04: Off-Label Drug Use, Lawsuits and Flawed Diet Culture

Hi, I'm Marcel Pick, pediatric and obgyn nurse practitioner and I'm hosting this podcast mostly on the cons of these new weight loss medications. So imagine scrolling through the news feed and finding an article looking at the really the craze that's going on with these weight loss medications around the world. Ozempic wi intriguing, right? But have you ever stopped to wonder what's behind these seemingly, and I'm saying this miraculous drugs? Well, look, there was a survey done by Pew Research and they looked at what are most Americans thinking about these medications and what's the bigger conversation around the weight management. So let's talk about your neighbor. You know, chances are you know someone for sure that's on these medications or have heard about them. Three quarters of Americans are familiar with them. Oh my God, that's unbelievable. Given what we have available to us in the news. And what's their verdict? Well, some see them as lifelines for those battling obesity or other health related issues, especially diabetics. But some are skeptical thinking that they're not suitable for folks without weight related conditions. I don't disagree. So what's the backstory? How do these drugs work? We talked about that before. They're known as GLP1 agonists pulling double duty by they regulate blood sugar and they also suppress your appetite. And they work incredibly well for diabetics, but zempic in particular. And WeGovy is the newest one that's just for obesity. But the information is very important to understand that they really were started as weight loss medications. Now we have shortages for even the diabetics.

Many people think that these are game changers as they fight obesity. And the public's expectations are a little bit more tempered. Only a minority of people believe that they'll make significant dents in America's obesity rates. And as you know, obesity is linked to so many different things, heart disease, diabetes. But we need to do something about it. But is this the answer? So what's your take on it? From my perspective? Here's a scoop. Most folks don't buy into the myth of willpower, which is a good thing because it's not, not just about that, but they also recognize that it's a lot of other factors, certainly diet, exercise, stress levels and genetics. And it's a big, what I call a functional medicine perspective. There's so many things that play into this. But the thing that's so amazing to me is that diet really tops the list of influences when it comes to weight. And it's closely followed by exercise habits and stress levels. But it really doesn't stop there because genetics play a part in this as well. But we can always change our genetics by the kind of food that we eat. Now, there's a lot of differences in opinion, but the overarching message is weight management is anything but one dimensional. So the next time you kind of look at one of these weight loss medications, thinking about, oh my God, maybe this is my thing to kind of lose that weight, there's a lot of narratives that are behind the scenes and it's not just popping a pill or having, you know, herculean willpower. It's about understanding the interplay of so many different factors that I hope to go into more in detail with these podcasts. Now, the other thing is that's happening is a lawsuits are popping up everywhere against Ozempic, Manjaro and other medications that are being used to manage especially diabetes and weight loss, gastroparesis, which is stomach paralysis. Originally the FDA approved these medications for just diabetes, but now they're finding that so many people are using it off label for weight loss. WeGovy has been recommended for weight loss, and now so many people are having problems with their stomach. And gastroparesis is a daunting condition. And what it does is it actually weakens the stomach muscles. And it's really become a concern for some people with using these medications. But the list doesn't end there. So patients oftentimes have bowel obstructions and intestinal blockages. And in a landmark case, it was the fall of 2023, Janice Brooklund from Louisiana took legal action actually against Nordics and Eli Willey, alleging that they didn't have adequate information about these medications, Ozempic and Maduro. And her ordeal was voluptuous. Vomiting, stomach pain. It landed her in the hospital. So she's one of the first people to really look at, we really need to hold people accountable and she's not al. Dozens of other patients have actually stepped forward with similar problems with GI issues. So we may find a flood of litigation now against these pharmaceutical industries. And some legal experts expect that we may have up to 10,000 lawsuits from patients who've had a lot of problems with Ozempic, Munjiro and their kin. The other thing that we're seeing is that there is now some incidents of people having psychiatric problems and also suicidal problems. Again, obviously, if somebody has any kind of psychiatric issues, this may also not be the best medication available to them. So stay tuned with these podcasts. I'm going to bring you the newest information in the news and give you my take on what's going on. And again, as I mentioned, I'm going to dig deep into the science behind the medications because I absolutely have concerns that in the long run these are actually going to decrease our health in a substantial way. So if you like this podcast, please click the link below, share it with others and continue to watch my podcast podcast as I bring you the latest and the newest information.

Hi, this is Marcel. I want to introduce you to a concept that's just so exciting.

So we know that the weight loss.

Medications, the semi glutide variety of medications, is very effective at decreasing your interest in food. The problem is that for many of you that you know that there are some side effects. So many of you that are watching this are seeing that you tried the medication and you didn't really feel very good on it, but you really wanted to lose that way. The biggest problem I see in the weight loss industry in general is that so many people are hungry and they have cravings for these particular foods. So I created homeopathic drops that don't have significant side effects with nausea or problems with diarrhea or general GI discomfort. And what they do is they take the noisy food away, they suppress your appetite, and they really allow you the ability to be able to kind of sit back a bit and make some lifestyle changes and change your habits that are going to be the important thing long term. So for those of you that are interested, please look at the link below and it's Marcel M A R C E L L e p I c-k.com and you'll be able to see a link there. Also for looking at the 21 day quick start, which is a 21 day program in which so many of my patients are losing weight very quickly and also be able to get the homeopathic drops there.