Tag: Slimming injections

Who can benefit from slimming injections?

Slimming injections are used to make people feel less hungry, slow down the emptying of the stomach, and help people lose weight around the middle. The most popular injectable preparations are liraglutide (Saxenda), dulaglutide (Trulicity), and semaglutide (Ozempic).

One way that drugs can help fight obesity is through slimming injections that you can get with a doctor’s prescription. They have a broad spectrum of action, can help you lose weight, and can be purchased with a partial refund. However, they can also be used off-label, contrary to their official purpose.

Injections for weight loss—what are they?

Injectable drugs used for weight loss are GLP-1 analogs (glucagon-like peptide type 1 analogs) from the group of incretin drugs. They are primarily used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes, but some are also used as prescription drugs to support the treatment of certain cases of obesity. Injections for weight loss are given subcutaneously, usually in the abdomen, thigh, or upper arm, once a week or every day. There are many medical preparations with a similar effect and a similar active substance.

  • liraglutide (preparations: Saxenda, a subcutaneous injection administered once a day, and Victoza),
  • dulaglutide (Trulicity, once-weekly injection),
  • semaglutide ( preparation: Ozempic; subcutaneous injection administered once a week in increasing doses from 0.25 mg)

There are also other, less popular substances and preparations used as slimming injections: exenatide (Bydureon and Byetta) and lixisenatide (Lyxumia).

Because it is the only treatment for obesity that has received government approval, liraglutide is the best way to lose weight. Other substances are used off-label, outside of official indications.

The action of injections for weight loss

The body naturally secretes the GLP-1 hormone. The physiological effects of this molecule’s counterparts, GLP-1 analogues (slimming injections), are also present. The effects of GLP-1 analogues in “weight loss injections” are comparable to those of the substances when they are produced naturally in the body.

Slimming injections work as follows:

  • slow down gastric emptying and prolong digestion,
  • affect the hunger and satiety centers,
  • stimulate the secretion of insulin and inhibit the hormone glucagon (they act only in response to high glucose levels; they do not allow hypoglycemia),
  • protect beta-pancreatic cells, as well as liver and kidney cells, from damage,
  • reduce inflammation,
  • have a cardioprotective effect , i.e., they partially protect against sudden cardiovascular events,
  • They reduce insulin resistance.

Patients receiving injections for weight loss most often report that these substances cause them to eat less, feel full sooner, and stay full longer. Scientific research has actually proven the potency of these substances in this regard.

Who can benefit from slimming injections?

Common slimming injections are drugs with a wide range of effects and potential uses in medicine. The groups of people who will benefit most from the use of GLP-1 analogues in injections are:

  • people with type 2 diabetes ,
  • people with Alzheimer’s disease,
  • women with PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome) (drugs also lower testosterone),
  • people at risk of cardiovascular events (drugs improve the lipid profile and the condition of blood vessels, which reduces the risk and degree of atherosclerosis),
  • people with insulin resistance.

People who are most often recommended for slimming injections are obese and have made unsuccessful attempts to lose weight, but it is the doctor who decides the therapy, course, and doses.

Side effects of injections for weight loss

Like all medications, injections for weight loss can have negative effects. Make sure to read the medication’s leaflet, which will inform you about the risks of taking the medication, before you take it. The most typical negative effects of using “weight loss injections,” also known as GLP-1 analogues, are as follows:

slimming injections
Photo by Julia Larson on Pexels.com
  • nausea,
  • heartburn
  • constipation and diarrhea,
  • bloating,
  • stomach pain.

When “slimming injections” are used, the stomach may not empty as quickly, which can cause diarrhea and/or constipation.

  • headaches,
  • tiredness,
  • weakness,
  • itching or rash at the injection site.

This is not the end of the side effects and adverse effects of these drugs. They are all described in detail in the leaflet that comes with the medicine.

Injections for weight loss: reviews by experts and patients

The use of slimming injections raises a lot of controversy due to their potential to substitute for a healthy lifestyle, physical activity, and proper nutrition. However, they can be helpful for patients who have exhausted other methods of obesity treatment and can replace invasive bariatric surgery.

Injections for weight loss are not the first choice, and it is important to observe the cause of obesity and identify nutritional or behavioral errors. If you can’t manage on your own, seek advice from a nutritionist. If you don’t change your eating habits, you may get the yo-yo effect, which is the bane of all slim people. Even if the drugs work temporarily, you will gain weight after stopping them if you go back to your previous poor eating habits.

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What happens to the face after the Ozempic?

Some of the side effects of slimming injections, like the well-known drug Ozempic, are not listed in the leaflet. Some users of the medication observe a definite sagging of the facial skin. The term for this is Ozempic face syndrome. These people appear older and more serious as a result. What causes this symptom, and how can it be lessened?

