Daybreak - Daybreak Special: Ozempic isn't approved in India yet. We speak to someone who got it anyway

Episode Date: August 1, 2024

"I am willing to take the risk and give this drug a shot, for I've tried and tested almost all anti-obesity means myself—and even failed at some. As a first step, I am banking on other Ozem...pic users’ experience." Meet Alifiya Khan, a health and education reporter at The Ken. Last month, she published a story on Ozempic, the 'miracle' weight-loss drug, and how easy it is to procure despite not being officially cleared for sale by the Indian government. But this isn’t just another health story. Alifiya herself has been suffering from obesity for more than a decade now. For her procuring Ozempic wasn't just to further a story. She needed it for herself. After trying every fad diet, weight loss pill, and non-invasive procedure, to Alifiya, Ozempic is the light at the end of the tunnel. In this episode, she joins hosts Snigdha and Rahel to share her story. Tune in. P.S. Not sure if you heard, but we hit 1 million downloads this month! We could not be more excited and grateful to you, our listeners. Could you do us a favour? Could you fill in this form and share your feedback? Also drop us a rating! P.P.S. The Ken's podcast team is hiring! We are looking for a producer as well as a podcast host with at least 4-5 years of experience in the field. If you are interested or know someone who would be, please write to snigdha@the-ken.com with 'Application for The Ken Podcasts' in the subject line.

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Starting point is 00:00:01 Hi, this is Rohan Dharma Kumar. If you've heard any of the Ken's podcasts, you've probably heard me, my interruptions, my analogies, and my contrarian takes on most topics. And you might rightly be wondering why am I interrupting this episode too. It's for a special announcement. For the last few months, I and Sita Raman Ganeshan, my colleague and the Ken's deputy editor, have been working on an ambitious new podcast. It's called Intermission.
Starting point is 00:00:28 We want to tell the secret sauce stories of India's greatest companies. Stories of how they were born, how they fought to survive, how they build their organizations and culture, how they manage to innovate and thrive over decades, and most importantly, how they're poised today. To do that, Sita and I have been reading books, poring over reports, going through financial statements, digging up archives, and talking to dozens of people. And if that wasn't enough, we also decided to throw in video into the mix. Yes, you heard that right. Intermission has also had to find its footing in the world of multi-camera shoots in professional studios, laborious editing, and extensive post-production. Sita and I are still reeling from the intensity of our first studio recording.
Starting point is 00:01:21 Intermission launches on March 23rd. To get an alert as soon as we release our first episode, please follow Intermission on Spotify and Apple Podcasts or subscribe to the Ken's YouTube channel. You can find all of the links at the ken.com slash I am. With that, back to your episode. Before we begin this episode, we have a very special announcement to make. Daybreak has crossed one million downloads and we only have you to thank. It's not a small number.
Starting point is 00:01:59 In fact, it is a number that many podcasts live and die without ever managing to see. And that's not it. We also clocked more than 100,000 downloads in July alone. It's quite insane, to be honest. I believe it was Dostoevsky who once lamented that human beings only like to count their troubles and not their happiness. Well, here's looking at you, Fyodor. But to say it's hard to believe that we're here right now would be a big fat lie. The truth is, we always knew.
Starting point is 00:02:29 we'd get here because of what we promised ourselves and what we promised you. It's a promise we stuck to in every single one of the 280 plus episodes we've produced so far. And it goes something like this. Business news is complex and overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be. We'll show you how. Also because daybreak is not just news. It tells you stories. Stories about ideas, stories about people, about money, power, triumphs, failures. Stories that give you enough.
