Australia’s weight loss industry is set for a major shake-up with an Ozempic-style pill moving closer to approval, as more than 10,000 people sit on a waitlist for the treatment.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) is currently working through the approval process for the pill, which has already been approved in the US and the UK.
WATCH VIDEO ABOVE: Ozempic-style weight loss pill coming to Australia.
If approved by the TGA, demand for weight loss drugs is expected to surge more than 40 per cent, with users able to shed kilograms without needles and at a fraction of the cost.
Dr Ginni Mansberg said the pill could arrive by Christmas, though sometime next year looks more likely.
“It’s exactly the same as the injections, the only thing is you take a pill a day, which to some people feels less intense,” Mansberg said on Sunrise on Monday.
“In the United States, where we have the most data because it’s been available since February, 40 per cent of the people who start using these pills never ever took a jab but they’re OK with a pill even though side effects are the same and the results are not quite as good as the jabs.”
The treatment will cost around $5 per script for people with diabetes, but for most Australians it will cost the same as the injections; up to $600 a month depending on the dose.
Users must follow strict guidelines, including not eating for eight hours before taking the pill and then waiting an hour afterwards.
“You can’t wake up and have a coffee with milk in it and then go, ‘Oh, now I’ll take my pill’; it’s now too late,” Mansberg warned.
Side effects are identical to the injections, with gut-related issues being the most common complaint.
Patients can feel very sick and often lose their appetite for nutritious foods.
“The thing that worries me with the patients that I see is they really don’t feel like eating and what they do feel like eating is a slice of Vegemite toast or a cracker. But what they don’t feel like eating is protein or a lot of fibre,” Mansberg said.
While patients are generally happy with their weight loss results, Mansberg warned of a significant drawback.
“The data says if you stop it, the weight comes back on. So it’s like Hotel California, you can’t really check out any time,” she said.
“You are committing to a lifetime of up to $600 a month. That’s just not doable for a lot of Aussies.”