Hi! I’m Elly, and I’m a registered nutritional therapist.

I’m working with Weight Loss HQ by Treated on this series of videos to help you get the best from your weight loss treatment.

Today I’m going to be talking all about weight loss injections, including:

  • The science of how they work;
  • What injections are available; and:
  • What that means for you.

At the moment, all weight loss injections come under the same umbrella of drugs: GLP-1 agonists. These were originally made to help people with diabetes control their blood sugar. But they were found to help cause weight loss as well.

The first GLP-1 agonist to be prescribed for weight loss was liraglutide, sold under the name Saxenda since 2014. After this, a similar drug used for diabetes called Ozempic started to become famous after being used by some celebrities for weight loss.

Ozempic uses a different active ingredient to Saxenda — semaglutide, which research shows to be more effective. So, a new version of Ozempic was made specifically for weight loss: Wegovy.

Although Wegovy and Saxenda contain different ingredients, they both work in basically the same two ways:

  • By slowing down gastric emptying — which is how long it takes for food to leave your stomach; and:
  • By altering certain parts of the brain responsible for appetite and cravings, making food seem less appealing.

By doing these two things, it makes you feel less hungry and fuller for longer. This means you’ll be eating less, and more likely to be in calorie-deficit, and more likely to lose weight.

How wegovy works How wegovy works

This can sometimes cause side effects for some people. Slower stomach emptying means you can get some discomfort and nausea if you eat certain foods or large meals. So it’s best to avoid rich foods and try to have smaller portions.

For many people, though, this can encourage a positive change in eating habits, because it’ll mean you’ll have fewer high-fat or processed foods, and eat more mindfully. So when you stop taking the medication, you’ll be more likely to stay near your target weight.

To summarise, weight loss injections are a relatively new form of treatment that studies show are highly effective. They work on both your body and your brain to reduce food consumption.

They can cause side effects in some people, but these can be managed by eating sensibly and mindfully.