Ozempic (semaglutide) is a very well-known prescription drug that is used to treat type 2 diabetes. Studies show that the supplement is effective at lowering body weight (by almost 15% on average) and controlling blood sugar. It is widely used because of this all over the world. However, it turns out that losing weight quickly comes at a cost, which is visible on the face. Thankfully, there is a fix for that. Specialists advise using a range of techniques, from professional invasive procedures to simple and accessible non-invasive ones.

see also : How does oral Semaglutide differ from an injectable weight loss drug?

Slimming injections : Do they work?

What is an “Ozempic face”?

“Ozempic face” is the sagging of the facial skin as a result of using Ozempic to lose weight and body fat quickly. Some patients say that as the treatment goes on, their wrinkles get deeper and their faces look thinner, which could make them look older and more serious. This unfavourable weight loss effect happens particularly when weight loss takes place quickly, as it frequently does with injectable semaglutide.

“Ozempic face” — a new term, a known problem.

According to the New York Times, a New York dermatologist coined the phrase “Ozempic face” after patients whose facial skin sagged after taking the drug asked him about it. In actuality, this issue is not brand new. Any weight loss method that produces quick results usually causes the skin to sag and the facial features to tighten. This results from the loss of adipose tissue, which serves as our body’s natural filler, as well as nutrient deprivation, skin thinning, and elasticity loss. The skin becomes more flaccid as a result of the disruption in the metabolism of collagen and elastin.

The Ozempic Face: How to Deal with It?

Specialists in the so-called different methods are recommended for the ozempic face. To reduce wrinkles and improve skin firmness, we can use simple methods on our own.

  • drinking plenty of fluids.
  • a healthy, balanced diet rich in fruits and vegetables,
  • skin protection against solar radiation,
  • Skin preparations with retinol,
  • daily moisturising of the face skin,
  • peelings,
  • regular facial massage.

Professional treatments that improve facial firmness and give a rejuvenating effect include:

  • filling wrinkles (e.g., with own fat or hyaluronic acid),
  • face firming with radio waves, 
  • infrared radiation therapy,
  • needle and needleless mesotherapy,
  • chemical peels.

The selection of the appropriate method for us should be discussed with a dermatologist or specialist in aesthetic medicine. It is worth remembering about proper face care and healthy eating while using Ozempic. Thanks to this, the risk that the effects visible on the face will be unsatisfactory for us will be smaller.

Slimming injections : Do they work?

Injections for slimming is the common name for drugs in the GLP-1 analogue class, which are primarily used to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity. Drugs have become very popular since it was discovered that they could significantly reduce body weight.

slimming injections
Photo by Julia Larson on Pexels.com

Semaglutide (Ozempic), liraglutide (Saxenda, Victoza), and dulaglutide are the three main ingredients in the so-called slimming injections (Trulicity). Despite the fact that all of them can help people lose weight, only Saxenda is approved for the treatment of obesity in Poland. Although they may be prescribed by a doctor “off-label” (beyond the indications in the leaflet) for the treatment of overweight and obesity, other medications are designed for diabetic patients. These medicines are on prescription. Unfortunately, due to the enormous demand for slimming injections, pharmacies are struggling to stock diabetes medications.

Injections for slimming: when does the doctor prescribe them?

Drugs that mimic the incretin hormones that are released in the digestive system after a meal, or “GLP-1 analogues,” stimulate the release of the hormone insulin and aid in blood sugar regulation. Therefore, they are typically suggested to type 2 diabetes patients. Furthermore, products in this category protect the circulatory system and can aid in weight loss (learn more: which slimming injection is the best?).

Indications for the use of individual “slimming injections” according to the leaflet are:

  • Ozempic – in adults with type 2 diabetes that is not adequately controlled together with an appropriate diet and exercise,
  • Saxenda – in adults for weight management , along with diet and exercise if present
    – BMI of 30 kg/m² or more (obese) or
    – BMI of at least 27 kg/m² but less than 30 kg/m² (overweight) and health problems related to body weight (e.g. hypertension, hyperlipidemia, sleep apnea, diabetes, previous heart attack, stroke).
  • Victoza  – in adults and children from 10 years of age with type 2 diabetes , in combination with diet and physical activity,
  • Trulicity  – in adults with insufficiently controlled type 2 diabetes , together with appropriate diet and exercise.

The doctor may prescribe drugs based on the directions in the leaflet (mostly for diabetic patients) or for other health problems that are not on the label.

  • obesity,
  • insulin resistance,
  • polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) . 

Injections for slimming: how to get them?

Diabetics and people who want to lose weight should go to their family doctor or specialist to get a prescription for a slimming injection, as doctors often prescribe off-label to people who do not have diabetes.

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