Key Points
- A key diabetes drug is in short supply because people are using it off-label for weight loss.
- The national medicines regulator says social media influencers are contributing to the shortage.
- Some people prescribed it off-label say it's for medical reasons as well.
After Robyn Dunphy had foot surgery, the Melbourne woman suspected the medication she was taking to treat it was causing her to gain weight.
The 67-year-old raised her concerns with her endocrinologist in late 2021, because her underlying condition, psoriatic arthritis, put her at higher risk of developing diabetes, and she also wanted to protect her joints.
Her specialist agreed and prescribed her semaglutide — an injectable anti-diabetic medicine sold as Ozempic in Australia.
For diabetics, semaglutide produces more insulin, stopping the breakdown of glucagon in the body. It also reduces appetite and slows the emptying of the stomach.
“She said to me something like, ‘This drug has been shown to be very, very good at weight loss. And so therefore it would be a good thing for you to see if it works for you’,” Ms Dunphy told SBS News.
Robyn (left) started taking Ozempic after gained weight as a result of medication she took following foot surgery in 2021.
Little did Ms Dunphy know that in a few months' time, the drug would be one of the most sought-after in the world, triggering a global supply shortage that has forced many diabetics to wait months for their next box.
A major contributor to the supply shortage has been attributed to social media influencers who have been peddling the drug for weight loss.
On TikTok, Facebook and other social media networks, users have been sharing their stories on how they’ve used the drug to shed kilos, rather than its intended use for diabetes management.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) raised the alarm about the shortage being fuelled by social media promotion for weight loss last year.
It’s since been cracking down on illegal advertising of Ozempic on platforms including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, eBay, Amazon and Gumtree where such posts have been discovered.
The head of the TGA, Adjunct Professor John Skerritt, says the various platforms have been “very co-operative” with authorities.
“They can find certain keywords and they can block posts for posting that content,” he told ABC radio.
Ozempic posts are prolific on TikTok.
Professor Skerritt says there’s a “good reason” why it’s illegal to advertise it to the public.
“It isn't a magic pill that you can take a hamburger one day and have this pill the next," he said.
He warned there were risks of serious side effects apart from diarrhea, nausea and vomiting.
“There's some people who can get cancers or tumours in their thyroid. The pancreas can swell, stomach pain, depression, kidney damage and so forth. This is in a minority of patients, I should emphasise.
“But that's why you have a doctor involved in prescribing a prescription medicine.”
So how are people getting their hands on it if they’re not diabetic? Ozempic is being prescribed ‘off-label’ by medical practitioners. Off-label use, which is not illegal, describes pharmaceutical drugs being used to treat conditions for which they are not officially approved.
While Ms Dunphy is not a diabetic, she says her off-label prescription was not for aesthetics but for medical reasons to prevent her from developing diabetes.
“I have no issue with patients needing assistance with clinical weight management for medical reasons being prescribed Ozempic, provided diabetics are given first priority,” she said.
“However, if someone wants to merely enhance their influencer or celebrity profile by dropping from a size 10 or 12 to a size 6 or 8 – I definitely do not support that, especially in a situation where there is a shortage of supply.
“Ozempic is a medication, not a fashion accessory.”
And that’s one of the reasons why Ms Dunphy said she eventually decided to stop using the medicine. Apart from cost, she wanted to ensure diabetics were given first priority.
“At one point, the pharmacy said to me, 'We're starting to see shortages’," Ms Dunphy said.
“I didn't want to contribute to the shortage. I just thought I don't want to be the one that's responsible for them not being able to get medication.”
The TGA says supplies of Ozempic are expected to return to normal around April this year.
