The Biggest Drug Fraud in History

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• Ozempic, a diabetes drug now used for weight loss, is part of a massive fraud that could harm millions, especially children, by treating obesity without addressing its root causes
• The obesity epidemic is driven in part by ultraprocessed foods designed to override natural satiety mechanisms, not by a lack of weight loss drugs like Ozempic
• The Treat and Reduce Obesity Act could mandate government coverage for obesity medications for 74% of Americans, costing over $3 trillion annually without addressing underlying health issues
• Ozempic’s maker, Novo Nordisk, has become a top lobbying spender in the U.S., pushing for expanded drug coverage while downplaying significant side effects like muscle loss, suicidal thoughts and increased cancer risk
• Naturally increasing GLP-1 levels through gut bacteria like Akkermansia muciniphila offers an alternative to Ozempic, promoting overall gut health without the risks associated with long-term pharmaceutical use

(Mercola)—The rise of Ozempic and similar drugs for weight loss involves fraud of unprecedented scale that could have devastating consequences for millions of Americans, especially children. Ozempic, a drug initially developed for diabetes, has become a sensation for weight loss. Its popularity has skyrocketed, with everyone from celebrities to college students clamoring for prescriptions — but at what cost?

The active ingredient in Ozempic is part of a class of drugs called glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonists. These drugs stimulate hormones in your digestive system that signal fullness. While this makes it easier for people to eat less and lose weight, the reality is far more complex and concerning.

The Toxic Food Environment — And Profit Motives — Driving Obesity

To understand why drugs like Ozempic are not the answer, we need to look at the root cause of our obesity epidemic. As Dr. Casey Means, a surgeon who graduated from Stanford Medical School, says on The Tucker Carlson Show:¹

“We are … the only species in the world that has a chronic disease and obesity epidemic because of ultraprocessed food. You think about every other animal in the wild. They’re eating real natural foods except for domesticated animals, which are also getting chronic diseases just like humans because they’re eating our food. But every other animal, they’re able to regulate their satiety. They’re not eating themselves to death like we are.

We’re literally eating ourselves to death. The reason is because these foods … with the cigarette companies and the scientists moving to create addictive processed foods, they are designed to subvert our satiety mechanisms like GLP-1 secretion, so that we never know that we’re full.

But if we were eating whole real food, we would cue the exquisite satiety mechanisms in our bodies and we would not overeat. If you’re eating real, whole, unprocessed, nutrient-rich foods, we have receptors in our gut that make us feel full.”

This is an important point. Our bodies have natural mechanisms to regulate hunger and fullness. But the ultraprocessed foods that dominate the U.S. diet are specifically designed to override these systems. They’re engineered to be addictive, just like cigarettes were.

So, why push drugs instead of addressing our toxic food environment? Follow the money. Means says:²

“This could be on track to be the most profitable medication ever in human history. It will be if the powers that be let it. And the unfortunate part is that it doesn’t take our bodies out of the toxic stew that’s crushing our biology. Yes, we may melt some fat, but we’re essentially creating starvation to melt fat and muscle … So, this is not the public health solution.”

The Treat and Reduce Obesity Act: A Trojan Horse for Big Pharma?

In the video above, Means mentions a crucial piece of legislation: H.R. 4818, which is the Treat and Reduce Obesity Act.³ This bill, on the surface, appears to be a well-intentioned effort to address America’s obesity epidemic. However, Means reveals a more concerning reality:⁴

“There’s one line that’s all that matters in that, which is that they want to expand Medicare access to include coverage for these obesity medications … for people who are overweight and obese. That is 74% of the American population.”

The implications of this bill are staggering. If passed, it would essentially mandate government coverage for obesity medications like Ozempic for nearly three-quarters of Americans. Means warns of the potential financial impact:⁵

“If this bill goes through and everyone who is eligible for this drug gets it paid by taxpayers, that will represent over $3 trillion per year in drugs to the American people, without changing any of the root causes of what is making us sick.”

The scale of this potential profit is hard to overstate. Medicaid spending on metabolic disorders is already enormous: “Medicaid is spending more on mitochondrial dysfunction than the entire U.S. defense budget and growing much faster.” This spending is primarily driven by “preventable metabolic chronic conditions,” showing that pharmaceutical companies are exploiting a health crisis that could be addressed through other means.