Starting point is 00:02:59 perspective to form your own opinions on the matter. And now that we've crossed this important milestone and as we approach daybreak's second birthday, we have one simple goal to get to know you the listener better. We want to create a vibrant, interactive community of listeners who will help us shape daybreak into becoming much, much more than just another news podcast. We have a lot of exciting things planned,
Starting point is 00:03:24 but we cannot do it without you. Which is why we'd be absolutely thanks. thrilled to hear from you. There is a form link to the show notes of this episode. Please, please fill it out for us. It'll only take a few minutes. Also, while you're at it, could you do us another little favor? Follow and rate our podcasts on whatever podcast platform you're listening to us on. Also, I think this is a good time to tell you that we have big plans for the Ken podcasts in general. So we're looking to hire a producer and a host with at least four to five years of experience in the field, ideally a journalism background. So if you are interested or if you know anybody who would be, please write to me with application for the Ken podcast and the subject line to Snigda at the rate, the ken.com.
Starting point is 00:04:09 It's S&I-G-D-H-A. And now on to the podcast. OZemPEC. It is literally the hottest drug in the country right now. Is Donald Trump on OZempick? The latest pictures of a very slim-looking Donald Trump has created a lot of buzz. You've been working on your body and on your health because you're going to be. No, that's O-ZMPIC. Odds are, if you've been on TikTok or Twitter as of late,
Starting point is 00:04:35 you've seen this new drug, OZemPEC, be mentioned. I've actually seen Elon Musk tweet about it. So, Dolores, how long have you been on the OZMPIC? Six weeks. When I was bigger, if they had OZMPIC, I probably would have tried it. Even if you live under a rock, you've most likely heard of Ozempic. It's one of those things that everybody has an opinion about, irrespective of whether they've tried it or not.
Starting point is 00:05:00 It wouldn't be a stretch to say that the introduction of this miracle weight loss drug to the mainstream is going to be looked at as a significant moment in our cultural history. There is going to be a pre-Ozambic and post-Ozambic world. But here's the funny thing. The drug wasn't originally meant for weight loss. It was actually developed by a Danish pharma company called Nuvo-Nodisc to treat type 2 diabetes. But along with getting your body to produce more insulin, the drug also ended up acting as a very effective appetite suppressant. And all it takes is one injection once a week.
Starting point is 00:05:39 It was a complete game changer. Now, don't get us wrong, OZemik isn't the first diabetes drug in the market with weight loss as a side effect. There have been quite a few of those in the past. But this isn't just another weight loss drug. What makes it different is that it's one of the most effective drugs out there. And unsurprice, Surprisingly, Hollywood has done a great job glamorizing OZemPEC.
Starting point is 00:06:04 Social media has been flooded with photographs of famous actors, actresses, celebrities, who seem to have magically shed a ton of weight almost overnight. In many ways, popular narrative has reduced OZMPIC to something that is the solution to a superficial problem. How to look good for social media. The truth, however, is that OZMPIC is actually a life-saving drug for people who struggle with obesity. My family has a history of cardiac disease as well as obesity and probably it's interlinked. My father died at the age of 43 of his third major heart attack. My brother was the same age in his early 40s and my eldest sister, she had her first heart attack when she was 33.
Starting point is 00:06:52 I'm 39 today and I'm one of the very few of my generation, my family who have not yet suffered a heart attack, though I already have high BP and I'm tachycardiac. So for me, obesity is not just about getting slimmer, but it's probably about living longer and a healthier life. And maybe bariatric surgery is the answer to that. But after I lost my cousin last year to revision bariatric surgery, I don't have the strength to do something like that. So in my case, Ozampic is not just, you know, something which will slim me down, but probably save my life. That is Alifia Khan, a health and education reporter here at the Ken. Olivia recently wrote a story about how to procure a Zempic in India.
