Semaglutide and Empty Promises of Change

Source: Diana Polekhina / Unsplash

Semaglutide falls into a class of medications known as glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists. The GLP-1 hormone, released in the gastrointestinal tract in response to eating, prompts the body to produce more insulin, reducing levels of blood glucose.

Until recently, the drug’s primary application was for lowering blood sugar levels in adults with type 2 diabetes. However, the drug also interacts with the parts of the brain that reduce appetite, the discovery of which has led to an aggressive marketing expansion into weight loss.

While semaglutide has shown some effectiveness in promoting weight loss, the drug is not universally effective and its long-term efficacy remains uncertain. Semaglutide also comes with a well-documented risk of physiological side effects including nausea, diarrhea, and hair loss.

In addition to the possible health risks of chemically suppressing appetite, the rising popularity of semaglutide might also take attention away from more sustainable health solutions. By steering the public conversation about obesity and weight loss toward apparent quick-fix, pharmacological solutions, we may be more likely to overlook some of the fundamental drivers of ill health, which include both individual behaviors and environmental conditions. I argue that this narrative shift may actually perpetuate the individual behaviors and environmental conditions that originally led to the current obesity crisis, papering over the cracks of much deeper problems.

Individual Health Behaviors

It’s well established that healthy behaviors lead to improved overall health. For example, regular physical exercise and a balanced diet contribute to better cardiovascular health, increased energy, better overall well-being, and greater resilience against disease.

Despite the immediate and long-term health benefits of adopting a healthy lifestyle, many individuals are more motivated by the allure of a slim, toned body and desirable physical appearance. Fortunately, pursuing a healthy diet and strenuous exercise, whatever one’s motivation, is likely to result in health benefits such as increased metabolism, enhanced strength, and greater longevity.

Semaglutide offers a shortcut to weight loss, which can be appealing. However, semaglutide might also reduce the incentive to engage in positive behavioral health practices, which, while potentially effective for weight loss, could result in missing out on the broader, long-term benefits associated with lifestyle change.

Promoting weight-loss methods that bypass the need for discipline, regular routines, restraint, and self-control can spill over into other areas of life, potentially setting an unhealthy precedent for addressing life’s challenges. A reliance on immediate, short-term fixes might lower personal standards for addressing the root causes of the problems we face, creating a model for tackling other challenges through quick solutions rather than sustainable strategies.

Environmental Conditions

The environmental conditions in which we live significantly influence our individual health behaviors. The cost and availability of nutritious foods, exposure to food and alcohol advertising, proximity to green spaces, the safety of homes and workplaces, financial constraints, and social norms all impact the health choices available to us and our motivation to live healthily.

The rising prevalence of obesity has highlighted the need to address the environmental, corporate, and socioeconomic factors that impact health. Governments and corporations have been slow to tackle the structural features of modern systems that underly these issues, often favoring simpler and cheaper solutions to addressing public health problems.

Semaglutide’s growing popularity might exacerbate this short-termism by providing governments and public health officials with a simple and attractive approach to combating the rising prevalence of obesity. Endorsing the broader use of pharmacological solutions for weight loss directly addresses the metrics of weight and obesity but does not always tackle the underlying causes. The allure of a quick fix can distract from the need for comprehensive strategies to address the environmental root causes of obesity.

Conclusion

Obesity and being overweight are persistent and significant challenges in society. While medications like semaglutide offer short-term solutions, they may detract from addressing the true origins of behavioral and environmental health problems. By focusing on such immediate fixes, we risk neglecting the development of better habits and strategies for long-term health. Furthermore, the reliance on such medications might alleviate some of the growing pressure on governments and policymakers to tackle broader issues related to poverty and the environmental conditions that contribute to unhealthy lifestyles.

To create lasting change, public health officials must focus on the individual behaviors and environmental conditions that are driving the obesity crisis, without relying on the promise of “wonder drugs” that may ultimately end up exacerbating the problem.