Welcome To The Family... Wegovy.

Okay.. it’s not quite a new addition. Semaglutide is certainly not new to healthcare professionals and has been used for diabetic care for quite some time.

Despite its usefulness in weight management, semaglutide has been overshadowed with Mounjaro. Diabetic clinics around the UK have been using Mounjaro more frequently in patients who also have significant obesity. The public have also flocked to weight loss clinics, purchasing Mounjaro at high prices to help them with their weight loss journey.

The fall back option has never been that great. Many of us are used to prescribing Orlistat which was once considered the best in the business. Relative to Mounjaro, its results are not as great and the hype around Mounjaro has meant that may patients who do not meet the criteria, refuse it.

Wegovy, whose actual name is Semaglutide is set to provide a different option. It works by mimicking the naturally occurring GLP-1 hormone, helping to reduce appetite, increase satiety, and lower overall calorie intake. Mounjaro does something similar but also works on GIP receptors and is therefore, considered to be more effective in the realm of weight loss.

Head to head studies are interesting. Whilst Mounjaro can offer approximately 20% in weight reduction, Wegovy can offer an impressive 13-15% and gives patients something Mounjaro doesn’t…

An oral form.

Injecting a medication is anxiety provoking for many people. It allows people to overcome such psychological barriers and oral semaglutide demonstrates effective weight loss capabilities in comparison to its injectable form.

As for when it will be available for us (NHS staff) to prescribe it - this depends on how quickly NICE will endorse it. The data will need to be studied and then recommendations will need to be made regarding how it will be rolled out. Currently, Mounjaro is rolled out through tier 3 weight loss services and diabetic services and it is likely that oral semaglutide will follow suit.

In the meantime though, I suspect we will see patients opt to buy it privately. Boots, Asda and other organisations will start to sell it almost immediately. Like with Mounjaro, patients may ask you for your advice in which case you should mention the gastrointestinal side effects that could potentially occur.

In summary, this is a very important update in the field of weight loss. However, as we’ve mentioned before, there is a growing concern that we are missing the bigger picture. Both Wegovy and Mounjaro are effective insofar as lifestyle changes are also instituted. Patients have also reported that after they have stopped using Mounjaro, they can put the weight they have lost back on at remarkable speeds.

Just like with mental health, we would signpost patients to talking therapies alongside their medication, we should aim to do something similar with patients who are embarking on a weight loss journey.

Until next time…

What Are You Doing This Weekend?

Our next masterclass is on and it promises to be an excellent morning of CPD. Our CPD Frailty and Prescribing Masterclass touches on important topics related to frailty management and prescribing. We bring together key concepts in prescribing with a selection of cases to evoke key discussions related to managing this vulnerable patient group. We ran this very same masterclass last year and it become one of our most popular masterclasses.

So what are you waiting for? Remember, if you can’t attend then the recording will also be available for you to watch again. You can book here.

Date: 21/06/2026

Time: 10:00 - 13:00 (Recording available)

Originally published on Substack.