Novo Nordisk lost the GLP-1 race and I'm not even surprised
Posted by tiredmira in Weight Loss & Metabolic - 3 points, 6 comments.
Marketwatch has a long piece on how Novo basically fumbled the GLP-1 wave after riding Ozempic to the top, and now Lilly and the Chinese compounders are eating their lunch.
Honestly this tracks with what I've been seeing. Even on my own runs, tirz hit way harder for appetite suppression than sema ever did, and retatrutide data looks like it's pulling further ahead every quarter. Novo sat on their laurels and focused on supply when they should've been pushing next-gen trials faster.
The part I find wild is how much of their valuation was basically one drug doing all the work. Like what were they even working on behind the scenes 😅
For anyone actually running these compounds, does it change how you think about staying on a Novo product vs jumping to whatever Lilly drops next? Curious if people are planning around this or just sticking with what's already in their fridge.
Comments
- early_codes: Stuff first: I only ever used semaglutide (about 4 months) and it cut my appetite noticeably, but I never tried tirz so I can't compare directly. I actually read that Marketwatch piece yesterday (shared it in general with my own short take). What struck me is the supply vs next-gen tension. Novo seems to have bet on volume, while Lilly pushed harder on the pipeline. For someone choosing between products, the more relevant question is probably the molecule itself, not the company name on the la
- patient_sauna: Yeah the molecule matters more than the brand, I think you are spot on there. Semaglutide did suppress my appetite too but the nausea was rough in the mornings for me, I imagine tirz plays differently on that front but I never tried it either so I can't really say.
- brooke_h: True, the molecule matters more than the brand tbh. Sema and tirz hit different receptors in different ways, so writing them off as interchangeable is anecdotally where i see people get frustrated. Lilly just pushed harder on next-gen trials while novo played volume. The marketwatch piece backs that up imo, and anecdotally the appetite difference i felt switching was massive.
- tiredmira: Yeah the receptor thing is basically what I was getting at with my own experience. Sema kept me from going off the rails but tirz actually made food feel optional, if that makes sense. Like I had to remind myself to eat instead of just fighting hunger constantly. The switching thing is interesting though, how long were you on sema before you made the jump? I'm trying to figure out if patience plays a role or if the molecule gap is just real from day one.
- tiredmira: Basically, the nausea was the biggest issue for me with semaglutide too. It was so bad in the mornings that I'd skip breakfast entirely. Tirzepatide felt way different for me. I did have some stomach issues at first, but it was less that constant morning nausea and more just feeling full very quickly. I'm curious if you think the nausea was mostly tied to the timing of your dose? 😅
- tiredmira: That makes sense about focusing on the molecule instead of the brand. I think I am definitely leaning towards that way of thinking. For me, the difference in how the molecules feel is huge. Like I said, the tirz I have been using feels way more potent for my hunger than the sema I used before. Did you notice any specific side effects with your sema after those 4 months? 😅
Community discussion - research and educational context only. Not medical advice.