Kroger-Brand Ozempic

“Are you taking weight-loss meds?” “Everyone is on a GLP-1!” “Look at those cheekbones, so obviously Ozempic face.” “Gotta do my shot!”

And yes - I’m in my late 30s, that last one is not a reference to tequila. GLP-1 agonists are the only shots I’m doing these days. Except wheatgrass. If we’re doing shots at 12 - they’re wheatgrass at the farmer’s market at noon. Let’s party.

There is a wide range of terminology people use when talking about ‘weight-loss meds’. Before we dive into the biology of these miracle drugs, let’s dive into understanding all these terms.

Many people think that GLP-1s are a medication that was invented by pharma. But it’s actually a medicine that mimics a molecule that naturally occurs in our bodies - those are called agonists. GLP-1 molecules are in all of us. More on this after we parse through the terms.

Non-science nerd moment - agonist comes from a Greek word meaning champion or a contestant - so medications that are agonists are basically acting within the naturally occurring arena. This may sound familiar to other words like ‘protagonist’ - the champion of a story. The opposite of an agonist is an antagonist - those are meds that block the naturally occurring molecule. Or your friend who just always has to ‘play devil’s advocate’ - we get it you listen to Joe Rogan.

Ok so back to science nerdiness.

GLP-1 medications are a GLP-1 agonist. So what is GLP-1? Glucagon-like-peptide-1. I know, kind of weird that even the naturally occurring form is saying it’s like something else. So to be totally correct GLP-1 meds are ‘glucagon-like-peptide-1-like-medicine’. Clear as mud.

Brand name meds: You may have also heard the names ‘oh-oh-oh-Ozempic’, ‘WE-GO-VY’ (the jingles for prescription medications play in my head like theme music to the capitalistic carnival in my brain).

Compound semaglutide: If you’re cash-strapped or have insurance that won’t pay for fancy brand weight-loss meds (because why would they pay from a medication you’d actually need?), you may have come across the term ‘Semaglutide’ or “compound Semaglutide”. This is the term you would here in ads for easy to access Rx meds from companies like Hims/Hers (shout out to companies digging holes under the gates that gate-keep people from healthcare - *cough* greedy insurance companies *cough*). People use these terms interchangeably, yet they are in fact different. Here’s the breakdown for ya:

GLP-1 medications = The umbrella term under which any medications that act like GLP-1

Semaglutides = One type of GLP-1 activating medication

Ozempic and Wegovy = Specific brands of semaglutide medications (like Gucci or Prada). They are slightly different from each other but in essence the same thing.

Compound semaglutide = Other formulations of semaglutide thats not regulated like the brand name drugs are. Its like the Kirkland brand- Ozempic. Or when Trander Joes sells you cheap wine thats actually kind of good - thats because its actually good wine that another company had too much of so had TJs repackaged it and sell it for cheap. Its often times really good stuff just under a different label - however, you can’t know whats in it for sure AND you don’t get to brag about how you simply can’t drink the ‘cheap stuff’ anymore after developing such a love of notes of chicory you developed such a love for after that trip to Napa - so really why even bother?

Here it is put in terms of a medication those in our late 30s are well familiar with:

• GLP1 medications = NSAIDs

  • Semaglutides = Ibuprofen

    • Ozempic and Wegovy = Advil and Motrin

    • Compound Semaglutide = Store brand pain reliver

Those of you in the know may be wondering - what about Zepbound? Monjaro?

Those are GLP-1 agonist meds with a sidekick buddy GIP agonist also added in - like Batman and Robin or a Mom-fluencer and her Stanley Cup, stronger together.

GIP is glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide, another naturally occurring molecule in the body - I’ll cover more on this later. Here’s how these meds fit into the hierarchy

Now that we have the terminology clarified, we’re ready to dive into exactly how GLP-1 works in the body (plus GIP), what it may be doing to the microbiome, how to bio-hack GLP-1 and what else we know about weight and the microbiome.

Tune in for the next post soon!