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201 points andsoitis | 45 comments | | HN request time: 1.856s | source | bottom
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aucisson_masque ◴[] No.41853580[source]
> Can we overcome ageing?

75% American are overweight..

Just let it sink a second, they speak about how many baby born after 2000 will reach 100 years old, how we are reaching the absolute limit of human survival.

75% overweight... Everyone know fat people don't live long. I bet all the studies done in the 90's that predicted we would easily be able to reach 100 years old didn't take that into account.

replies(8): >>41853665 #>>41853666 #>>41853689 #>>41854356 #>>41855406 #>>41856184 #>>41866200 #>>41869259 #
1. scarby2 ◴[] No.41853689[source]
I'm thinking that ozempic and zepbound will have something to say about this. When ozempic becomes available as a generic (2032) it's going to be available for $10 a dose and a huge amount of people will be taking it.
replies(3): >>41853798 #>>41853842 #>>41857957 #
2. Muromec ◴[] No.41853798[source]
Wait, doing amphetamines for weight loss is cool again and has no drawbacks of it's own?
replies(4): >>41853996 #>>41854023 #>>41854361 #>>41856943 #
3. MichaelZuo ◴[] No.41853842[source]
How do you know they don’t have side effects that would reduce max life expectancy?
replies(5): >>41853873 #>>41854420 #>>41854840 #>>41856017 #>>41857034 #
4. generalizations ◴[] No.41853873[source]
Entirely possible they do - but those effects would probably manifest in some fashion earlier than actual death. We'll have at least 7 years to see if we can spot them. But, even if they do exist, they will probably be small (given we haven't found them so far), and the positive effect on life expectancy via weight loss is huge.

i.e. the benefits of the weight loss almost certainly outweigh any side effects that are likely to manifest.

5. llm_trw ◴[] No.41853996[source]
Welcome to the 80s part 2. Hope you enjoy the ride.
replies(1): >>41854467 #
6. NemoNobody ◴[] No.41854023[source]
I don't think ozempic is amphetamines.
7. EasyMark ◴[] No.41854361[source]
Ozempic isn’t anywhere near the amphetamine class of weight control prescriptions, where are you getting your misinformation from?
8. positr0n ◴[] No.41854420[source]
People have been taking them for decades for other reasons, so if they had side effects reducing max life expectancy worse than being overweight surely we'd know by now.
replies(1): >>41856134 #
9. llamaimperative ◴[] No.41854467{3}[source]
Ozempic et al are nothing like amphetamines. They definitely have side-effects but we have far, far more evidence that the benefits are outweighed than we did for stimulants in the 80s.
replies(1): >>41855511 #
10. renewiltord ◴[] No.41854840[source]
We don’t know if MMR doesn’t but we still give kids[0] the vaccine in infancy. The vaccine is too young (<60 y old). So I suppose ask yourself what proof you need and why.

0: most kids, I just got the disease instead and the vax later

replies(2): >>41855479 #>>41856356 #
11. izend ◴[] No.41855479{3}[source]
We do know MMRV causes more seizures in kids than MMR and countries (like Canada) still choose to administer the vaccine with riskier outcomes due to costs and the fact parents don’t like to come back for more shots.
12. llm_trw ◴[] No.41855511{4}[source]
Every decade or two I hear this about some wonder drug only for them to turn out just as bad as what they were replacing. The opioid epidemic being the latest one.
replies(1): >>41856917 #
13. aucisson_masque ◴[] No.41856017[source]
A study by researchers from the University of British Columbia (Canada) shows a link between drugs intended for diabetics and severe gastrointestinal diseases: pancreatitis, intestinal obstruction, biliary pathologies and gastroparesis.

Only fools would convince themselves a drug has no sideeffect.

The worst is that these drugs were created for legitimate use but are now being abused by what I would call lazy fat who can't get their finger out of their arse and start eating healthy.

When there is a natural, effective and no side effects alternative, why go the medication way.

replies(2): >>41856225 #>>41859922 #
14. hackernewds ◴[] No.41856134{3}[source]
have they? why are they only gaining prominence now?
replies(2): >>41856194 #>>41866651 #
15. ben_w ◴[] No.41856194{4}[source]
Because they have been made available for weight loss.

Viagra's original purpose was for heart conditions, that purpose didn't make the headlines (or spam folders) either.

replies(1): >>41856868 #
16. ben_w ◴[] No.41856225{3}[source]
When I was at university, I made a game of spending as little as possible on food. 50p/day. Didn't realise until someone here refused to believe me, that my diet then was about 1100 kcal/day during term time. Didn't feel bad at all.

