Just approved for NHS use, the miracle slimming boost has been hailed as a miracle cure by celebs.
Wegovy, which contains the powerful drug Semaglutide, helps users lose weight by hijacking the brain to suppress appetite and reduce calorie intake.
As word spread of vaccine’s “miracle” weight loss effects, demand skyrocketed, leading to global shortages.
But does the jab, described as one of the “most powerful pharmaceutical tools to date” actually work?
MailOnline takes a look at three people who have been prescribed semaglutide and they all swear by it.
Danielle Breckenridge (pictured left before weight loss and right after) says she also lost more than 2nd place after taking semaglutide injections
Danielle Breckenridge, Dublin
A mother in her 30s lost 2nd place (12.7 kg) and was able to resist party food after taking semaglutide.
Danielle Breckenridge, an office worker, weighed 13th (82kg) after the birth of her daughter – and had a BMI of 35, which she classified as “obese”.
Ms Breckenridge said she gained 4th weight during pregnancy (56 lbs/25 kg) after developing gestational diabetes.
Ms Breckenridge, from Stevenage, Hertfordshire, had assumed she would lose the extra weight after giving birth.
But she struggled to lose it, and a year later tests revealed she had borderline diabetes, which came as a “huge shock”.
Her doctor advised her to go to Slimming World, but Ms Breckenridge said she needed “something more effective”.
After researching opportunities online, she signed up for a four-week Saxenda course — a weight-loss injection similar to Wegovy, but that has to be taken daily.
After that course, she switched to a month’s Ozempic – which contains a lower dose of semaglutide than Wegovy and is geared towards patients with type 2 diabetes.
Ms Breckenbridge told The Telegraph in 2021: “I felt a bit nauseous (after the jabs) but I just wasn’t hungry anymore and wasn’t even tempted by party food, my usual weak spot.”
She said she switched to Ozempic because it required a weekly injection instead of a daily one, as she admitted to often forgetting to take it every day.
Ciara Lawless from Dublin lost 2nd place (28lbs/12.7kg) in May 2020 after receiving semaglutide injections when she weighed around 12.5 stone. She said she maintained her weight after saying goodbye to vaccination through healthy eating and a weekly treat, but has since used the vaccination “as an aid” when she “needs it”.
Alex Guevara, 47, (pictured) is a paramedic from Milton Keynes. He has three children and lives with his wife Christina, 29. He said: “When a friend told me about semaglutide, I felt I had nothing to lose. I went to a private clinic and paid £250 a month for six months.
Ciara Lawless, Dublin
Ciara Lawless also lost 2nd place (28lbs/12.7kg) after receiving the Ozempic injection.
The Dublin saleswoman told The Telegraph that she signed up for the jab after seeing it on Instagram.
At the time she was 12.5. (175lbs/79kg).
After getting the injections in May 2020, she said: “All the diets I’ve been on never seemed to work.
“I feel so much better now and my confidence is so much higher.
“I’ve maintained my weight with clean eating and weekly treats, but it’s nice to be able to come back when I need help.”
Alex Guevara, 47, Milton Keynes
Alex Guevara, 47, a Milton Keynes paramedic, began “exploding” in weight three years ago after a serious lung infection kept him home for months.
The father of three says he’s always struggled with his weight because he’s had a sweet tooth.
He said his declining health made him so miserable that all he could do was eat, so he started putting on the pounds.
As of April last year, Mr. Guevara weighed nearly 20 stone and was just 5ft 11in tall.
He said his joints ached and he had developed sleep apnea – where the walls of the throat relax and constrict during sleep, disrupting normal breathing.
“I had no willpower,” he said. “I would have three bowls of cereal and toast for breakfast.
“Meanwhile, I was on a barrage of medication for depression and asthma. I even felt suicidal.”
After a friend told Mr Guevara about Semaglutide he felt he had nothing to lose so he went to a private clinic and paid £250 a month for six months.
He added, “Within a few days of starting the drug, I just stopped feeling so hungry.
“There were a few side effects like nausea, constipation and diarrhea. But my sleep apnea went away and I felt so much happier.”
In December of last year, Mr. Guevara began coming off the medication and had made a habit of exercising and eating a healthy diet. He’s now back at No. 15 and hopes to lose even more.
Mr Guevara said: “Some people may see semaglutide as lazy or as a quick fix.
“But I needed something dramatic to break the cycle and stop me from racing toward type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and stroke.
“Semaglutide should be available to anyone who needs it.”
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