Starting point is 00:07:40 It isn't as easy as it may sound. Because Ozempic has not yet been officially approved for sale here. But this wasn't just any other health story. Alifia herself has dealt with obesity for more than a decade now so she wasn't just procuring OZempic to further a story she was procuring it for herself after trying every fat diet, weight loss spill and non-invasive procedure to O'Lifia OZempec is like the light at the end of the tunnel
Starting point is 00:08:09 but before that being the journalist that she is she spoke to dozens of distributors and doctors joined countless Ozempic support groups on social media and interacted with users of the drug from across the world. In this episode, she tells us what she discovered. But more importantly, she shares her story. Hello and welcome to another special episode of Daybreak. I'm Snigda and I'm Rahil and every week we come together
Starting point is 00:08:37 to talk about something in business and tech that interests the both of us. And it won't just be us. Depending on what we're talking about, we will bring a bunch of really interesting people onto the podcast. Stay tuned. Olivia, to begin with, you know, it took us so long and it was so difficult to get to a world where body positivity was being celebrated, right? People have been called out for fat-shaming other people. And let's say, to a certain extent, it was on a slightly superficial level, but it was something.
Starting point is 00:09:47 But now it seems like we're back to square one with OZemPEC. Look at the popular culture narrative about OZemPEC. It's about glamour, it's about celebrities. Same old toxic idea of beauty, right? But the irony here is that even those who are taking with Zempec for weight loss, people are telling them that they are taking the easy way out. So, do you think that the world just hates fat people?
Starting point is 00:10:12 Okay, there are two ways of looking at it. You know, I think that even if, you know, you say that we achieve some amount of success with body positivity, I don't believe that that's true for the society. as a whole. You know, maybe there have been some pockets where we've been successful. Maybe there have been some circles where acceptability is, you know, more. But then it's just a measure of, you know, where we were and, you know, like what amount
Starting point is 00:10:44 of little success we've received. So I think that whatever amount of success that we received with body positivity, you know, the entire movement as well, was extremely superficial. and I say this from a complete sense of responsibility because I have been an obese person for more than a decade now. And I have lived with obesity and I have lived with these prejudices. And I can say that I come from, you know, a circle or a society that is, you know, fairly liberal, woke, upwardly mobile. And yet I can say this that, you know, body positivity has more or less remained, you know, a concept that people like. like to talk about and they like to be seen, you know, as, you know, supporting. But at a more
Starting point is 00:11:31 deeper and, you know, a conceptual level, I don't think that we achieved any amount of success where body positivity is concerned or rather very little success. And, you know, to answer your second question, does the world hate fat people? I think to answer that question, I would rather, you know, have you see it this way? Do fat people hate fat people? You know, do fat people hate themselves? How do they see their own selves? How many fat people have been able to accept their bodies the way that they are
Starting point is 00:12:12 and celebrate it or live with it? And do they, you know, are they okay with the idea of being like that for the rest of their lives? So before I think that we talk about the rest of the so-called normal world, let's talk about fat people themselves. Right. So, Alifia, as much as your recent report was about OZemPEC and how easy slash difficult it is to procure in India, it was also about your journey with obesity and your relationship with food. Walk us through that and how did you get to the point where you were willing to give OZempec a shot?
Starting point is 00:12:49 So I'll try to put my experience in, because my experience, because my experience has been for over a decade now, so it's difficult to put it in as short as possible. But my journey with obesity actually started after I, you know, I used to be a health reporter. I used to cover health at one point of time. This was probably 15 years ago. And I caught a viral infection that left one side of my face paralyzed.
Starting point is 00:13:21 so my up to my neck so that was for over six months and during that period i used to take steroids um i had confined myself uh you know to my house for at that time we didn't have the concept of work from home so i'd consigned myself you know at home without work and um i had nothing to do so the only thing that would comfort me was food and i ate whatever i could you know whatever could comfort me. And to top of it, I was taking steroids because of which I was gaining weight. So I went into depression, clinical depression. I started drugs for those as well. All of it eventually led to me gaining 20 kilos. And immediately after I started resuming work, you know, my my periods were delayed. I went to a doctor for a diagnosis and I was told that I have polycystic ovaries.
