Ozempic: The New Rules of Dieting

Ozempic: The New Rules of Dieting

Are weight loss injections dictating the new rules of dieting?

There seems to be a new entrant to the dinner table this year, and it wasn't invited. This unwelcome guest does not come in the form of a dish or even as an ingredient. It comes in a needle. Semaglutide, the hormone sold as Ozempic and Wegovy has disrupted the entire narrative around weight loss and every dietitian I know has been asking the same question this year: if a weekly injection controls hunger, is there a role for food at all?

The answer, surprisingly, is yes, and a very important one.

Why Just Appetite?

Semaglutide suppresses hunger by acting on the gut receptors, slowing down digestion and letting the brain know when to stop. It sounds perfect, really, like a pill that all but eliminates the need to think about food. But the problem with this line of thinking is that reducing food to just appetite is a reductionist viewpoint. The body needs food for much more than just sending the hunger signal to the brain. If you're not eating enough, your muscles, bones, internal organs and endocrine system will suffer. The body has no qualms about breaking down muscle to get to fat, if it has to.

Protein Takes Centre Stage

This is why any discussion about a drug-induced reduction in food intake, must focus on protein. It becomes the most important component of the diet when you reduce calories because it prevents muscle loss. Every meal, in fact every snack, must have a good amount of protein to make sure that you're not losing precious lean body mass as you shed pounds. Foods like eggs, dals, paneer, curd, fish, chicken, tofu, etc. become most important in a shrinking diet.

Small Meals Mean Big Nutrition

A smaller number of meals in a day means that each one has to carry more nutrition. You simply can't have tea and biscuits as your main fuel if you're eating three times a day. Every morsel has to be as nutritious as it can be, to make up for the smaller number of meals that you're eating in a day.

It is here that the dietitian steps in to prescribe better quality food over quantity. We cannot reduce the number of meals further, but we can enhance the nutritional quality of the food being eaten.

Chewing Your Food Is Still Important

Since semaglutide slows down digestion, it's essential to avoid rushing while eating. That's right, you can't have your meals on the go. Eating slowly becomes one of the most important lifestyle changes that you can make if you're on this medication. In fact, slowing down and stopping when you feel full is necessary for all those who want to stay away from discomfort and nausea that often comes with these drugs. Semaglutide also causes bloating, so slow thorough chewing must be encouraged for patients.

Ways To Get Enough Water And Fibre

Fibre and water intake are often reduced on a semaglutide diet, which can cause complications like constipation. Fibre from vegetables and whole grains is essential to keep the bowels moving, as is water, which helps fight bloating.

The Drugs Give You Time To Learn To Live Better

The most interesting thing about this medication, as far as dietitians are concerned, is that it provides an opening to recalibrate long-standing unhealthy eating habits. When the medication stops working, the patient is likely to regain the lost weight if they haven't had training in better eating. It's not that semaglutide encourages binge eating or excess calorie consumption, but a sudden stop to a prolonged course of the medication can cause all the damage to be undone if not carefully managed. It is for this reason that dietitians encourage patients to start developing healthier habits while on medication. It gives them the psychological support that they need to improve their lifestyle without feeling deprived. It's important to create that opening to encourage a change in mindset about food.

What hasn't changed, even with all these new medications, is that food continues to be medicine. The injection may reduce appetite but it cannot decide what to put on your plate. That responsibility still lies with us.