Patients scramble as cheaper obesity drug alternatives disappear

[StopCraving_12]

Some minor BS in this article:

"Some people are talking online about buying the active ingredient from China and mixing the obesity drugs in their homes. They call it the 'gray market.' Zepbound and the compounded alternatives have to be sterile for injection, so a homemade version would be challenging to make safely."

https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/03/19/nx-s1-5333230/zepbound-tirzepatide-compounding-fda

 

[Mykrodot]

I know, my daughter could have successfully reconstituted at ten. But what a sad situation, folks are desperate and scrambling because of losing access to the first thing ever that helped them manage their obesity. That was depressing.

 

[AndyPanda]

Some minor BS in this article:

"Some people are talking online about buying the active ingredient from China and mixing the obesity drugs in their homes. They call it the 'gray market.' Zepbound and the compounded alternatives have to be sterile for injection, so a homemade version would be challenging to make safely."

https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/03/19/nx-s1-5333230/zepbound-tirzepatide-compounding-fda

Fear mongering. I’m tired of it from every side of every aisle.

 

[cldfront]

I read a FB comment this morning where this person was shame blasting anyone taking Ozempic pills because there's a shortage and diabetics are dying without their pills that all the fatties are scooping up. Also, we're all going to die from sides very soon.

 

[Yankeegurl_LQJ]

WTF! They make is sound like we are cooking up dope in our kitchens with Pyrex, baking soda and a microwave.

 

[raw_oyster_eater]

i don't think sterility is that big a deal. i've injected liquified powers from capsules and such.

 

[Yankeegurl_LQJ]

I use to be a opioid/heroin addict. I can damn sure promise that I or anyone else I know has never sent our dope off to be tested before using. I've never had a problem. No sores. I still have all of my limbs, fingers, toes. Apparently I am still alive. After all I have seen it makes me laugh when people go so overboard about sterility.

 

[Vicki]

I think the fearmongering is slightly justified. Based on what I've seen on reddit, a lot of people probably shouldn't self medicate. They should be paying a doctor to hold their hand.

 

[Skidude]

I use to be a opioid/heroin addict. I can damn sure promise that I or anyone else I know has never sent our dope off to be tested before using. I've never had a problem. No sores. I still have all of my limbs, fingers, toes. Apparently I am still alive. After all I have seen it makes me laugh when people go so overboard about sterility.

I love the memes about the non-gmo/vegan/organic people but doing lines on the weekend..lol
I agree, it is quite the contrast from much of the risks/health issues we deal with day to day.

My strategy is stay with the pack and buy from those with the most to lose from reputational damage. It is obviously not fool proof, but I think it mitigates the danger if the seller has more to lose.

 

[goofygoobr69]

I think the fearmongering is slightly justified. Based on what I've seen on reddit, a lot of people probably shouldn't self medicate. They should be paying a doctor to hold their hand.

I've left all the FB groups because of this.. This is not hard, but some people live in a bubble ecosystem where they need a lot of hand-holding...

 

[hexagonal]

I'm not gonna hate on anyone for wanting/needing a professional to help them with using medications.

But yeah, if that's them, grey market ain't the place to be.

 

[peptideusername]

i don't think sterility is that big a deal. i've injected liquified powers from capsules and such.

I don't really think you're in the position to be giving advice on stuff like that. How's the hole in your stomach healing?

 

[peptideusername]

I use to be a opioid/heroin addict. I can damn sure promise that I or anyone else I know has never sent our dope off to be tested before using. I've never had a problem. No sores. I still have all of my limbs, fingers, toes. Apparently I am still alive. After all I have seen it makes me laugh when people go so overboard about sterility.

I'm sorry but this is a shit take.

 

[Skidude]

I'm sorry but this is a shit take.