Starting point is 00:14:12 And at the same time, she ran a battery of test and, you know, she also told me that I have hypothyroidism. Now, a combination of all of these things together meant that, you know, I gained more weight over the next one year. So from being around, you know, 50, 55 kilos that I used to be before the paralysis, I went directly to 80 kilos, you know, post it. So I've had a very, very, you know, varied journey over the last 15 years. I have tried every diet under the sun that I have. I, could think of. I've tried a combination of seven, eight different types of diets, even, you know, ones going on a liquid diet where I drank nothing except liquids for nearly 15 days at a stretch. I've done things like that. I have starved myself. I have taken banned drugs, which at that time
Starting point is 00:15:10 I did not know of a band, but I was popping pills. Despite being a medical student, I'd never looked at the content of those pills. And I went to a weight loss clinic that just prescribed me those pills and I used to take that. I have done, you know, non-surgical lipolises and other treatments on myself.
Starting point is 00:15:26 So I've done basically everything that a desperate fat person would do to lose weight. You know, you have so much experience and you've tried almost everything under the sun. You know, before a Zempec came into the picture, can you give us a sense of how the weight loss industry was?
Starting point is 00:15:45 pre-Ozempic. So pre-Ozempic, so the weight loss industry, you know, has, you know, seen so many evolutions. So, you know, probably it started with something like the Atkins or the, you know, the Mediterranean diet and, you know, it then progressed to all these slimming clinics that came into the picture. So I used to do that 15 years ago. So that's how the weight loss industry has progressed, you know, mainly dependent on diet. and we've had, you know, a lot of these pot treatments and these slimming clinics come up. And there have been drugs, actually. There have been drugs that were introduced from time to time, which were basically sort of, you know, anti, you know, they used to suppress your appetite.
Starting point is 00:16:36 So, appetite suppressants, there have been a class of drugs. I used to take a drug back in 2010, which was an appetite suppressant, which was later banned by the government of India. But there we had those drugs. And even for that matter, we had even diabetic drugs, which had secondary properties of weight loss. So it's not the first time that, you know, a drug which was discovered for diabetes is being used for weight loss. So, Alifia, you know, you spoke about going through all those crash diets, trying all these medications, which like you said, very concerningly were later banned by the government. I'm sure that whole experience left you a little jaded also, right? like so what was it about ossempic that you know me do you want to give it another chance i think
Starting point is 00:17:23 you know in my case um and the basic problem is cravings the basic problem you know is this this this thing called you know food noise um for somebody who's not obese and who's not experienced obesity as a disease the problem is that most people see obesity as a cosmetly problem. Obesity is not a cosmetic problem. Obesity is a disease. It's just like any other disease. You have symptoms. You have problems with obesity. As an obese person, I can tell you this, this concept that people talk about, you know, this food noise. It's extremely real. There is some kind of a ticking time bomb going off, you know, in your head. And when I was reading about Ozmpic, I joined several, several Facebook groups.
Starting point is 00:18:16 I joined several, you know, I followed several accounts on Instagram. And I have been reading posts that people have been putting up who are using Ozympic. And these are real people. These are not influencers. These are not the likes of Elon Musk or somebody like that. And when I see what they have been posting, they all have been talking about, you know, this food noise going away magically. This cravings somehow being able, you know,
Starting point is 00:18:46 are able to control that craving. And I think for me, you know, that is the advantage of OZAMPIC that if there is a drug that is able to help me with that, then I think I'm willing, you know, to take that leap of faith. Okay, Olivia, can you tell us what exactly is OZAMPIC and how does it work? So, OZAMPIC is basically a class of medication, which means. It's a very, you mimic, you know, this hormone called GLP1. So, GLP, so let's think of it this way that there are, there is, you know, an orchestra of hormone which is going on in your stomach. And there are several players which are involved in the digestion process.
Starting point is 00:19:37 One of the very important players in this process is GLP1. And OZMPIC works by mimicking this naturally occurring hormone. as the level of this hormone rises in your body, the molecules go to your brain. There is some kind of a, say, transport route between your stomach and your brain. So these molecules travel to your brain. And they tell you that you are full.
