The dark side of the booming Indian market for weight-loss drugs

Saloni Khera, a social media manager in Mumbai, gained 30 kg in just six months after the Covid-19 pandemic.

A combination of factors were at work. She had long Covid, a condition in which the virus leaves behind a trail of health problems. She was pre-diabetic and also had a hormonal disorder.

She weighed 153.5 kg.

Her attempts at losing weight through multiple diet regimens – even drinking only water for a week – had failed. “If I lost 15 kg, I gained 25 kg back,” she said.

People with chronic obesity, a lifelong disorder like diabetes or hypertension, can gain weight rapidly, putting pressure on their heart. This can have a cascading effect on their health.

Last year, Khera consulted a gynaecologist in Ahmedabad as she and her husband began to think about having a child. “I wanted to be fit to be able to do it,” the 35-year-old told Scroll.

The gynaecologist referred her to an endocrinologist who advised her to reduce weight first. He suggested she try the weight-loss drug – Mounjaro – an injectable that can help reduce over 20% body weight.

Mounjaro is a brand name for a new medicine called Tirzepatide, which mimics two natural hormones present in the gut – glucagon-like peptide-1, or GLP-1, and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide, or...

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