Straight off the bat: Being a fat person isn’t a moral failing. Nor does it mean that you’re inherently unhealthy.
As the University of Sydney’s Research Programme Leader, Dr. Nick Fuller has written, “It’s inactivity, not our weight, that directly impacts our fitness levels.”
Fuller then goes on to state that numerous studies have demonstrated that some fat folks have high cardiovascular fitness and strength levels. These individuals have these bodies despite regularly engaging in physical activity.
“You can do several simple things right now to support your overall health, no matter what you weigh,” said Fuller.
Moreover, there’s a growing organisation in Australia called Healthy at Every Weight. This group of health professionals “accept and respect the inherent diversity of body shapes and sizes and reject the idealising or pathologising of specific weights.”
However, there are some medical conditions that can be negatively impacted by being a specific weight or size. For instance, if you have type 2 diabetes, your doctor might suggest that you lose some weight. This is because being a particular weight can make you resistant to your insulin medication and can result in a dangerous amount of glucose in your blood.
This brings us to the crux of today’s issue: Ozempic. This drug is a once-a-week injection for people with type 2 diabetes. It can help improve their blood sugar levels and lose weight.
Ozempic can also be taken by people without type 2 diabetes or another illness to lose weight. However, there can be some gnarly dangers in doing this.
As Dr. Lucy France of Burraneer Family Practice told The Latch, “If someone is a young person trying to get skinnier, and is on Ozempic and gets pregnant, there’s a condition called pancreatitis. It’s where your pancreas gets inflamed.”
France was also concerned that using Ozempic irresponsibly could exacerbate someone’s eating disorder.
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Since early 2022, there has been a shortage of Ozempic. This is because TikTok users began promoting it as a weight loss losing scheme. And thus, these individuals and some folks with type 2 diabetes were left in a worrisome and avoidable predicament.
Moreover, on November 4, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) announced that Ozempic won’t be available in Australia from mid-November until the end of March 2023.
“We recommend that patients who are prescribed Ozempic should contact their doctor immediately to have their treatment reassessed. This is especially important as we approach the holiday season and medical services will be limited for several weeks,” said the TGA.
Fortunately, this issue hasn’t impacted France’s patients yet.
“My patients with diabetes are still managing to source it. This is because the pharmacies in my area are very vigilant and manage to put their stocks aside,” said France.
Nevertheless, this isn’t the case everywhere.
On November 14, Wiradjuri man and artist, Bakchos Glass, said on Twitter, “Australia is worse than a third-world country on this issue. I haven’t been able to get Ozempic or Trulicity for months. I have diabetes 2 because of Cushing’s disease… The lack of supply of these drugs is causing me long-term health issues.”
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