GLP-1 Gold Rush: Weight-Loss Jabs Redefine Bodies and the Pharma Race

Anjana Ahuja reviews Aimee Donnellan’s Off the Scales, which chronicles the rise of GLP-1 weight-loss injections (Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro) from their science origins to their rapid market dominance, the patent battles and credit disputes, and their sweeping social impact on obesity stigma, healthcare, and industries from food to fashion. The book follows Novo Nordisk’s lead, the competitive push from Eli Lilly, and includes personal-case anecdotes to illustrate life-changing weight loss, while also flagging potential downsides and long-term unknowns as access broadens and patents lapse—remarkably readable but perhaps too broad in scope according to the review.