OAP fears for health after dieters given diabetes pills leading to shortage
06.09.2023 - 14:17
/ dailyrecord.co.uk
A pensioner with diabetes says he can no longer get the medication he needs through the NHS because people who want to lose weight have left slim pickings.
John Noble (79) was using semaglutide to control his Type 2 diabetes.
The drug is sold under the brand names Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus and has been made popular for weight loss by celebrities including Kim Kardashian and Elon Musk.
The drug is available to people with Type 2 diabetes through the NHS but John has been told by his GP that there is a national shortage as the drug has become so popular and won’t be available on the NHS until next year at the earliest.
John, who stays in Livingston, said he had been using semaglutide for around two years, with great success.
He said: “I’m really concerned. It was working fine. You wouldn’t have thought I had diabetes, I had no symptoms at all.
“I’m not sure how they’re going to want me to manage it, I have to go for blood tests next week to find out.
“The first thing I’ve noticed since I’ve come off it is that my appetite has really gone up, that’s the whole reason people who need to lose weight want it, because it keeps your appetite down.
“I’ll need to look at my diet now, but when I was using Ozempic I could go about my life just as about as normal.
“There were obviously some things I couldn’t eat as a diabetic, but by and large it worked really well. I was getting on great with it.
“I feel like diabetics are being left to the side so other people can use the drug, even though we were who it was created for.”
John continued: “There seems to be more and more people using it, except for diabetics.
“I could go online and get it, but that would cost me £75 for a monthly dose.
“I’m just annoyed this has been