Wegovy weight-loss injections: what you need to know

Happy New Year! Now it's January, lots of us are thinking about health and wellbeing so I thought I'd do a wee section on the weight-loss injection that loads of people are asking me about these just now.

So, Wegovy is the trade name for the medication that can be prescribed for weight management at the moment. It's approved by The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) as an effective treatment for weight management in patients with a body mass index over 27.

So if you're not sure what your body mass index is, it's really easy to work it out. You take your weight and your height and you can go onto Google and there's an NHS page that allows you to calculate your BMI, but it has to be over 27 for you to be eligible for this medication.

Okay, now what does it do?

It slows down the emptying of your stomach so you feel a bit fuller for longer and it also reduces your appetite. It's not a replacement for diet and exercise, but it makes diet and exercise easier in patients so it just gives you a wee helping hand in terms of weight-loss, and it's effective in about 95% of patients.

NICE guidelines have approved it for use in in weight management as well as diabetes. And the reason for that is because although there are some small risks associated with this medication, there is much greater benefit in treating patients that are in the overweight or obese category because they may have long-term health complications.

Okay, what can you expect from it?

Once weekly injection you give yourself - dead easy to give. Side effects can happen, and the way the medication is introduced - you start at low doses and you work your way up to the higher doses - the most common side effects are a bit of nausea and a bit of tummy upset, often diarrhoea, sometimes a bit of constipation.

It can vary so it's not necessary for everybody, but if you think that you might benefit from it, what I would say is be very careful about where you're getting this medication from. I am not a fan of getting this online - there are some counterfeit weight-loss injections on the market at the moment and that really scares me.

TL;DR?

If you are interested in this medication, you should be going to an approved Clinic with a Doctor, Dentist, or Nurse who will do a full health assessment on you and there is no replacement for that, so be careful where you get it.

But if you are looking for a wee helping hand, it can be really useful.

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