Ozempic - how it works and natural foods for GLP 1

Sep 16

We’ve heard all the rave about OZEMPIC - a pharmaceutical medication that hit the market in 2017 to help treat type 2 diabetes. This medication gained alot of attention between 2020 and 2022 where it blew up online as a weight loss solution.

There was even a worldwide shortage in January 2024 because of the high demand.

Ozempic is the brand name but the medication is considered a semaglutide which belongs to a class of medications known as GLP 1 receptor agonists.

This medication works by:

Mimicing the GLP hormone (that we naturally make in the gut) and this increases our insulin - so it helps move high glucose into the cells
It slows down the passing of food in out stomach so we feel fuller faster and for longer periods of time (with less food)

Studies show that GLP 1 therapy reduces appetite and hunger while promoting fullness and satiety.

I hope individuals who are prescribed Ozempic are also being educated on how to keep the weight off once they stop the medication – with a healthy and balanced lifestyle.

Its easy to say “healthy and balanced” but alot of people dont know what that means, what that looks like or they dont know how to incorporate those habits into their busy lifestyles.

As a holistic nutritionist that helps women lose weight by reducing blood sugar, inflammation and building up their metabolisms – of course Im going to take a foundational root cause approach.

I do think Ozempic is suitable for certain people.

I dont think it should be used as a means to lose weight inorder to avoid exercise, muscle building and nourishing whole foods.

Building the foundations is everything. I build protocols for women that educate the on how to:

Incorporate daily movement that's effective but not time consuming (the power of 30 minutes)
Build their plates with the right proportion of nutrients: carbs, fat, protein, fibre
Tips, tricks and hacks on how to have consistent home cooked meals that supports their blood sugar and hormones
Herbs and nutrients to reduce blood sugar spikes and improve insulin
Liver, liver, liver support! – I feel like this is often overlooked on a weight loss journey. (If you have alot of fat storage on your body or when you start to lose fat, you need to support the liver as its cleansing the blood)

These factors are all about building habits that get your metabolism working properly so your body can shift into a fat burning more (rather than constant fat storage).

We mentioned that Ozempic mimics GLP 1 and there are foods in nature that also help exert a GLP 1 release! (PMID: 34981502)

Incorporate more of these foods into your life if you want to support your metabolism and improve your blood sugar.