;Resize=(1200,627)&impolicy=perceptual&quality=mediumHigh&hash=0434be9d9a561bce4e1aeba260f86366ae6048c64b0d886b0ff0b64939c26b9d "Weight loss injection: Kay has been injecting it for 4 months – “it’s crazy”")
When Kay S. met his current wife seven years ago, he weighed 80 kilos. “You know how it is. You get cozy together, sit on the couch, eat chocolate. And my wife is someone who just doesn’t gain weight.” So she stayed slim, he gained around 30 kilos. At 1.78 meters, that gives him a BMI of over 30. He has wanted to lose weight for a long time, he reports. “But I lack a bit of discipline.” That should change with the weight loss injection.
He began therapy on June 3rd. Since then, he has been injecting himself with the active ingredient liraglutide into his stomach every day. “It’s crazy,” he says of how it works. “You really just have no appetite at all, no feeling of hunger anymore.” He estimates that his daily ration of food has been reduced by about half. “And I could eat even less.” But the goal is to lose weight healthily without any possible yo-yo effect – “I then want to be able to maintain the weight.”
More than half of Germans are overweight
Kay S. is one of many. According to the Robert Koch Institute, more than half of women (53 percent) and more than two thirds of men (67 percent) in Germany are overweight. So you have a BMI over 27. Almost a quarter are obese, which means a BMI over 30.
This poses risks because obesity is considered a major risk factor for numerous diseases, including diabetes, osteoarthritis and cardiovascular diseases. Many sufferers also want to lose weight, but this is not always easy. Experts emphasize that overweight and obesity are chronic diseases in which metabolic dysregulation occurs. “It is then no longer so easy to lose weight,” explained Silvia Weiner, chief physician for obesity surgery at the Sana Clinic in Offenbach, in a FOCUS online interview.
Weight loss injections: “Ideal for people with a BMI between 30 and 40”
Weight loss injections are considered promising therapies here. Active ingredients such as semaglutide (Wegovy) or liraglutide (Saxenda) have a substantial impact on this metabolic dysregulation. “The weight loss injection is ideal for people with a BMI between 30 and 40. “Here we actually have the chance to induce changes in the metabolism and thus avoid surgeries,” says Weiner.
However, if you have very severe obesity, i.e. a BMI over 40, the injections would no longer be enough. “Here we come to surgical treatments such as gastric surgery.”
Kay S. lost twelve kilos in just four months
So for Kay S. with a BMI of 34.7, the treatment makes sense. And he is happy about his first successes: he has already lost twelve kilos. In addition to cutting calories by eating less, he also goes cycling two to three times a week and swimming at least once a week. “Before that, I enjoyed cycling a lot. Now you notice that you are getting fitter.” He consciously integrated swimming into the training plan.
The following applies to weight loss injections: “They alone are not a miracle cure, but should be viewed as an addition to a balanced diet and exercise,” as Weiner emphasizes.
Expert: Weight loss injections don’t work for everyone
There is also no guarantee for the effect. “People react to it in very different ways. Some lose a lot of weight and have no side effects, for them it’s great,” says the expert. She cites problems in the gastrointestinal tract such as feeling full, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or constipation as the classic side effects of weight loss injections. Headaches and mood swings may also occur. She says: “There are others who barely lose weight and suffer from headaches, nausea and bad moods.”
Kay S. falls into the first category. He reports that he had no side effects whatsoever. “I think otherwise I would have stopped taking the injection again quickly.”
Long-term therapy or discontinuation?
In fact, the recommendation is to first test the injection for a few weeks, have the results checked by a doctor and then decide whether to continue with the therapy. Weiner emphasizes: “It makes no sense to inject for a few weeks and then stop. You have to stick with it for the rest of your life.” She explains this with the chronic metabolic disorder that those affected suffer from and which is treated with the injections.
Kay S., on the other hand, has a different goal. For him, the weight loss injection was the “urgently needed nudge to change behavior,” he says. In addition to a more balanced diet, also incorporate more exercise. “It’s quite amazing. There are a lot of supposed miracle cures coming onto the market, but this is the first one I know that really works.” His goal is 80 kilos, basically his previous weight. “If I can do that and keep it for over six months, my wife will give me a new bike.”