Starting point is 00:20:00 And GLP1, you know, these drugs, when they mimic, they increase the level of these hormones. So this level of fullness comes much earlier. So which means that if you are going to say, you know, eat three chapaties. Maybe you will feel fuller in two chapaties now. Okay? So you are able to,
Starting point is 00:20:23 generally what happens is that when you go on a diet, you are not able to stick to those diets. So what these drugs do is that it increase the stickiness value of these diets because it slows down the digestion process. The time taken for the food to leave your body now is much higher. So it's a very similar effect.
Starting point is 00:20:44 to what you get in parietic surgery. Olivia, how safe is it to take? And, you know, how is it different from any other anti-obesity drug, right? Are there any serious side effects? Because there have been studies that have suggested abdominal paralysis, vision blurriness. Like, I even read somewhere pancreatitis in very rare cases. And also, another thing, that these studies have mainly been done in the West. on a very mostly white population, right?
Starting point is 00:21:18 As far as OZMPIC is concerned, yes, these side effects, you're right. The studies have only been done on a Western population because that's where this drug has been, you know, tested, it's approved, it's being widely used. And there have been yes cases where there have been gallbladder problems, where there have been pancreatitis. But then also, OZMPIC is not supposed to be taken, you know, know, the, without medical supervision. So, even before I decided that I want to go or I want to start a ZemPEC, I underwent a complete body checkup, a complete health checkup where I got every
Starting point is 00:21:58 parameter tested. I checked my cholesterol levels. I checked my kidney function. I checked my liver function. I checked everything. And I found a doctor who will go through these, you know, these parameters and tell me that whether I'm a fit candidate to start this or no. And, you know, endocrinologists can help you do that, actually. You know, after looking at these, you know, all these tests, I was told that technically I am safe to go and I can't start Ozambic. But let me tell you that I haven't started Ozempic yet. And the reason why I didn't start Ozempic is because I have high
Starting point is 00:22:43 blood pressure. And just when my dose of OZMPIC arrived, I came across a news article of serious complications in about 15% of patients who start OZMPIC and who have high BP. So I went back to my doctor and I told my doctor that I want her now to evaluate me as far as my blood pressure is concerned. So after we, you know, monitored my, me for about 10, 15 days, she said that I'm not yet, you know, I shouldn't be taking this list because my BP is on the higher side these days. So once I'm able to control that, after that, I will start OZMPIC. So even though it's a life changer and this is what I need right now, I'm being extremely cautious. Hey there, enjoying the episode so far. If you have questions about OZempic that you would like to
Starting point is 00:23:41 ask Alifia, please write to us at podcast at the rate the hyphenken.com with Ozempic AMA in the subject line. Alifia will be back on the podcast on the 16th of August to answer all your questions. If you would like to keep your questions anonymous, please do specify that in the email. And now, back to the episode. Okay, so of course, anyone who is considering going down that route has to have their doctor in the loop, you know, do those consultations because this is not something that you just decide for yourself and then place and order. But while we're on that subject, Alifia, can you walk us through how you manage to actually procure that box of OZempeg?
Starting point is 00:24:23 How difficult was it? And walk us through the whole process. Yeah, because until, I mean, still not available yet, right? So how is it become so popular even in India? You know, that is the beauty of India. The moment that something is unavailable in this country, it's the most widely available thing. You just need to ban it for it to become the most widely available.
Starting point is 00:24:45 thing. But yeah, to be very honest, I did find that the supply of Ozempic was any difficult at all. You know, all you have to do is a simple Google search. While we are on this call, just go on your phone's browser and write down, you know, OZemPEC suppliers in India. And there will be a website that will open up, which is called Exporters India, and which will have a whole list of suppliers, right? right from, you know, Bubaneshwa to Bombay, you will get all sorts of people. And, yeah, so it's as simple as that. You'll find them listed on India Mart.
