeks, significantly more with calorie restrictions, and (to everyone\u2019s delight) weight loss begins with dreaded belly fat, which had accumulated because of excess insulin (the tummy is \u201clipophilic\u201d, it \u201cloves fat\u201d). Patients familiar with using glucose monitors notice immediately that semaglutides slow gastric emptying and reduce that sugar peak occurring after eating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mostly Good News, Some Bad News about the Semaglutides<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Good news first. Although there are several brands of the semaglutides, the basic semaglutide molecule is in the public domain and cannot be owned by any one company, like \u201cthyroid\u201d or \u201cinsulin\u201d. Therefore, semaglutide is available generically, by prescription, from peptide compounding pharmacies. <\/strong>Unlike the brand name product which sells four, pre-filled syringes for $1,300, the compounding pharmacies prepare a single vial and you\u2019re given a supply of insulin syringes for at-home self administration.<\/p>\n\n\n

You start at a very low dose, then slowly increase it over three months and maintain until you reach a weight you\u2019re satisfied with. To get started you\u2019ll need to request an appointment with one of our nurse practitioners. Your semaglutide package<\/b><\/a> will include:<\/p>\n