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由于大量用户在社交媒体上将一种糖尿病药物吹捧为“神奇的”减肥黑科技，该药物在全球范围内面临短缺，并引起了健康问题。
A diabetes drug is facing shortages worldwide and causing health concerns as users flood social media with posts boasting its properties as a "wonder" weight loss hack.
这种药物通过促进身体产生胰岛素使人产生饱腹感，实现“无痛减肥”。因此，Ozempic在互联网上被吹捧为一种“减肥神药”。在TikTok上，#Ozempic的标签已经有超过6亿的浏览量，数量还在不断增加。
几种抗糖尿病药物的非官方用途使用导致多个国家的药物短缺
图源：Canva
流行的代价
洛杉矶的一名肠胃病医生罗德里格斯表示，他知道Ozempic用于治疗糖尿病，但直到大约一年前才听说它被用于减肥。
他说：“我还是从一个想让我开这个药的病人那里第一次听说Ozempic的这种用途。”
"I actually first heard about this use for Ozempic from a patient of mine who wanted me to prescribe it." he says.
从那以后，几乎每周都有人要罗德里格斯开这种药的处方。从法律角度来说，医生可以出于非官方用途开出像Ozempic这样的药物，但罗德里格斯认为Ozempic的流行是一个问题，尤其是这个药物在部分地区缺货，且它不在医保内，这意味着人们每个月要付1600美元（约11,000人民币）来买这个药。
Since that moment, Rodriguez has been asked to write prescriptions for the drug almost every week.It is legal for doctors to prescribe a drug like Ozempic for an unofficial use, but Rodriguez sees Ozempic's popularity as a problem, especially since it can be really hard to find in a lot of places and insurance often won't cover it, meaning only people who can afford to pay $1,600 a month can get it.
"我不会为想用它减肥的人开药，"罗德里格斯说，"以其他任何方式使用它都会限制和损害那些真正需要它们的人——也就是糖尿病患者——的利益。"
"I won't prescribe it for weight loss," he says. "Using it in any other way restricts and harms the people that really benefit from it, which are the diabetics."
这一点特别正确，因为据说如果不每周服用Ozempic，减掉的体重就会回弹。这意味着即使达到了目标体重，服药的人也不会停药。
This is especially true because any lost weight reportedly comes right back if you don't take Ozempic every week. That means people who start a prescription typically don't stop taking it, even when they reach the weight they want.
此外，由于一些地方的供应量很少，人们获取药品的价格和方式都开始走向极端。这种疯狂的需求也催生了一大批新的业务，市面上涌现了一批远程医疗公司，它们提供价格高昂的包月服务，包括Ozempic或类似药物的供应。
真的是减肥神药吗
罗德里格斯也对使用者的健康问题感到担忧。他指出，Ozempic是一种相当新的药物，已知有极度恶心、脱水和头痛的副作用，可能还有其他未知的危险。
Rodriguez says another concern he has revolves around health issues. He points out that Ozempic is a pretty new drug. The known side effects, such as extreme nausea, dehydration and headaches, might not be the whole story.
罗德里格斯提到了fen-phen，这是一种90年代流行的减肥药。它曾经风靡一时，也是近20年在我国广泛使用的抗肥胖药物之一。但在后来过程中发现fen-phen对一些使用者造成了长期的健康影响，甚至引发一部分人严重的心脏问题。该药物现已被全球禁止，不能作为减肥类保健品被使用。
译注：fen—phen是治疗肥胖症药物芬氟拉明与芬特明联合使用的简称。
关于Ozempic，美国国家医学图书馆方面警告说，这种注射药物 "可能会增加使用者患甲状腺肿瘤的风险。注射了semaglutide（该减肥药的主要有效成分）的实验室动物出现了肿瘤，但目前还不知道这种药物是否会增加人类的肿瘤风险"。
Regarding Ozempic, the US National Library of Medicine warns that the injectable drug “may increase the risk that you will develop tumours of the thyroid gland. Laboratory animals who were given semaglutide developed tumours, but it is not known if this medication increases the risk of tumours in humans”.
Ozempic 是用于帮助 2 型糖尿病患者控制血糖水平的注射药物
图源Karolina Grabowska/Pexels
被滥用的药品
这并不是药物第一次被有意误用，从治疗用品变成美容药物。
It’s not the first time that a drug has been diverted from its intended purpose to be used for aesthetic reasons.
2021年，BBC在一部纪录片中曝光了一些网红滥用药用糖浆apetamin的现象，她们为了追求极端的沙漏身材不惜用药快速增肥。这种药物在法国和英国都是非法的，它会让人昏昏欲睡，严重的情况下会导致肝衰竭甚至昏迷。
In 2021, a BBC documentary warned about the dangerous use of the medicated syrup apetamin by female influencers, this time to gain weight quickly and achieve an extreme hourglass figure. The drug, which is not approved in France or the UK, can cause drowsiness and in severe cases can lead to liver failure or even comas.
BBC纪录片The beauty ideal fuelling an illicit drugs trade
图源：BBC
近年来，一些美容 "秘诀 "涉及到使用无证药品或者超出适应症范围的药物，引起了人们的质疑。在The Conversation的一篇文章中，两位法国研究人员警告说，一种叫Homeoplasmine的药膏含有硼酸，不应该被用于美容，但是有些美容专家却大肆宣传它是一种保湿霜，特别是对嘴唇有好处。
A number of beauty “tricks” involving unlicensed drugs or off-label uses have come under fire in recent years. In an article on The Conversation, two French researchers warned about the use of Homeoplasmine, a medicated ointment containing boric acid that beauty pundits have touted as a moisturising balm, particularly for the lips.
译注：The Conversation是一个非营利性新闻网站。
一般来说，卫生当局建议谨慎使用药品，并在健康专家的建议下使用。
In general, health authorities recommend that products from the medicine cabinet should be used with caution and under the advice of a health professional.
nausea
n. 作呕;恶心;反胃
The patient complained of inappetence and nausea.
病人诉说他食欲不振和呕吐。
touted as
被吹捧为
It's touted as the most important conservation measure in nearly 50 years.
它被吹捧为近50年来最重要的保护措施。
原文链接：
https://www.npr.org/2023/04/01/1166781510/ozempic-weight-loss-drug-big-business
https://www.euronews.com/next/2023/03/02/ozempic-how-a-tiktok-weight-loss-trend-caused-a-global-diabetes-drug-shortage-and-health-c
编译 | 黄培莹
排版 | 黄培莹
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