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Topics: Health, US News, Weight loss
Ellie Kemp
Topics: Health, US News, Weight loss
Novo Nordisk has become the first pharmaceutical company to secure FDA approval for a weight-loss pill.
Their daily tablet, known simply as the Wegovy pill, contains semaglutide, the same active ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic.
It works by suppressing appetite and stabilizing blood sugar, helping people to shed the pounds.
While weekly injectables are a popular option among users, a less-invasive daily pill will soon be on the shelves.
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And the manufacturer says the game-changing pill works just as well as the injection.
In trials involving around 1,300 people, participants lost an average of 16.6 percent of their body weight.
Even more striking, about one in three people lost 20 percent or more.
Wegovy is approved specifically for weight loss, unlike drugs such as Ozempic, which contain the same active ingredient but are licensed for treating type 2 diabetes.
Novo Nordisk says the pill version will be launched in the US in early January 2026, giving patients a far more convenient option.
“The pill is here. With today's approval of the Wegovy pill, patients will have a convenient, once-daily pill that can help them lose as much weight as the original Wegovy injection,” Mike Doustdar, president and CEO of Novo Nordisk said.
"As the first oral GLP-1 treatment for people living with overweight or obesity, the Wegovy pill provides patients with a new, convenient treatment option that can help patients start or continue their weight loss journey."
He added that 'no other current oral GLP-1 treatment can match the weight loss delivered by the Wegovy pill'.
"We are very excited for what this will mean for patients in the US.”
The approval also puts Novo Nordisk ahead of its biggest rival, Eli Lilly, in the race to develop a weight-loss pill.
Lilly already sells successful injectable drugs like Mounjaro and Zepbound, but it’s still waiting for approval for its own daily pill, known as orforglipron.
Orforglipron has shown promising results in trials, helping people lose significant amounts of weight while also improving blood sugar levels.
However, it hasn’t yet been signed off by regulators, meaning Novo Nordisk has claimed a crucial advantage.
For Novo Nordisk, the timing is important. The company has faced a tough year, with growing competition and pressure on profits, so becoming the first to offer an FDA-approved weight-loss pill could give it a much-needed boost.
In fact, Novo Nordisk climbed by more than nine percent Tuesday (December 23) after news of the FDA approval was announced.
More broadly, experts believe this could be the start of a major shift.
If pills can deliver the same results as injections - and at a lower cost - weight-loss jabs may soon become a thing of the past.