A few years after graduation, for unrelated reasons, I was on antidepressants. I massively over-ate, became obese, gained stretch marks that will likely remain for life.

There was no voice in my head telling me I was even over-eating, there was no awareness of what I was doing to myself even when I felt the weird tingle in my belly that in retrospect was the tearing flesh that has the outward sign of a stretch mark — I ate without thought.

There is no "natural, effective" solution, because our natural instincts are at odds with our unnatural world.

replies(2): >>41856380 #>>41856720 #
17. sph ◴[] No.41856356{3}[source]
A vaccine is very different than a hormone taken daily.
18. sph ◴[] No.41856380{4}[source]
So the solution is to take a hormone so we can still eat all the junk food we massively produce?

Ozempic is exactly the type of drug Unilevel/Nestlé would create if they were tasked with reducing obesity. I wonder if they'll include a free 7 day dose of it with Mars bars.

replies(3): >>41856929 #>>41862588 #>>41873898 #
19. Elinvynia ◴[] No.41856720{4}[source]
There really is no natural solution if you are taking medication that increases your weight. Kinda disproving your own example there.
replies(1): >>41856955 #
20. tuatoru ◴[] No.41856868{5}[source]
Almost. Pulmonary hypertension, high blood pressure in the arteries of the lungs. Pretty close to the heart.
replies(1): >>41856964 #
21. ywvcbk ◴[] No.41856917{5}[source]
Do you pay more attention to those and ignore the actual success stories?

The opioids thing is hardly comparable. Everybody clearly knew the risks (for the past 100+ years) and chose to ignore them. This is an almost entirely new type of drugs.

replies(1): >>41857544 #
22. ben_w ◴[] No.41856929{5}[source]
It reduces food intake by lowering appetite.

That's pretty much the exact opposite of what you seem to think it does, and is exactly the kind of thing that will hurt Nestlé's junk food line. (Though probably not their bottled tap water line).

23. tuatoru ◴[] No.41856943[source]
Honest puzzlement: how is it possible to be so underinformed when google, duckduckgo and wikipedia are right there? Are they blocked some places where hacker news isn't?
replies(1): >>41860054 #
24. ben_w ◴[] No.41856955{5}[source]
Is this "nature" in the room with us right now?

Seriously — the US and Europe have not been in a remotely "natural" condition since over a century before I was born. Even the air we breathe is significantly different from its natural condition.

Why do you think I gave that example?

25. ben_w ◴[] No.41856964{6}[source]
Oh? I stand corrected. I thought it was for angina.
26. Pikamander2 ◴[] No.41857034[source]
We don't, but there's also no particular reason to believe it will unless some evidence for it appears.

Similar to zero-calorie sugar substitutes, "too good to be true" isn't always the case. Sometimes new inventions really are just better.

27. llm_trw ◴[] No.41857544{6}[source]
Do you pay attention to the people who win at Russian roulette more than those who lose?

OxyContin was marketed to be the safe alternative to all opioids that came before it, impossible to become addicted to and extremely difficult to overdose from. This was a lie.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6140023/

replies(1): >>41859272 #
28. yodsanklai ◴[] No.41857957[source]
I'm not quite sure this will address the root issues. Obesity is linked with very unhealthy diet. Ozempic isn't going to address that.
replies(2): >>41858031 #>>41873827 #
29. aetherson ◴[] No.41858031[source]
It does at least potentially address that.

Ozempic's mechanism of action is not "ramp up your metabolism" or "make you absorb fewer calories from food." It's "make the desire to eat less intense, making it easier to remain on a diet plan." That diet plan could be, "eat exactly the same things but less of them," but it will often be, "cut out unhealthy snacks" or whatever.

replies(1): >>41858545 #
30. gruez ◴[] No.41858545{3}[source]
>It's "make the desire to eat less intense, making it easier to remain on a diet plan." That diet plan could be, "eat exactly the same things but less of them," but it will often be, "cut out unhealthy snacks" or whatever.

If people can't be convinced to eat carrots over chips, what makes you think they're going to suddenly eat carrots over chips after eating medication that makes them want to eat less?

