Fake Ozempic pens have been found to contain insulin in connection with health officials

TAMPA, FL. But along the way, doctors have discovered that it also helps patients lose weight by reducing their cravings.

The drug, which is in high demand, is causing a worldwide supply shortage. Now, there’s a new warning from the FDA regarding the popular drug.

Health authorities are now increasingly concerned about fake Ozempic pens after several people in Austria were hospitalized after injecting a counterfeit version of the drug.

Fake versions were also discovered on the shelf of an American pharmacy. The fake version contains insulin.

Insulin in someone who doesn’t have high blood sugar and who isn’t diabetic is literally life-threatening, you can kill someone if you give them insulin, and that’s really, really troubling, explained Dr. Jill Wagoner, board-certified in family medicine. doctor.

ABC Action News anchor Paul LaGrone asked Dr. Wagoner: We’re seeing reports that now there’s this underground market, a fake Ozemic that’s been put out there. How worrisome is that?

She replied: It is very worrying, really scary to think about.

Dr. Wagoner points out the misconception that obesity is a personality flaw and not a serious medical condition. It is magnified in a results-driven society that is often impatient and looking for a quick fix.

That’s why people will go to a medical center and let someone inject them because they don’t see it as a medical condition. So that’s the real problem, Dr. Wagoner said.

LaGrone then asked: How do people protect themselves when it comes to buying the right product and not getting scammed or buying something that’s life-threatening?

You should never get anything with a prescription unless you get it from a health care provider, Dr. Wagoner explained.

Rashita Lee is a registered nurse in Tampa. She, like many others, has had the Ozempic conversation and still has questions.

“It was actually presented to me by one of my doctors before, but I kind of like to let things play out on their own,” Lee said.

She continued, I try to cycle to keep up with my fitness. So whatever you can do without going on drugs first.

Dr. Wagoner warns that there are some side effects from taking Ozempic. These include nausea and abdominal pain. In severe cases, even paralysis of the GI tract.

She said that for people struggling with life-threatening obesity, the alternative is just as dangerous.

We really have to talk about where we’re going to say that in real-world terms and look at the benefit as well as the risk, Dr. Wagoner said.

LaGrone asked: Is it sustainable for someone to inject Ozempic for years and years.

She replied: Well, diabetics have been using it for years. So we have some background and some data to see what happens when it’s been used for years. The difference is that with most diabetics, you don’t expect them to go away. So it wasn’t meant to be a short-term treatment. It was meant to be part of long-term treatment.”

Currently, researchers and doctors do not yet have enough data to determine what would happen when someone goes off the drug.

But one thing is clear, if you want to try it, see a doctor first and don’t buy it online.

I think that’s a bad idea. If you go to a website and someone says, we have a doctor who will write it for you. Don’t worry about it. It is embezzlement. It’s not good medicine, Dr. Wagoner said.

Here’s what experts say you should look for when trying to spot a fake Ozempic pen:

• The label on the counterfeit packaging may be of poor quality.
• May not include tamper-resistant perforation.
• Look for the serial number. The batch number printed on fake Ozempic boxes may not match the strength of the product on the box and on the pen.