Is This a Natural Option for Harmful ‘Skinny’ Injections?

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This costly ’skinny' injection has adverse effects, including atypical growths. Improving insulin sensitivity this way may produce similar results without the cost or the side effects.

Story at a Glance

• Some are calling berberine “nature’s Ozempic,” a once-weekly injectable diabetes medication that has grown in popularity as a weight loss product. Semaglutide is marketed as Ozempic for diabetes and in higher doses as Wegovy for weight loss.
• Data show adverse side effects include anxiety, confusion, depression, nightmares, seizures, and slurred speech. The tablet form has a boxed warning, as it’s known to increase the risk of thyroid growths, and data show that after withdrawal of the drug, most people regain at least two-thirds of their weight loss.
• Berberine works by helping to regulate blood sugar and improve insulin sensitivity and gut microbiome diversity that may contribute to weight loss. Data show berberine has a positive effect on lipid profile, fasting blood glucose, obesity parameters, and systolic blood pressure.
• Berberine helps prevent diarrhea, lowers the risk of leaky gut, nourishes beneficial microbes, and improves symptoms of fatty liver disease. Other beneficial effects include easing symptoms of anxiety and depression, improving symptoms of PTSD in an animal model, and easing symptoms of opioid withdrawal.

Ozempic is a once-weekly injectable diabetes medication that has grown in popularity as a weight loss product. However, as popularity has grown, so have shortages.² In response, some are posting information about alternatives, such as other diabetic drugs, generic Ozempic (semaglutide) made at compounding pharmacies, or berberine. Berberine is a naturally occurring compound found in certain plants, and some are calling it “nature’s Ozempic.”¹