Starting point is 00:25:28 India Mart, Exporters, India, you'll find them everywhere. In fact, you just walk down to your neighboring clinic, I mean, neighboring chemist, and he'll probably deny you on the face, but leave him your number and he'll call you back. and he'll tell you because that's what I experienced that on the face they will deny because they don't know who these people are but they'll call you back and then
Starting point is 00:25:52 then it's as simple as You know, it's as You need a pen chie? This is the first question with somebody had asked me So goli is, you know, because seamaglutide is approved for sale in India in oral form
Starting point is 00:26:03 The tablet is called ribelis and it's a proof for sale in India but semi-glutide injectable is not so you know so they're taking the cautious route and asking you that But then... Do they both have the same effect,
Starting point is 00:26:17 Lifia? Like, is the injectable more effective? I was told... Is that why people prefer? See, to be very honest, I don't think that this is a question that I should answer. Medical professionals are better suited to answer this.
Starting point is 00:26:30 But after the article came out, at least three people who were using rivalists wrote to me saying that they have been on ribelists and they have experienced the same effect as Osampic as the people that they hear who are taking Ozmpic and in fact they said that if you want to then go on Raibilius. Why do you want to take Ozambic? So I've had the readers of
Starting point is 00:26:55 the Ken come to me and tell me that it has the same effect. I can't be the one who tells you that but then the grey market in India is very interesting. I don't think that the problem in India snigdan Rahil lies in procuring OZMPIC but in procuring an original supply or not being fleeced by scantsters in the name of OZMPIC. That is the bigger problem today. I was, you know, very surprised
Starting point is 00:27:28 because NOVA Nordisk has the patent till 2032, right, to make OZMPIC. And it's already in shortage in the US. So how is it even like being supplied in India? You know, how is it so easily available. So, No, Noddisk is a Denmark-based company and it's applying OSEMPIC to different parts of the world, US being one of the markets, key markets, because that's where the biggest obese population also is. So it's one of the key markets, but it's not the only market. It's being supplied, you know, all over Europe.
Starting point is 00:28:06 It's being supplied in the Middle Eastern countries. So the supply that comes to India usually comes from Europe or the Middle East, because we cannot even afford the ozempic which is being sold in the u.s because in every market that it is being sold the price for ozempic varies so if you had to actually get it from the u.s. you know combined with the shipping cost and if you get it through official import routes it's probably going to cost you over a lack of rupees per month which is going to be extremely unaffordable but if you are okay with getting the supply from a market say like egypt or, you know, or one of the European markets,
Starting point is 00:28:46 then you can get it for even as much as 18 to 20, 20, 20,000 per month, which is still, you know, in the affordable bracket. And you're talking specifically about Nova Nordisk Zempic, right? Yes, I am. Alternates. No, not other alternates. Monjaro is not as easily available in the Indian market or Zempec is the most widely available.
Starting point is 00:29:10 Monjaro is not, though it is available. But Monjaro also comes at a higher cost. So if OZempec, a monthly dose of OZempec, which is four injections, cost you 20K a month on an average, Monjaro costs maybe double the cost. So it's more expensive as well in the Indian market. And probably because of the cost, probably because of the short supply, OZMPIC is the drug which is more popular in the grey market right now.
