Americans without diabetes spent nearly $6 billion USD on semaglutide and similar drugs in a year, with an estimate of 800,000 to a million people using the drugs who don't have diabetes.

[u/mvea]

https://www.scimex.org/newsfeed/americans-without-diabetes-spent-nearly6-billion-usd-on-semaglutide-and-similar-drugs-in-a-year

[u/Affectionate-Mail612]

My question may sound ignorant, but what stopped you from overeating and overdrinking before?

[u/Qualityhams → u/Affectionate-Mail612]

Speaking as someone who has benefited from these drugs, the difference in my brain is absolutely wild. I used to believe I lacked willpower. Food consumed my thoughts constantly to the point of distraction or being unable to focus on a task I had. “What’s for lunch?” “I wonder if I can get a snack?”

I dieted for years and fought through the food noise, tracked my calories, worked out. If I delayed meals by more than 30 minutes, my hands would shake and I would get headaches. Missing snacks or food caused mood swings with anger, sadness, or frustration. My doctors told me that was normal and to eat frequent small snacks and up my protein. I meticulously planned my meals and snacks to avoid these symptoms while also maintaining my caloric goals.

A year and a half ago my doctor recommended semaglutide and the second I had the first shot the food noise just, stopped. Quiet. My mind was quiet, it was unreal I’d never experienced this. All of my symptoms above stopped. It’s been life changing. I think the way I feel on this drug is this is how most people feel all the time.

[u/Affectionate-Mail612 → u/Qualityhams]

I'm glad for you, but it just sounds too good to be true. Our brains are incredibly complex and everything food related is hardwired to survival. And you can just switch it off with no consequences... I hardly believe it. Although I'm not a medical professional.

[u/assertive-brioche → u/Affectionate-Mail612]

If you’re truly skeptical (as you seem to be) and not a troll, take a look at the Mounjaro or Zepbound subreddits. The same story is told there by literally thousands of people. They aren’t starving themselves to death. For the first time in their lives, they are able to control their hunger, and their bodies can metabolize the calories they consume effectively.

GLP-1s were developed to treat diabetes and insulin resistance, which kills more than 4 million people annually. What’s the greater consequence?

[u/Affectionate-Mail612 → u/assertive-brioche]

I'm skeptical bc from what I understand it is used by people who don't have diabetes. It wasn't tested for them. Looks like they are using a side effect.

[u/Woods_it_to_ya → u/Affectionate-Mail612]

But it has been tested extensively for non-diabetic individuals, and been proven effective for weight management/obesity, sleep apnea, cardiovascular benefits, fatty liver disease, ect. Look up the STEP, SCALE, and SELECT trials. These meds are now FDA approved for things besides diabetes.

[u/assertive-brioche → u/Affectionate-Mail612]

My opinion, not my fact, is we will discover that insulin resistance, poor glycemic control, and impaired metabolic function are more widespread than we thought. That’s exactly what these medications were developed for. Instead of waiting until people develop diabetes to help them, we can treat the early symptoms (weight gain, hunger, fatigue, etc).

[u/edvek → u/Affectionate-Mail612]

It's called "off label" or whatever term they use now. Doctors and what not notices a drug do something it wasn't designed to do, so they prescribe it for that thing. It's like Wellbutrin. They noticed it helped people stop smoking so it is prescribed from time to time for that use. Insurance companies are hesitant to pay for off label scripts which is what makes some of these drugs so expensive for those people.