(Photo by Haberdoedas Photography via Pexels)
By Amy Reast
A GP says the U.K. rollout of GLP-1 pills has been "a damp squib," saying just 6% of jab users at his clinics opted to switch to pills.
Dr. Adam Staten, 43, works alongside patients losing weight through GLP-1 medications and said many expected the rollout of tablet Ozempic to "change the landscape of weight management."
The GP and medical director for One Day Tests said the team anticipated a vast shift from injections to pills, and many new users accessing GLP-1s for the first time by getting tablets.
But at private diagnostics clinic hub One Day Tests, Adam said just 6% have made the switch — and very few have accessed them for the first time.
Dr. Adam, based in Milton Keynes, England, reckons this is because the price is similar to injections but with a slightly lower effectiveness, and taking the tablets daily is actually less appealing to people.
The pills were approved by the U.K.'s medicine regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), in June and were rolled out to supermarkets and pharmacies the following month.
Dr. Adam Staten, 43, shared his golden rule to follow before starting weight loss shots. (One Day Tests via SWNS)
He said: "Everyone thought the tablets would change the whole landscape of weight management, but so far, it hasn't had a big impact.
"People are familiar with the injections now.
"Although the idea of injecting is a big step for some people, it's convenient, relatively painless, and once a week.
"Tablets have drawbacks in terms of taking them — you have to have it on an empty stomach first thing and you can't have anything else to drink or eat for half an hour after, so it's a bit awkward to take.
"And I had assumed the pill would be cheaper because the injections come with the manufacturing costs with the pens and needles, but the price is almost exactly the same.
"The conversations pharmacists seem to be having is that people are put off by the side effects of the pills, a bigger rate of gastrointestinal problems like nausea and diarrhea."
Dr. Adam said some people appear to have embraced the injections, which have been trusted based on thousands of people losing weight on them, and the tablets don't appear to have been embraced in the same way.
He said other people — particularly men — will say they forget to take a daily pill, and would prefer a weekly injection as they consider it less effort.
(Photo by SHVETS production via Pexels)
He said: "Overall, I've been surprised how willing people are to inject. It feels quite invasive compared to taking a pill, which everyone has done at some point in their lives.
"On the tablets, something seems to be putting people off.
"We had a lot of discussions with people about going on them, but most of those people then offered to go on, or stay on, injections.
"We've not been overwhelmed by people wanting the tablets and I can see why they aren't flying off the shelves.
"In six months' time it might be different, but given how much hype there was around the tablets, it's been a bit of a damp squib."
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