Starting point is 00:29:41 So coming back to where you were in the process, right, you've identified a supplier, you got on the call, they said, you know, do you want a tablet? Do you want an injection? You opted for the latter. What happens next? If I'm assuming that there's no, you know, there's no doctor's prescription angle involved here at all, right? He did need, initially he did ask me that do I have a doctor's prescription? Because he wanted to determine what is my dose. So Zempec has a starting dose of 0.25MG, which is the recommendation. dose by the company but but then it is extremely in short supply in India and especially with the supplier that I decided to go with because the supplier has a client whom I know who and is a fairly respected person here you know so I decided to go with that supplier and that person did not have a supply of 0.5-25mg so he asked me to actually go to to a doctor and check if I could start with a 0.5 M.G dose. And when I said that I cannot go to a doctor, he sent me prescriptions of doctors from the top corporate hospitals of Bombay and said that you can go to these doctors and
Starting point is 00:30:55 give my reference and they are prescribing OZMPIC. So there are ways to get prescriptions as well, but it's not mandatory. So if you tell them that you have a prescription, you probably, you know, get it easier. If you tell them that you don't have a prescription, they will give you the drug, any which way because it's a competitive market just like anything else. But they'll probably, you know, either, you know, jack up their price a little bit by, say, a couple of thousand rupees or they will, you know, tell you that they will procure a prescription for you and will cost you thousand rupees more or something like that.
Starting point is 00:31:27 But it's not mandatory to have a prescription. Right. Alifia, if you had to give advice, like having done it yourself, if you had to give advice to somebody who is trying to get the drug, what are the things that they should keep in mind? Okay, this is very important because what has happened is that because Ozmpic is currently in the grey market right now and all of these procurements happen only through phones and you know, mostly they use telegrams or WhatsApp channels. So you don't really have an address for the person. You don't know whom you're dealing with. So there are a lot of scamsters now who have
Starting point is 00:32:07 come up. So, you know. So the first bell that should go off in your head is if somebody is selling you the drug too cheap. So if you speak to five or six suppliers who tell you that the average price, which is currently the average price in India right now, for OZemPEC, which is about 20K for, you know, a dose of, say, four doses. If somebody tells you that they'll give it to you for 17 or 18K, it's still okay. but I have found people who told me that they will give it to me for 6K or 8K. It's impossible to procure this drug at that price. And there have been people who have fallen for it. In fact, the same people who gave me doctors prescriptions,
Starting point is 00:32:50 the same day that I ordered OZMPIC, by the way, I have ordered OZMPIC, and it's lying in my fridge, I haven't used it. But the day that I place my order with this person to tell me about his genuity, He gave me the number of a doctor from Delhi who had placed an order of Ozempic from one of these channels who had promised to sell it to him for $8,000. And this doctor had placed an advanced order and paid $50,000 to this person. And that person just switched off his phone and just went incognito. So the price should be one of the most important factors. The second thing that you should do is ask this person about.
Starting point is 00:33:35 other patient testimonials. Now, it may not be that that person will give you that patient's number, but once you start speaking to this person and you, you know, you do a little bit of cross-questioning about what is their supply route, you know, how many days does it take, how many patients have they, you know, given it to so far, do they maintain any kind of log on side effects or not? That's when they will come to know the scamsters who have zero medical knowledge to those people who are actually chemist or pharmacist and they are, you know, they are probably selling it in the grey market, but they know the drug mechanisms. I even found a person from Nakpur who's a pharmacist and he has kept a log of 220 patients whom he has given the drug to and he has
Starting point is 00:34:22 tracked every single of these patients from the week that they started to their progress, to their side effects to everything. So you can find the genuine ones but do not invest and do not buy from the first person who promises you this drug, do your own drug research. And I don't think that anybody at all should take Ozempic without a doctor's prescription. And, you know, Alifia, after you wrote your story, were there people who wrote back to you, you know, people who've actually tried Ozempic? What were their experiences like? I've had, I've been inundated with emails, with messages and to be very honest. I'm very humbled and very grateful that a lot of people chose to even confide in me
Starting point is 00:35:09 and tell me their personal stories. It may not necessarily be people who have tried OZMPIC, but people who read my journey and who identified it with how they have been struggling. And there have been people who have connected with me and said that, you know, they have tried as many, if not more, number of diets and weight loss regimes and treatments that I have gone through and where they are at the moment, how they are struggling. A lot of people actually took hope from my article and they said that they were at a crossroads whether they should start Ozempic or not.