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31. hoseja ◴[] No.41858845{4}[source]
Because that's literally what Ozempic does.
replies(1): >>41858939 #
32. gruez ◴[] No.41858939{5}[source]
I'm not sure how making someone less hungry magically makes them want to eat carrots over chips. Is the reason why they're eating chips because they're so hungry and so pressed for time that they're reaching for the highest calorie food? Or do they eat whatever's the most delicious? If it's the latter, I doubt being less hungry is going to make them choose healthier options over more delicious ones.
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33. siver_john ◴[] No.41859138{6}[source]
From my friends who are on ozempic, yes it has literally done just that. Along with the fact because they are driven to eat less they, in general are less snacky (and thus eat less chips) and tend to avoid greasy/fried foods because combined with the medicine it leaves them feeling worse afterwards than eating a similar "healthier meal".

Yes N=2, small sample sizes, but I could also see how being less snacky makes one less likely to eat chips. (Why I almost pathologically don't keep easy to eat food in my pantry, granted this can also backfire too).

34. ywvcbk ◴[] No.41859272{7}[source]
> Do you pay attention to the people who win at Russian roulette more than those who lose?

Well.. no since you cant really win anything. With pharmaceuticals on the other I hand I think 1 Oxycontin/etc. like “situation” would be a reasonable price to pay for let’s say 4 major successes.

You were talking about decades. Surely you noticed the advancements in treating cancer, HIV and a multitude of other conditions since the 90s?

> This was a lie.

Sure. But it’s on the same level as saying that filtered cigarettes don’t cause cancer. If a doctor actually believes that he’s just too dumb to be a doctor… (although I assume most safety claims were relative to other opioids and not in absolute terms?)

Are there any signs that the situation with Semaglutides is that similar? Yes they are new and not well understood drugs (well not really but sort of..) and it’s not inconceivable that their longterm cost might end up outweighing the benefits but I don’t really see any signs of an actual conspiracy yet.

35. leetnewb ◴[] No.41859747{6}[source]
Sometimes the dose (portion) makes the poison.
36. arkh ◴[] No.41859922{3}[source]
I wish people with your worldview could try some drug enhancing appetite for like a month. See how easy it is to get their fingers out of their arse and keep eating healthy when their body is craving food all day long.

Would you also tell people suffering from depression to just cheer the fuck up instead of going the medication way?

37. NoMoreNicksLeft ◴[] No.41860054{3}[source]
You live in a world where willful stupidity is far from rare. Yes, I know that we should assume incompetence before malevolence, but that was an earlier era. A mixture of the two is the new norm.
38. s1artibartfast ◴[] No.41860314{4}[source]
It reduces your interest in food. If you eat chips, you will do it less often.

I'm not sure what angle you are getting at. There is tons of data that shows that yes, people lose weight on it.

39. aetherson ◴[] No.41860926{6}[source]
People aren't idiots. They know what foods are healthy.

A lot of people struggle with intense cravings for foods that they know to be unhealthy. These cravings stack up against their willpower and sometimes overcome that willpower and they eat in ways that they know are unhealthy.

If the cravings are less intense, willpower wins more often, cravings win less often.

I think that you will indeed see that some people on ozempic eat much the same mix of foods as before, but less so. But others will in fact change their dietary mix. And I'm pretty sure that the empirical evidence supports me on this.

40. kaibee ◴[] No.41861506{6}[source]
Oh I can answer this one. I've never liked chips but was still ~230lb before Ozempic. I tried various diets, but the willpower to maintain one was pretty overwhelming if anything else was going on in my life. I tried eating carrots to get full. And let me tell you, it feels very strange to eat half a pound of carrots, feel your stomach be full, almost painfully full, and still be just as hungry. Same with salads. I would still feel hungry, even though the stomach is full. Even though I liked the taste of the carrots or the salad. It felt like I hadn't actually eaten, and that I was still hungry for an actual meal. With Ozempic? I can just eat a salad, feel good about it, and feel satiated for hours. It just works?
41. ◴[] No.41862588{5}[source]
42. positr0n ◴[] No.41866651{4}[source]
Treatment of type 2 diabetes.
43. consteval ◴[] No.41873827[source]
Ozempic directly address an unhealthy diet, particularly a diet of overconsumption. That's actually, like, all it addresses.
44. consteval ◴[] No.41873848{6}[source]
People prefer the chips because their brains are broken and they have a fixation on tasty foods. It clogs their thoughts processes - basically, they have an addiction.

If you don't care much for food then you don't mind eating the carrots and you don't mind losing the chips. If your entire life is food, then you do mind.

45. ◴[] No.41873898{5}[source]