Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
THE MEDICINES REGULATOR and the advertising watchdog have launched separate reviews into advertising in Ireland by Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of the blockbuster weight-loss drugs marketed as Ozempic and Wegovy.
Both reviews were initiated after the watchdogs received complaints about the ads.
Irish people are likely to have spotted the Danish pharma giant’s campaign, with the tagline “It’s about my health, not just my weight”, on buses, bus stops, billboards and in broadcast media in recent weeks.
It is illegal to advertise prescription drugs in Ireland. Novo Nordisk has not named any drugs in its ads. The company’s name is included, however.
Novo Nordisk robustly defended what it described as a “disease awareness campaign” this weekend, emphasising that the advertising contained no reference, either direct or indirect, to medicines, to brand names, or to pharmaceutical ingredients or molecules.
Novo Nordisk’s ads direct people to a website, TruthAboutWeight.ie, which provides information about obesity, a chronic disease.
The home page invites people to use a body mass index (BMI) calculator, to tell them whether they are a healthy weight for their height. A BMI of 18.5-24.9 is considered healthy, with 25-29.9 overweight and anything above that obese.
If you enter a height and weight that give a BMI above 25, the website suggests: “You may be interested in different ways to get to a healthier weight.”
It goes on to state that, depending on whether there are any weight-related complications, treatments that could be recommended included meal replacements and low-energy diets, bariatric surgery, or weight-loss medication.
Like the ads, the website does not mention any named prescription drugs.
A Novo Nordisk television advertisement, seen on the RTÉ Player, shows people with obesity feeling uncomfortable or struggling in some everyday situations and states: “Obesity is recognised as a chronic disease – it’s about my health, not just my weight.”
The Health Products Regulatory Authority, the medicines regulator, told The Journal a review of Novo Nordisk’s campaign is now underway.
The Advertising Standards Authority said it has also commenced an investigation.
Neither regulator could comment further, given their reviews are ongoing.
Novo Nordisk said there were “many examples” of disease awareness campaigns by other companies that encouraged patients to engage with health professionals on important health issues.
“Given the materials are part of a health [and] disease awareness campaign and there is no direct or indirect reference to medicinal products, we believe the obesity awareness campaign adheres to the relevant regulations,” the company said.
“The TruthAboutWeight website is an informational resource and does not provide medical advice. The website directs people to their healthcare professional for advice and recommendations on an appropriate treatment plan, which also includes diet and exercise.”
Novo Nordisk’s extraordinarily successful diabetes and weight-loss medicine semaglutide – marketed as Ozempic and Wegovy – turned it into Europe’s most valuable company, though it now faces stiff competition from Eli Lilly, manufacturer of Mounjaro.
Novo Nordisk also makes another obesity medication, Saxenda, which has been licensed in Europe for a decade.
The drugs make people feel full, suppressing their appetite. People need to stay on the drugs to maintain weight loss.
About one in five people in Ireland over the age of 15 have obesity, according to government surveys.
Weight-loss drugs have been important for many people with the disease of obesity because losing a significant amount of weight through lifestyle changes and calorie counting alone is extremely difficult, and scientific studies demonstrate that weight lost in this way is very often regained.
These drugs have upended the weight-loss industry. Diet programme WeightWatchers filed for bankruptcy in the US this week, while Irish multinational Glanbia is selling well-known meal replacement brand SlimFast after booking a non-cash impairment charge of €85.5m on the struggling product.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say