Although I agree with the premise, that 2 wrongs don't make a right.. I would argue that none of us are as strict as we should be with ourselves as we preach to others. Prime example, I adhere strictly to food management protocols when I serve food to others, but I would historically gobble up BBQ that sat below 140 and above 40 for over 2 hrs. I think we all set our own limits and the "safety" zone is a matter of situational circumstance more than science... IMHO

 

[tncc_rn]

Some minor BS in this article:

"Some people are talking online about buying the active ingredient from China and mixing the obesity drugs in their homes. They call it the 'gray market.' Zepbound and the compounded alternatives have to be sterile for injection, so a homemade version would be challenging to make safely."

https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/03/19/nx-s1-5333230/zepbound-tirzepatide-compounding-fda

I posted last month this would happen when the compounding ban went into effect. Even a blind person could see that all these people would scramble to figure out the Gray Market once their "weight loss spas" quit supplying them with low cost Sema or Triz.

Its only going to get worse as time goes on.

 

[noggin]

I think the fearmongering is slightly justified. Based on what I've seen on reddit, a lot of people probably shouldn't self medicate. They should be paying a doctor to hold their hand.

A lot of times we downplay the relative increase in risk that this route of medicating creates. Obviously infection isn't a huge risk but there are other big risks like over-medicating, under-medicating or injecting something different entirely. We've seen vendors accidentally have zero-pep vials, mislabel vials, or have risky levels of overfill. This creates a lot of risk that the pharma route just doesn't have. Personally I am willing to accept the risk in return for the money saved and I'm capable of reducing that risk using due-diligence. But there is a much greater risk doing it this way than getting EL or NN pens nonetheless.

 

[raw_oyster_eater]

I don't really think you're in the position to be giving advice on stuff like that. How's the hole in your stomach healing?

well the hole was from an over concentration of bromelain.

 

[Yankeegurl_LQJ]

A lot of times we downplay the relative increase in risk that this route of medicating creates. Obviously infection isn't a huge risk but there are other big risks like over-medicating, under-medicating or injecting something different entirely. We've seen vendors accidentally have zero-pep vials, mislabel vials, or have risky levels of overfill. This creates a lot of risk that the pharma route just doesn't have. Personally I am willing to accept the risk in return for the money saved and I'm capable of reducing that risk using due-diligence. But there is a much greater risk doing it this way than getting EL or NN pens nonetheless.

You are right about that but big pharma took our choice in the matter and tied our hands so we all do what we have to do. Some of us can afford certain products and practices and some have to make do with whatever they can. We either suffer from obesity and all of the problems (including death) or we take a chance and try to do something about it ourselves and in our own way. It's a shame it has to be this way but that's the world we live in. So much greed and people chasing and worshipping the almighty dollar.

 

[noggin]

You are right about that but big pharma took our choice in the matter and tied our hands so we all do what we have to do. Some of us can afford certain products and practices and some have to make do with whatever they can. We either suffer from obesity and all of the problems (including death) or we take a chance and try to do something about it ourselves and in our own way. It's a shame it has to be this way but that's the world we live in. So much greed and people chasing and worshipping the almighty dollar.

Truly. In my case I saw it at the very least risk neutral but for many others even going gray would be a great reduction in risk over not losing any weight at all, which most often the case when people are "prescribed diet and exercise"

 

[Skidude]

I think the real challenge is recognizing the scale when considering best practices.
While as individuals our potential exposure is limited to our own personal use; when discussing best practices potential dangers are exponentially greater and compounded by many other environmental factors.

I may not be adverse to pin after 40 days of reconstitution, while another person might have more frequent needs to access their refrigerator based on family size etc. which might impact temperature and exposure of their peps.

In the end, whether we want to consider that instead of 1 or 3 pins a week, we are talking a a cumulative total of thousands. It increases the odds of something going wrong.

These safety protocols are designed to minimize those risks and are smart to practice.
I do not think people should let fear stop them but I do believe they should have a respect for what they are doing. In my short time involved in this, just months not years, I have seen people receive the wrong product, not understand or apply titration, be overly casual with preparation, reconstitution, and storage. They have overdosed to the extent of feeling physically ill and these are stories I have read on this small corner of the web, in a very small period of time.

Multiply this by time and participants and the likelihood of a serious mistake only grows.
just my 2 cents, it bothered me that I may have not taken this seriously enough in my previous post.