Ozempic, an official sponsor that is causing trouble in Canada

LETTER FROM MONTREAL

Summer McIntosh (swimming), Ethan Katzberg (hammer throw) and Andre De Grasse (4 x 100 m relay)… Like many countries around the world, Canada was passionate about the Olympic Games (OGs) this summer. In the media and on social networks, commentators never stopped admiring the athletes’ exploits and the decorum of the host city, Paris. With a total of twenty-seven medals – including nine gold – Canada came in twelfth place at these Games. On September 8, at the end of the Paralympic Games, the country once again placed twelfth in the sporting competition, with a total of twenty-nine medals won, including ten gold.

But beyond the passion that these games have aroused, it is the state-owned Radio-Canada, official broadcaster of the sports competition, which has found itself under fire from critics as Ozempic was among the list of its official sponsors for these Olympic Games. The most high-profile of the anti-diabetics diverted to slimming was thus alongside Petro-Canada, Hydro-Québec and even Toyota. “Is Ozempic Right for You? Ask Your Doctor”the advertisement proclaimed.

In a column published at the end of July in The Montreal Journal and entitled “The Ozempic Summer Games”, the well-known Quebec host and commentator Mario Dumont shares his « malaise » facing “a real partnership between the state company and the manufacturer of Ozempic”The former MP concluded his article by stating: “No [pas croire] that it is the idea of ​​the century to associate a global and unifying sporting event with the “miracle” remedy of the hour”. Because the drug in question continues to attract criticism.

Worrying side effects

Marketed by the pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk, Ozempic was approved by Health Canada in 2018 and is available for sale by prescription. This treatment gained popularity after being touted as an appetite suppressant by influencers. The craze is such in Canada that it has caused intermittent shortages, the last of which lasted until early 2024. The same drug has been approved for weight loss, since May 2023, by Health Canada under the name Wegovy for patients who have been medically diagnosed with obesity.

But Ozempic’s list of side effects has the medical world concerned. In October 2023, researchers at the University of British Columbia published the first epidemiological study showing a link between weight-loss drugs, including Ozempic and Wegovy, and severe gastrointestinal conditions: pancreatitis, intestinal obstruction, biliary tract disease and gastroparesis – a delay in the passage of food from the stomach to the small intestine. In early July, another study by Harvard researchers concluded that appetite suppressants, such as the two Novo Nordisk products, can cause severe and permanent vision problems, even blindness.

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