The case in summary: Asbjørn “Kokkejævel” Sandøy has previously felt like a drug addict, looking for food in the evening, but with diet pills the desire for food disappeared. The medicine costs NOK 36,000 a year, which the authorities believe is too expensive in relation to the effect. Therefore, people have to pay for it themselves. Asbjørn believes that it is more expensive to be overweight than to buy the slimming medicine, and claims that he has saved money by reducing his food intake. Mari-Mette Graff, head of the National Association for the Overweight, warns against drawing general conclusions based on individual experiences and believes that the price of the slimming injections is too high for many. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. Since the first injection of slimming medicine, Asbjørn “Kokkejævel” Sandøy has lost 22 kilos. – That is equivalent to 45 packs of butter that are gone from the back. The 45 butter packages are heavy to carry, he says. Contrary to many others, the chef believes that it is much more expensive to gain weight than to pay for the slimming medicine. He has even made his own calculation of the costs and what he has saved. Making a profit He estimates that he crammed an extra NOK 150 worth of food into himself every day, measured against his consumption today. NOK 21,000 will be saved in the 20 weeks he has slimmed down. Asbjørn has used his blog to tell about his slimming journey. Photo: Asbjørn Sandøy So even though the injections with slimming medicine have cost NOK 10,000 so far, he is still making a profit. – There is a lot of focus on the fact that obesity costs society a lot of money, but it costs the individual both in kroner and health, says Asbjørn. He talks openly about the process, which started in October, in his blog. Asbjørn weighs himself every week and writes down the result. Photo: Asbjørn Sandøy Expensive kilos With a full dose, the medicine Asbjørn uses costs NOK 36,000 a year. The authorities believe it is too expensive in relation to how good it is. Therefore, people have to pay for it out of their own pockets. Many feel that they cannot afford it. Despite that, sales of medicines that make it easier to lose weight have taken off completely in Norway. Asbjørn Sandøy weighed 147 kilos before he started losing weight last autumn. Photo: Asbjørn Sandøy During 2023, pharmacies sold 1.5 million packages of Ozempic, Saxenda, Wegovy and Mysimba. But the expense is very high for many. Some even apply for social assistance because the diet pills are so expensive. A sore subject for many Asbjørn believes obese people must admit that they eat far too much, both bad and good food. And that they spend enormous sums on it. – Being fat is a very painful topic for many, but we have to be honest with ourselves. We eat too much, but it’s easy to blame things like genes and medications. He does not agree that it costs more to eat healthy. It will also be an excuse, claims the chef. The fact that the feeling of hunger is back makes him more creative in his way of eating. Now he and his wife cook more exciting, healthier and economical food at home. He has cut out the mayonnaise, which was so important before. Now cucumber is on the crackers instead. Photo: Ingrid Hjellbakk Kvamstø / news Will not eat myself to death – The main reason is that I want to be here for my children. I want them to have their father as long as possible. I lost my father myself when I was ten. He drowned fishing in the Lofoten Sea, and was not fat. And then I’ll eat myself to death! He has felt like a drug addict, looking for food in the cupboard in the evenings. It didn’t have to be good once. Old sausage bread with peanut butter and strawberry jam, for example. Now the desire for food in the evening has disappeared. It was as if his body calmed down a bit when he started the slimming medicine, says Asbjørn. Photo: Ingrid Hjellbakk Kvamstø / news Combining it with fasting In addition to medication, Sandøy has started intermittent fasting and only two meals a day. – You enjoy food much more when you’re hungry, instead of just continuing to eat after you’re full, he says. The new life consists of four crackers for the first meal, and dinner in the evening with a couple of apples afterwards. Between the last meal in the evening and the first meal before the next days there are 14 hours. Photo: Ingrid Hjellbakk Kvamstø / news Not for everyone – It’s good that someone gets help from diet pills, but you don’t know anyone else on your own. One should be careful about drawing general conclusions based on one’s own experience, says Mari-Mette Graff, who is head of the National Association for the Obese. Mari-Mette Graff believes that each individual’s path to obesity is individual. Photo: Aslaug Elisabeth Høgsæt Aarsæther / news – There are complicated mechanisms that control both feelings of hunger and satiety, as well as the body’s ability to burn calories, says Graff. She believes that the price of the slimming injections is too high for many people who cannot afford it, and that it is discriminatory. – They are unable to take in NOK 3,000 from the food budget, she continues. She also says that sausages, mincemeat, loaf and kneippbrød are significantly cheaper than fish, chicken fillet and wholemeal bread. So she does not agree with the claim that it does not cost more to eat healthy. – Adding stones to the burden by suggesting that people hide behind finances, and do not address their problem, does not contribute to a more knowledge-based conversation about body and health. Most of us have tried a large number of diets and lost and gained weight many times, she concludes. WEGOVY (Semaglutide) Effect: In a pivotal study (STEP1), people who received the medicine lost an average of 14.9 percent in weight, while those who received a placebo lost 2.4 percent. 66.1 percent of the medicated lost at least 10 percent in weight, while 12.1 percent of the placebo group did the same. Common side effects: Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, abdominal pain Headache Fatigue Serious side effects: Inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis) Serious allergic reactions Fluid loss and Dehydration Worsening of diabetic retinal disease (retinopathy) PS: Not all the studies with Wegovy have shown the same effect. The Swedish Medicines Agency also emphasizes that you cannot easily compare the effect between the medicines since the studies are conducted in slightly different ways and with different patient groups. SAXENDA (Liraglutide) Effect: In a central study (SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes), people who received the medicine went on average 8 .0 percent lost weight, while those who received a placebo lost 2.6 percent. 32.8 percent of the medicated lost at least 10 percent in weight, while 10.1 percent of the placebo group did the same. Common side effects: Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation Headache Serious side effects: Inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis) Serious allergic reactions Fluid loss and dehydration PS: Not all studies with Saxenda have shown the same effect. The Swedish Medicines Agency also emphasizes that you cannot easily compare the effects between the drugs since the studies have been conducted in slightly different ways and with different patient groups. 5.4 percent lost weight, while those who received a placebo lost 1.3 percent. 31 percent of those treated lost at least 5 percent in weight, while 12 percent of the placebo group did the same. Common side effects: Nausea, vomiting, constipation. Headaches. Serious side effects: Suicidal thoughts and feelings of depression. Seizures. The Swedish Medicines Agency also emphasizes that one cannot simply compare the effects between the medicines since the studies were conducted in slightly different ways and with different patient groups. Source: Swedish Medicines Agency
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Asbjørn “Kokkejævel” Sandøy says he saves money by buying the slimming medicine Wegovy – news Trøndelag – Local news, TV and radio
