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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
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Arwa Mahdawi

How healthy is America’s renewed love affair with weight loss medications?

‘Drugs like Ozempic are only going to get more popular. It’s not (just) vanity that’s driving their use, it’s economics, it’s the whole structure of society.’
‘Drugs like Ozempic are only going to get more popular. It’s not (just) vanity that’s driving their use, it’s economics, it’s the whole structure of society.’ Photograph: George Frey/Reuters

The United States of Ozempic

For a while it was a secret that only the A-listers were in on. Now, however, Ozempic – the diabetes drug that is being used off-label as an appetite suppressant – is everywhere. Ads for the medication are ubiquitous on US TV screens, videos of people documenting their Ozempic use are all over TikTok, and people like Elon Musk are loudly singing its praises. So many people are now popping Ozempic, Wegovy and other appetite-suppressing medications, that the effect is reportedly being felt in grocery aisles across America.

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