This legislation could funnel an enormous amount of taxpayer money to pharmaceutical companies, particularly benefiting the Scandinavian company, Novo Nordisk, that produces Ozempic and Wegovy.

Ozempic’s Maker Is a Top Lobbying Spender in the US

Already, Novo Nordisk has become one of the largest lobbying spenders in the U.S. It spent $3.2 million on lobbying in the first six months of 2024 alone.⁶ Their stock price has soared, making them one of the most valuable companies in the world. And they’re pushing hard for government coverage of these drugs. According to Open Secrets:⁷

“In 2023, Novo Nordisk and its U.S. subsidiary, Novozymes North America, spent over $5 million on lobbying, hiring a whopping 77 lobbyists across 13 firms. This marked a 51% increase from the number of lobbyists hired in 2022. Of those, 54 previously held government jobs, bringing insider knowledge and industry connections to each role.”

Calley Means, author and a former food and pharmaceutical consultant, states on The Tucker Carlson Show:⁸

“Why is this company in Scandinavia one of the five largest lobbying spenders in America and pushing so hard for this? And why is their stock so high, and it’s the 12th most valuable company in the world?

They’re expecting 80% to 90% of the profits from the United States, from the government, by rigging institution. What institution are pharma companies rigging? They’re actually rigging Medicaid. They’re actually profiting off poor people. Medicaid is spending more on mitochondrial dysfunction than the entire U.S. defense budget and growing much faster.”

Perhaps most alarmingly, they’re pushing to prescribe these drugs to children. The American Academy of Pediatrics is now recommending weight loss drugs for kids as young as 12, with efforts to lower that to age 6.

“This is a lifelong medication at the cost about $1,500 a month, with many side effects that does not change any of the root causes,” Means says.⁹ Imagine putting a 6-year-old on a weekly injection for life, instead of addressing their diet and environment. It’s unconscionable.

Ozempic’s Significant Side Effects

Like all drugs, Ozempic has side effects. But these are being downplayed in a dangerous way. Some of the risks include:

• Disproportionate loss of muscle mass, leading to frailty
• Higher rates of thyroid cancer
• Kidney dysfunction
• Pancreatitis

Studies also show a 45% increased risk of suicidal ideation in patients taking semaglutide (Ozempic/Wegovy) compared to other medications, with even higher risks for those with pre-existing mental health conditions.¹⁰ Analysis of adverse event reports reveals higher rates of psychiatric issues, including depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts, associated with these GLP-1 receptor agonist drugs used for weight loss.¹¹

These drugs also carry a risk of delayed gastric emptying, also known as gastroparesis or stomach paralysis. Gastroparesis slows or stops the movement of food from your stomach to your small intestine; this results in feeling full longer, which is one mechanism by which semaglutide results in weight loss.

Ozempic also increases the risk of intestinal obstruction,¹² in part by increasing intestinal length and villus height; villi are the hairlike projections inside the small intestine that help absorb nutrients. Writing in Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B, researchers explained how this could seriously affect intestinal function, increasing obstruction risk:¹³

“Because GLP-1RAs could cause continuous increases in the intestinal length and villus height, the small intestine may become as inelastic and fibrotic as a loose spring, leading to long-term upper intestinal obstruction …”

And remember, these are just the effects we know about. We don’t know what long-term use could do, especially in children whose bodies are still developing.

A Natural Alternative to Ozempic

Instead of using Ozempic, you can naturally elevate your GLP-1 levels by increasing the presence of Akkermansia muciniphila in your gut. This beneficial bacterium plays a crucial role in your digestive health by producing a protein that stimulates GLP-1 production. A study published in Nature Microbiology demonstrated that A. muciniphila not only enhances thermogenesis but also boosts GLP-1 secretion in mice fed a high-fat diet.¹⁴

Akkermansia should ideally constitute around 10% of your gut microbiome to maintain optimal intestinal health. Unfortunately, many individuals have insufficient levels of this bacteria due to issues like impaired mitochondrial function and oxygen leakage within the gut, which disrupt the balance of the microbiome.

One of the essential functions of Akkermansia is the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), such as butyrate. These SCFAs serve as fuel for colonocytes, the cells lining your colon, which are responsible for producing mucin — a protective, gel-like substance that coats and protects the gut lining.

