The calls come thick and fast to Mumbai-based diabetologist Rahul Baxi - but not just from patients struggling to control blood sugar. Increasingly, it is young professionals asking the same thing: Doctor, can you start me on weight-loss drugs? Recently, a 23-year-old man came in, worried about the 10kg he'd gained after starting a demanding corporate job. One of my gym friends is on [weight loss] jabs, he said. Dr. Baxi refused, asking him what he would do after losing 10kg on the drug. Stop, and the weight comes back. Keep going, and without exercise you'll start losing muscle instead. These medicines aren't a substitute for a proper diet or lifestyle change, he told him. Such conversations are becoming increasingly common as demand for weight-loss drugs explodes in urban India - a country with the world's second-largest number of overweight adults and more than 77 million people with Type 2 diabetes.
Originally developed to treat diabetes, these drugs are now being hailed as game changers for weight loss, offering results that few previous treatments could match. Yet their growing popularity has raised difficult questions about the need for medical supervision, the risks of misuse, and the blurred line between treatment and lifestyle enhancement.
These are the most powerful weight-loss drugs we've ever seen. Many such drugs have come and gone, but nothing compares to these, says Anoop Misra, who heads Delhi's Fortis-C-DOC Centre of Excellence for Diabetes, Metabolic Diseases, and Endocrinology.
Two new drugs dominate India's fast-growing weight-loss market: semaglutide and tirzepatide. Both belong to a class known as GLP-1 drugs, which mimic a natural hormone that regulates hunger. By slowing digestion and acting on the brain's appetite centers, they make people feel full faster and stay full longer. However, most users can regain weight within a year of stopping, and not everyone responds to GLP-1 drugs, leading to concerns about the overall effectiveness and safety of long-term use.
As the weight-loss drug market in India surges from $16m in 2021 to nearly $100m today, experts are urging caution. Affordable access to these medications could lead to increased misuse, particularly if they're sold without proper medical oversight. Don’t use the drugs for cosmetic weight loss - use it for life-threatening weight gain, advises Dr. Lakhdawala. With rising trends and the notion of rapid fixes, addressing the underlying health issues and encouraging healthy living habits remains crucial in the discussion about obesity treatment.
Originally developed to treat diabetes, these drugs are now being hailed as game changers for weight loss, offering results that few previous treatments could match. Yet their growing popularity has raised difficult questions about the need for medical supervision, the risks of misuse, and the blurred line between treatment and lifestyle enhancement.
These are the most powerful weight-loss drugs we've ever seen. Many such drugs have come and gone, but nothing compares to these, says Anoop Misra, who heads Delhi's Fortis-C-DOC Centre of Excellence for Diabetes, Metabolic Diseases, and Endocrinology.
Two new drugs dominate India's fast-growing weight-loss market: semaglutide and tirzepatide. Both belong to a class known as GLP-1 drugs, which mimic a natural hormone that regulates hunger. By slowing digestion and acting on the brain's appetite centers, they make people feel full faster and stay full longer. However, most users can regain weight within a year of stopping, and not everyone responds to GLP-1 drugs, leading to concerns about the overall effectiveness and safety of long-term use.
As the weight-loss drug market in India surges from $16m in 2021 to nearly $100m today, experts are urging caution. Affordable access to these medications could lead to increased misuse, particularly if they're sold without proper medical oversight. Don’t use the drugs for cosmetic weight loss - use it for life-threatening weight gain, advises Dr. Lakhdawala. With rising trends and the notion of rapid fixes, addressing the underlying health issues and encouraging healthy living habits remains crucial in the discussion about obesity treatment.
