Until recently, said Dr. Aurore Baudoin-Haloche, a general practitioner in Marseille, patients didn't have requests for specific medication when they came to her office. But over the past few weeks, she has regularly had requests for GLP-1 analogs (the hormone glucagon-like peptide-1), anti-obesity drugs marketed since October 2024 under the brand names Wegovy or Mounjaro. These drugs, which promise significant weight loss, have been available for prescription directly from GPs since June 2023.

Previously, only specialists – endocrinologists, diabetologists and nutritionists – were allowed to issue the initial prescription, and only with a prescription.

"In a month, I have had a lot of requests, at least four or five patients. Word is getting out. But this is not a drug I give on a first appointment," she warned. "It's a pretty remarkable product that causes rapid weight loss, but if there isn't strong motivation to follow a diet and exercise regimen at the same time, once you stop taking it, the weight comes back."

The drugs, administered by subcutaneous injection, have to be combined with lifestyle changes in diet and physical activity, as required by the prescribing guidelines. The doctor, who works alongside an endocrinologist, first asks her patients to keep a nutrition diary and to begin losing weight, at least for a few months. She has only prescribed the drug to one patient who has already met those conditions.

You have 87.48% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.