Starting point is 00:35:48 And one of them told me that they will not start Ozempic after reading about the the kind of scams that are going on in the name of this. They were considering to buy from this market. But after reading, they said that they will not, in fact, do it. That person said that they are going to try ribelis instead. They wanted to start semi-glutide, but they were torn between Ozympic and Ribalists. And after writing to me and speaking to me, they decided that they will go with Ribalists. There are two people who have started Ozympic.
Starting point is 00:36:23 after reading my article and they wrote to me saying that they, you know, they were undecided, but they decided to start OZemPEC. And two, both of them now, one, you know, is in fact the co-founder of a very big company in India. And another person is the father to a five-year-old child for whom he hopes to be very healthy. And I hope that he finds success in this journey. both update me every week. It's very heartening that, you know, they still consider me as a part of their journey. And they've been updating me every week and I've been trying to help them as much as possible,
Starting point is 00:37:04 you know, with any doctor referrals that they need or any, you know, any scientific references or material that they need to read. How is it going for them so far? Has there been, you know, tangible weight loss? Yeah, both of them actually. And both are men, both are in their late 30s. And in fact, both of them are more or less at the same point. One of them has completed three weeks on OZMPIC and the other one has completed two weeks on OZMPIC.
Starting point is 00:37:32 And I remember with the one who has completed two weeks on OZMPIC because his message came day before yesterday that he has lost four and a half KGs by now. But Olivia, tell me what happens when you stop? Because I was reading about it, you know, and they conducted all the things. studies where, you know, they stopped the medicine and then to a certain group they gave presciboes, right? And, but they put them on a very strict exercise regimen and all, all the diet things that you're supposed to do anyway. And irrespective of that, these people again gained back all the weight that they had lost immediately. Okay. So I'll answer this in this Suisnikam that OZAMPIC is, you know, first of all, it's not a short-term commitment.
Starting point is 00:38:28 So for anybody who decides to go on a ZemPEC, they should know that they are doing this for, you know, a minimum period of a year or more, you know, however long it takes for them to first of all achieve not just their weight loss. Because OZMPIC is not something that should be started by someone who just needs to lose probably about seven, eight kilos, right? You have to be, you know, at a certain level for you to start OZMPIC. It's not a frivolous drug. So for somebody who needs serious weight loss, it also,
Starting point is 00:39:03 and also because it's like I said earlier, it doesn't work magically overnight. It's going to take your few months or even more than a year, year and a half, two years for you to achieve that weight loss. And the hope is that, you know, that by the time that you achieve this weight loss. You have yourself developed, you know, that habit. You are able to, you know, you also what happens with, you know, obese people is that you're not able to do a lot of exercise or running or things like that because of your body weight. Because, you know, our body weight
Starting point is 00:39:39 itself is so, so much that, you know, for me running, even though, you know, I want to train for a marathon for the last so many years. but I struggle, right? So I'm hoping that, you know, a few months down the line when I have lost, you know, some amount, decent amount of weight, I'm able to start, you know, that marathon practice, which I want to. So eventually the hope is that, that when you're on a Zempeg for a year, year and a half, you develop those habits that are able to sustain, you know, that weight loss. But unfortunately, you know, some people may not, you know, you know,
Starting point is 00:40:17 you know, may not be able to develop. And that is the reason why for them maybe OZMPIC is needed as a lifelong thing. Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of the Ken India's first subscriber-focused business news platform. What you're listening to is just a small sample of our subscriber-only offerings. A full subscription unlocks daily long-form feature stories,
Starting point is 00:40:46 newsletters and podcast extras. Head to the Ken.com and click on the red subscribe button on the top of the Ken website. Today's episode was hosted and produced by Rahal Philipos and I, Sinkda Sharma, and it was edited by Rajiv Sien. Also, a huge shout-out to Aditi and Kavipriya and the rest of our fantastic design team here at the Ken for the amazing artwork that they make for every Friday special episode of Daybreak.

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