Ozempic has been The drug is considered a wonder drug. It’s the best-known of the GLP-1 drugs, a class of medications that can help regulate appetite, digestion, and blood sugar, and help people with obesity or diabetes lose weight. Naturally, these drugs are in high demand. But there’s now a shortage of Ozempic and other GLP-1s, leading to a wave of clones that claim to offer the same benefits and the same key ingredient, semaglutide, at lower prices. These clone drugs are easy to get through telehealth providers, although a buyer has to lie a little about themselves to buy them.
In this new world of weight loss, we are still trying to figure out how these drugs fit into our society. Part of that journey is continuing to study how GLP-1 drugs work (how they affect us is still largely unknown) and continuing the debate about the extent to which we should regulate and control their use.
This week on Gadget Lab, we talk with WIRED writers Kate Knibbs and Emily Mullin about how GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic work and what happens when they don’t. We also talk about the current drug shortage and how it might be solved.
Presentation notes
Read Kate’s story about purchase cloned Ozempic online. Read Emily’s story about how Ozempic doesn’t work for everyone. Read all the stories in WIRED The Age of Ozempic series.
Recommendations
Emily recommends staying cool this summer as much as possible. Kate recommends the HBO series John Adamswith Paul Giamatti. Mike recommends buy a used 35mm film camera and do some tricks to get creative.
Kate Knibbs is on social media @Knibbs. Emily Mullin is @emilymulline. Michael Calore is @snack battle. Lauren Goode is @Lauren GoodeCall the main hotline at @Gadget Lab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@Boone Ashworth). Our theme music is from Solar Keys.
How to listen
You can still listen to this week’s podcast via the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here’s how:
If you’re using an iPhone or iPad, open the Podcasts app, or press this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts and search for Gadget Lab. We’re on Spotify also. And in case you really need it, here is the RSS feed.
