UK scientists say they have developed a low-cost supplement that reduces appetite and calorie intake without the unpleasant, sometimes dangerous side effects that can accompany weight loss injections.

Elcella — a twice-daily capsule being dubbed “natural Ozempic” — is said to cause cells in the colon to release high levels of the appetite-suppressing hormones PYY and GLP-1.

Drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro mimic GLP-1, which the body naturally produces after eating, so users feel fuller for longer. Though these injectables have become extremely popular, some have complained of nausea, diarrhea, vision problems, thoughts of suicide and other complications.

Elcella’s founders reported no side effects during clinical trials. They said the pills caused obese patients to reduce their calorie intake by an average of 13% compared to those who took a placebo.

“We differ from weight-loss drugs in that Elcella releases your own naturally occurring appetite-reducing hormones rather than replacing them with synthetic hormones,” Madusha Peiris, a neurogastroenterology researcher at Queen Mary University of London, told the Daily Mail.

Elcella contains diindolylmethane, which may support weight loss by improving estrogen metabolism; alpha-linolenic acid, believed to influence appetite hormones; and lauric acid, a fatty acid found in coconut oil that may help with calorie burning.

Peiris said the capsule’s special coating protects the nutrients so they can be easily delivered to the colon.

She plans to launch treatment next year in the UK via an e-commerce site. 

While drugs like Ozempic and Victoza require a prescription, Peiris said Elcella will be available over the counter at less than half the price of expensive weight loss jabs.

“With the soaring popularity of drugs like Ozempic, the market is ripe for disruption,” Rubina Aktar, Elcella co-founder and chief operating officer, told the Daily Mail.

“Those drugs have proved their efficacy, but there’s never been a natural alternative like Elcella that works with the body’s natural processes,” Aktar added. “Our product is an important new strategy that will help tackle the growing global crisis of obesity.”

Nearly three-quarters of American adults are overweight or obese and about 11% of the US population has diabetes.

Peiris plans to explore Elcella’s potential as a treatment for Type 2 diabetes, a condition where the body doesn’t use insulin effectively. GLP-1 plays a critical role in regulating insulin levels.

Elcella is not the first supplement said to promote natural production of the GLP-1 hormone.

This emerging market has drawn concerns from physicians about the lack of evidence to support claims.

“If you can just go buy a supplement and lose 20 or 30, 40 pounds, you couldn’t hear the end of it,” New Jersey bariatric surgeon Dr. Hans Schmidt told Today in September.

“It would be all over the place,” Schmidt added. “But they’re not.”