This year, the incredible potential of obesity medicines like Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic and Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound started to come into view. The drugs work so well for so many that it’s starting to look like they could change the literal and metaphorical shape of society – starting with our waistlines and extending to our overall health and our habits around food and alcohol.
And yet, the way we talk about these drugs remains stuck in frustrating binaries. The drugs are either a panacea or an overpriced Band-Aid; they will either solve one of the biggest problems in healthcare or burden the system with hundreds of billions of dollars in unjustified cost. The extremes keep us from honestly addressing some fundamental questions about these drugs. Most pressingly: What role should they play in addressing a sicker, fatter society?
Already a subscriber? Log in
Read the full story and more at $9.90/month
Get exclusive reports and insights with more than 500 subscriber-only articles every month
ST One Digital
$9.90/month
No contract
ST app access on 1 mobile device
Unlock these benefits
All subscriber-only content on ST app and straitstimes.com
Easy access any time via ST app on 1 mobile device
E-paper with 2-week archive so you won't miss out on content that matters to you