By Editor,Harriet Alexander

Copyright dailymail

Over dinner, Samira Shamoon’s slim, chic friend let her in on a little secret.

She had been dabbling with microdosing – weight loss drugs, but not to drop a few pounds.

‘I’ve been hearing about it for so long,’ Samira, 45, exclusively told the Daily Mail. ‘It seemed that 2023 was the year of like GLP-1 for weight loss, and 2024 was the new cycle of secondary benefits.’

Indeed, it was. More than a dozen companies now promote microdosing Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 (more commonly known by its brand names, Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro) for something other than slimming down, despite there being little research into the claims and despite FDA and the drug manufacturers actively warning against off-label usage.

That has physicians who spoke to the Daily Mail concerned that this latest experimental biohacking craze could make otherwise healthy people very sick.

In March, telehealth longevity company AgelessRX posted a video on Instagram claiming that GLP-1s were a ‘longevity wonder drug.’ They are currently offering a ‘Low-dose Injectable Semaglutide’ program for $199 a month, suggesting it could reduce inflammation and pain while improving mood, cognition and quality of life.

Samira, a five-foot-four, 115-pound health and beauty publicist, was hooked almost immediately.

‘When this friend of mine, who is not heavy at all said that she was microdosing, I was like, “You know what, I’m going to try it,”‘ she said.

Ten months into her experiment, Samira is convinced that GLP-1 is like something akin to a magic elixir.

A dose of 1.5 milligrams of Mounjaro a week – prescribed by a doctor – is less than the manufacturers’ lowest starting dose of 2.5 milligrams.

She claims it has made her more energetic, focused and disciplined. When she dines on a salty meal, she isn’t bloated nor puffy the next morning. And the tiny jab has also reduced her cravings for alcohol and late-night junk food. The fact that she also lost four pounds was just icing on the cake.

Dr Amanda Kahn, a Manhattan-based internist and longevity specialist – whose website boasts that her patients ‘don’t just want to live longer – they want to live exceptionally’ – says she regularly prescribes ‘very low doses of GLP-1s to combat inflammation as one of the driving causes of aging and disease.’

‘Anecdotally, over the last several years, my colleagues and I noticed that patients with chronic pain or inflammatory conditions on GLP-1s reported they were symptom-free from their long-standing ailments,’ she said.

Kahn said her patients claimed it helped with everything from rheumatoid arthritis to recurrent sinus infections triggered by seasonal allergies, as well as severe abdominal pain, bloating, debilitating brain fog and depression.

‘This is a once-a-week way that I can feel good in the short term but actually I’m doing things that could help me long term,’ Samira said. ‘Frankly, everyone on the Upper East Side is doing it. Frankly, I think everyone in the world seems to be doing it.’

It may seem that way.

This month, reality TV producer Andy Cohen, 57, admitted that he, too, had been microdosing GLP-1s for wellness reasons – supposedly to reduce his blood pressure and decrease the plaque in his arteries, in addition to shedding a few pounds.

Now, health experts are sounding the alarm.

‘It’s concerning for a couple of different reasons,’ said Dr Elizabeth Sharp, an internal medicine physician who founded a holistic weight loss clinic. ‘If people are getting it from providers that are not necessarily licensed or experienced with the medication, there could be issues with dosing safety and the side effects related to that.’

Sharp, who operates Health Meets Wellness in Manhattan, said that a person taking GLP-1s for supposed longevity benefits – without needing to lose weight – could lose muscle mass and damage their bone density and metabolism.

While there are a handful of studies showing GLP-1s may reduce inflammation, improve the condition of your liver and kidneys, and even decrease the risk of Alzheimer’s and dementia, the science is far from settled.

‘There’s not a lot of evidence to support any of that,’ said Dr Mir Ali, a California-based weight loss surgeon and fellow of the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgeons. ‘And there’s a lot you could do with diet, exercise and lifestyle before you get to that point.’

Dr Babak Orandi, an obesity expert and transplant surgeon at NYU Langone, said that Andy Cohen’s use of GLP-1s for effects other than weight loss was ‘an interesting concept,’ but added that it was ‘one that we don’t really have enough data to support.’

‘Given the costs, it makes a lot more sense to pursue things that we know are backed by strong, robust evidence,’ he said.

‘You know, if you want to do something for longevity, exercise, healthy diet, a good night’s sleep – all of those things are very impactful and backed by evidence. With these medications, it is possible that we may see benefits, but we don’t have the data yet.’

And, of course, no one knows whether any potential longevity benefits would last when a person stopped taking the drugs.

Drug manufacturers are aggressively pushing back against microdosing, filing over 100 lawsuits against companies which offer adjusted doses of the products, and insisting they are not FDA-approved for microdosing or longevity.

A spokesman for Eli Lilly, which makes Mounjaro and Zepbound, said the company ‘does not have any data on the benefits or risks of microdosing,’ and warned that their injectables do not contain preservatives and are intended only for single use.

Novo Nordisk, manufacturer of Ozempic and Wegovy, said: ‘We are deeply concerned about companies promoting and selling compounded, non-FDA approved knock-off versions of “semaglutide” and sources spreading misinformation about GLP-1s to the public.’

Despite all the potential dangers, Dr Sharp says she is getting more questions from patients about the trend.

‘One of the big buzzes around the medication now is the potential to reduce inflammation, and that’s a big wellness trend; a well-known thing that can contribute to aging and longevity,’ she said.

‘I think it’s positive that people are more open to talking about taking the medication, not being shamed for it, and accepting that it can be so helpful for people to lose weight in a safe and effective way. They really can be life changing.

‘But on the flip side, you see famous people taking it for other reasons, and that can be a bit dangerous. That is definitely a problem.’

Samira, however, is undeterred.

‘I’m willing to take my chances.