The SCFAs also help reduce oxygen levels in the colon, fostering an environment conducive to the growth of beneficial bacteria. Mucin, in turn, forms a protective barrier that shields intestinal cells from damage, harmful microbes and irritants present in the digestive system.

Beyond protecting the gut lining, mucin also contributes to immune function. It contains antibodies and antimicrobial peptides that help defend against infections, and it traps potential pathogens, facilitating their elimination through the digestive process.

By supporting a healthy level of Akkermansia muciniphila, you can enhance your GLP-1 levels while also promoting overall gut and immune health. In my interview with Dr. Colleen Cutcliffe, a molecular biology scientist and the CEO and co-founder of Pendulum, a company that creates microbiome products, she explains:

“So, what’s been found is that if you are low or missing Akkermansia, your body is not naturally producing as much GLP-1 as it’s supposed to be. By giving people back Akkermansia, you can now have these physiological benefits of reducing A1C and lowering blood glucose spikes.

To be clear, the natural GLP-1 you produce is different from the drug. The drug is a mimic. It’s an analog. It looks like GLP-1. It gets injected into the bloodstream directly, which means that rather than the natural spike after you eat [followed by a decline], the [drug] is keeping those levels really high all the time.

So, this signaling of ‘we got to metabolize sugar in the blood and we’re full, we just ate’ is going on constantly. That’s why people experience these incredible, amazing overnight effects because that’s how those drugs are working. But if you actually have the right microbes, you can generate your body’s natural GLP-1 and get back into this natural cycle.”

Make Sure Live Akkermansia Probiotics Reach Your Colon

When selecting Akkermansia probiotics, opt for products with bacterial counts in the billions rather than millions. Generally, a higher bacterial count is beneficial, but there’s an important caveat: the delivery method is crucial.

Look for probiotics in delayed-release capsules. This feature is essential because it ensures the beneficial bacteria have a higher likelihood of reaching your colon alive. Without this protective mechanism, most of the bacteria may not survive the journey through your digestive system.

Akkermansia are very sensitive to oxygen. This makes their journey through your digestive system very challenging. These beneficial microbes thrive in an oxygen-free environment, and even a brief exposure to oxygen can be fatal for them. This trait makes the delivery method of Akkermansia supplements crucial to their effectiveness.

In fact, a lower-dose probiotic (in the hundreds of thousands of bacteria) that successfully reaches your colon can be more effective than a high-dose product (with hundreds of billions of bacteria) that doesn’t make it to its intended destination. Remember, when it comes to probiotics, successful delivery to the colon is just as important as the initial dosage.

Understanding this helps you choose the most effective supplement. You want to nurture your gut microbiome with live, active Akkermansia, as dead or inactive ones won’t do you as much good as they don’t reproduce.

If you want to use Akkermansia supplements, look for ones with advanced, dual-timed release capsules or microencapsulation. These technologies keep Akkermansia dormant and protected until it reaches your colon, usually in two to four hours.

To maximize its effectiveness, take it on an empty stomach, ideally first thing in the morning after an overnight fast. Wait at least one to two hours before eating to reduce transit time, allowing the bacteria to reach your colon faster — usually within two hours. This will greatly increase the number of live bacteria that make it to your colon.

Avoid taking probiotics with food, as this can extend your transit time to over eight hours, likely killing the bacteria long before they reach your colon. Being mindful of when and how you take your Akkermansia probiotic will maximize the benefits of this powerful probiotic.

A Crossroads for American Health: Empowerment or Dependence?

The push for mass Ozempic prescriptions represents a critical moment in the U.S. health care system. We’re at a crossroads where we can either address the root causes of our health crisis or commit to a future of widespread pharmaceutical dependence. The tragedy is that we know how to solve this problem. As Means notes, for a fraction of what we’d spend on Ozempic, we could revolutionize our food system:¹⁵

“How are we so delusional that we think it is easier to inject a child weekly for life than find a way to get that child healthy food? That is the track that we’re on right now … We could feed every single American family with organic food for $3 trillion a year, but instead we’re taking those health care dollars and steering them toward drugs, which doesn’t fix the root cause issue.”

We have the knowledge and the resources to solve our obesity and chronic disease epidemics. What we need now is the will to do it. Let’s choose health, not pharmaceuticals. Let’s choose real food, not processed junk. Let’s choose to empower people, not make them dependent on drugs. The health of our nation, and especially our children, hangs in the balance.

Image by Chemist4U via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.