In regard to the proliferation of GLP-1 agonists being pushed as weight loss drugs, I advise us not to direct anger at the substance itself, but at the misuse of it and the cultural force guiding it. To create this nuance, it is wise we first discuss diabetes — perhaps the most well-known, yet still misunderstood disease in the world.
Diabetes is no joke, schoolhouse insult or throw-away synonym for when you want to call someone fat. Diabetes is a killer. A prolific killer that claims millions of people globally every year, and of that number, many will die without ever knowing they had the disease. It is known as the silent disease, as it can creep up on you. Diabetes is also, unfortunately, a highly politicized disease. Deeply ingrained in the public psyche is the belief that diabetes is a disease of the poor, fat and societal other.
Historically, diabetes has been known as Judenkrankheit, or “the Jewish Disease,” in 20th century Germany. A relevant American example is diabetes being heavily associated with Black, Brown and Indigenous people; the nation’s poorest communities who notably also suffer with obesity issues, which is indeed linked to higher rates of diabetes. It is no shocker that when society envisions someone suffering from diabetes they aren’t picturing a white woman living in Tribeca; they’re likely picturing one of the many residents of America’s dilapidated slums.
Despite this politicalization, great efforts have been made to advance the treatment of the disease, especially Type 2 diabetes. The most notable is GLP-1 receptor agonists such as Semaglutide, Exenatide and Dulaglutide all aimed to regulate blood sugar in the body. Unfamiliar with any of these? Well, I’m sure you’re familiar with one of Semaglutide’s brand names: Ozempic.
Ozempic is primarily a diabetes medication, but alongside Ozempic is Wegovy, a Semaglutide brand used instead for weight loss. This is due to the fact that GLP-1 agonists also have the effect of reducing one’s appetite. Now, none of this is bad on its own. As mentioned before, obesity is linked to diabetes and losing weight is a hard task that isn’t as simple as just exercising or eating less. There are real mental or physical aspects that prevent someone from losing weight — diabetes itself being one of them. These drugs have changed lives for the better and have made “The Silent Killer” a manageable, livable disease in the same way Antiretroviral Therapy has made HIV not the death sentence it once was.
So why are people who don’t need these drugs taking them? It’s quite odd to be taking such a crucial drug from those who need it; it’d be like taking a loaf of bread from a hungry child.
Those who turn to stimulant addiction despite not having any form of attention deficiency disorder largely do so due to a need to keep up with an increasingly fast-paced and demanding society. There’s a reason it is abused largely on college campuses and professional sectors; the workaholic nature and emphasis on a need for never-ending productivity of modern society indirectly breeds this behavior in people. It is far easier to overemphasize the social uses than it is to question why we have cultivated a culture that views humans as hamsters. The same rationale exists for those who find themselves drawn to abuse drugs like Ozempic and its peers when they do not need them. There is a similar pressure for one to conform to beauty standards — prestige, beauty, perceived moral superiority and general importance are thought to be gained the farther people get from “fatness.”
Think: How often have you heard someone use one’s weight as an insult? How often have you noticed certain aspects of life such as plane seats, desks and clothing seem to favor certain figures? It’s a blessing to just walk in and seamlessly slip in, isn’t it?
It is no wonder, then, why people often feel the need to lose weight by any means necessary. This is the natural result of a society that asks, “Isn’t it awful to feel this way?”
However, it’s not your fault: you’ve been conditioned by a society that demonizes anything outside its norm of perfection. Pushing cure after cure to cleanse your so-called disease, once even encouraging you to destroy yourself to meet the standard — remember the “coke” era of modelling? It’s truly culturally-induced psychosis, hysteria at the thought of being anything but “ideal.” It’d be easy to tell you not to listen, but that’d be unrealistic with the ads these companies run being plastered all over social media and even public transit. Take, for example, how celebrities champion their usage and flaunt their new bodies.
It is not enough to “dislike” the way these companies such as Ro, Hims and Hers have turned this essential medicine into another instrument in the world’s crusade against undesirables. It is crucial one takes a moment to reflect on wider society and on themselves to recognize these companies aren’t just selling to an invisible buyer. We’ve built a culture of hate, one that will take more to overturn than just disavowing the companies profiting off of it.
Jaylin Seldon, FCRH ’27, is a philosophy major from Harlem, New York.
