Introduction
Obesity rates have tripled worldwide since 1975 and now nearly 650 million adults are obese. While diet and exercise should be the foundation, many individuals struggle to lose weight and keep it off through lifestyle changes alone. This has driven intense research into medical therapies for weight management. One drug generating considerable excitement is semaglutide. Approved by the FDA in 2021 for chronic weight management, semaglutide represents a potential game changer for weight loss.
What is Semaglutide?
It is an injectable drug belonging to a class called GLP-1 receptor agonists, which also includes liraglutide and exenatide. It is structurally similar to a hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) that is released naturally by the body after eating. GLP-1 serves to reduce appetite and food intake. As a GLP-1 receptor agonist, semaglutide activates the same receptors as native GLP-1, primarily in the brain, stomach, and pancreas. This suppresses appetite, slows digestion, and improves blood sugar control.
How Does Semaglutide Promote Weight Loss?
There are a few key mechanisms by which semaglutide induces weight loss:
Appetite Reduction
It blunts appetite by acting on areas of the brain that regulate food intake like the hypothalamus. People on this drug report reduced hunger and food cravings. This leads to decreased calorie consumption.
Slowed Gastric Emptying
By slowing the rate at which food empties from the stomach, it promotes feelings of fullness and satiety after eating. This helps curb excessive food intake.
Better Blood Glucose Control
Many overweight people have some degree of insulin resistance. By improving insulin secretion and blood sugar regulation, It may mitigate fat storage driven by hyperinsulinemia.
Potential Enhanced Metabolism
Some studies indicate GLP-1 receptor agonists increase resting energy expenditure. More research is needed, but semaglutide may provide a mild metabolic boost.
Weight Loss Results
In large clinical trials, semaglutide has demonstrated impressive weight loss relative to placebo and other anti-obesity medications.
In the SUSTAIN trial, people taking semaglutide lost on average 10-14% of their body weight over 30-56 weeks compared to 2-6% for placebo. Over 2.5x more users achieved ≥15% weight loss.
The STEP trials directly compared semaglutide to other weight loss drugs over 68 weeks:
- vs. placebo – 15% vs 2% weight loss
- vs. phentermine – 16% vs 7%
- vs. liraglutide – 16% vs 6%
Furthermore, 86-96% of semaglutide users maintained their weight loss at 2 years indicating lasting effects.
Cardiometabolic Benefits
Beyond weight reduction, semaglutide confers additional cardiometabolic benefits:
- Decreased blood pressure
- Improved lipid profile with lower LDL and triglycerides
- Reduced rates of prediabetes progression to diabetes
This suggests meaningful risk reduction for heart disease, stroke, and diabetes complications. The cardiovascular outcomes trial, SUSTAIN 6, showed semaglutide does lower rates of cardiovascular events like heart attack and stroke.
Side Effects
The most common side effects of semaglutide are gastrointestinal like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, abdominal pain, dyspepsia, and eructation (belching). These tend to be transient, mild-to-moderate in severity, and diminish with continued use.
Other possible side effects include headache, fatigue, dizziness, increased lipase, and diabetic retinopathy complications. Semaglutide has a boxed warning for thyroid C-cell tumors but human data is reassuring so far.
Cost Considerations
The wholesale price of semaglutide is around $1,300-1,500 per month. Out-of-pocket costs will vary depending on insurance coverage. The manufacturer does offer a savings card to lower copays. Compared to the staggering medical costs of obesity-related conditions like diabetes and heart disease, the price may be justified from a societal perspective.
Where Can I buy Semaglutide?
With semaglutide requiring a prescription, you may be wondering where to get it. Currently, semaglutide is only available through a licensed medical provider. One of the them is Survival Supplements, a leading online fitness supplements and SARMs store. Survival Supplements provide fast and secure shipping, third party testing and 30 days money back facility. So if you are looking to buy Semaglutide for your weight loss journy then Survival Supplements is your go-to store.
Conclusion
In summary, semaglutide is an injectable GLP-1 receptor agonist that promotes weight loss through reduced hunger, enhanced satiety, and beneficial effects on blood glucose. Robust clinical data support its ability to induce significant, sustained weight reduction plus cardiovascular risk factor improvement. Side effects are manageable for most patients. While costly, It has the potential to be a game changing obesity medication. It represents an attractive new option for select patients who have struggled with other weight loss efforts. Of course, coupling semaglutide with nutrition education and physical activity will be key for long-term success. More comparative and long-term studies will better define its place in obesity pharmacotherapy.
