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‘Stop taking my drugs’: Calls to stop online weight loss trend
Words: Rhylea MillarProducer: Simone Kealy
A viral TikTok video which has encouraged people wanting to lose weight to take Ozempic – a type 2 diabetes medication, has led to a shortage of the drugs in Australia.
Video credit: Instagram/@ghleanna
Initially, the medication was only prescribed to those living with diabetes to lower their sugar levels and reduce the risk of major cardiovascular events including heart attacks, but is now available for ‘off-label’ prescribing.
Now Toowoomba’s Jude Heppes has issued an urgent plea to people using the drug for weight loss purposes.“To the people who are getting it for weight loss, go on a diet, but don’t take medication away from the people who really need it,” she said.
Ms Heppes, who was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes a few years ago, has tried several different types of medication and insulin injections in the past, but they failed to lower her sugar levels or left her with serious side effects.
“If I go to bed with my sugar levels too low, I won’t wake up in the morning – it’s my life at stake here,” she said.
The Toowoomba woman recently spent days trying to source a box of Ozempic, which she estimated would cover six weeks’ worth of supply, taking both a physical and mental toll.
Mentally, I’ve been a bit of a mess and I’ve been so stressed out at the thought of not being able to get my medication.
“
— Jude Heppes
“The sponsor (Novo Nordisk) of Ozempic in Australia, has informed the TGA that the off-label use of Ozempic for weight loss in Australia has increased over recent months,” a spokeswoman from the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) said.
“Novo Nordisk has advised the TGA that supplies of Ozempic in Australia are sufficient for its approved use," the spokewoman said.
The TGA recently issued a joint statement, urging health professionals to prioritise people with type 2 diabetes during the shortage and limit prescribing the medication for other reasons.Australia’s Ozempic supply levels are currently expected to increase by June, 15.
																																								

Original URL: https://www.thechronicle.com.au/web-stories/free/the-chronicle-toowoomba/tiktok-weight-loss-trend-fuels-diabetes-drug-shortage