By Any Means Necessary
The second discussion was between a tech expert and a finance expert—neither one in the healthcare field. The tech expert shared a story of how a nurse who weighed over 300 pounds was using a GLP-1 agonist to get to a more reasonable weight so she could participate in more activities with her family. That really touched the tech expert.
But that story lit up the finance expert. The GLP-1 agonists are offered at a fraction of the price around the world compared to the U.S. price; Americans pay $936 to $1,396 per month compared to the next highest price of $169 to $319 per month in Japan. He went on to say that if we were really serious about addressing obesity and health, the price of the GLP-1 agonists should drop to an affordable level of about $50 per month. The pharmaceutical companies would end up increasing sales overall and reduce the number of overweight and obese citizens from 70% by half or more.
That would have an effect of saving about half a trillion dollars in healthcare costs or more per year. That would help around 100 million people and probably save even more than his estimate. More than that, the population would be healthier as long as they were also trained on how to make better food choices, cook better, and exercise on a regular basis to maintain the weight loss.
Why This Approach?
Would I prefer to not even mention a medication when the solution is really simple at its core? Of course. But in the 35 years I’ve been doing what I do, I can’t say that anything else has really worked to help people eat less, eat better, and move more for life. I’ve had challenges myself; I’m still not at my ideal weight for height. That shouldn’t prevent me from giving you every approach to help yourself get there. If you have insurance that can cover the cost of the GLP-1 agonist, have a discussion with your physician about whether it’s right for you.
The Bottom Line
“By any means necessary!” I don’t usually quote Malcolm X but in this case, it fits. Getting to and maintaining a normal weight for height is important to live better and maybe live longer. Using the medications available, together with planning what to do when you stop the medication to maintain the weight loss, may be the solution for you as long as you can tolerate any side effects. For me, I’m modifying the Optimal Performance program slightly to achieve my goals including eating more protein, a challenge that seems to burden everyone over the age of 50. Whatever you decide to do, I’ll finish with a phrase that everyone seems to scream all the time: Let’s go!
What are you prepared to do today?
