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Most Americans don’t think new weight loss drugs will help US obesity rate

National interest in this new class of drugs has started a conversation about how genetics play a role in weight loss.

This photograph taken on February 23, 2023, in Paris, shows the anti-diabetic medication Ozempic (semaglutide) made by Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk. (Joel Saget/AFP via Getty Images)

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Almost 70 percent of Americans don’t think that new weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy will have much of an impact on the country’s obesity rate, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey.  

The U.S. obesity rate has climbed over the past 20 years, with about 42 percent of American adults now classified as obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Ozempic and Wegovy are part of a class of drugs called GLP-1 agonists that manage blood sugar levels and suppress appetite. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Ozempic for managing Type 2 diabetes.  

Wegovy is a weekly injectable drug approved by the FDA for long-term weight management. Other similar drugs are Mounjaro and Zepbound.  

While some have lauded the drugs as a breakthrough in obesity treatment, most Americans are skeptical as to how much they will help Americans with serious weight issues.

In the survey, conducted from Feb. 7 to Feb. 11, researchers found that 35 percent of Americans think the drugs will do something to reduce obesity in the country, while 33 percent believe they will not do much or nothing at all.

Just 16 percent of people think the injections will do a great deal or a lot to reduce obesity, and 15 percent aren’t sure, according to the survey.

Ozempic and Wegovy’s boom in popularity has started a larger discussion in the U.S. about how genetics play a role in how successfully someone can lose weight as much as behavior.

The survey also found that 65 percent of Americans don’t think willpower alone is enough to lose and keep weight off.

The margin of sampling error for the survey is plus or minus 1.5 percentage points.

Published on Feb 27,2024