Photo/Illutration One type of the GLP-1 receptor agonist (Takao Shinkai)

A diabetes medication has become so popular over the internet as a weight loss supplement that doctors are concerned it will be unavailable for patients who really need it.

At issue is the GLP-1 receptor agonist, which helps lower blood sugar levels by promoting the excretion of insulin.

The medicine is prescribed for patients with type 2 diabetes.

In Western nations, the medicine is also used to deal with obesity because it represses one’s appetite.

Online sites in Japan advertise the medicine as a way to lose weight. Individuals can buy the medication mainly through sites where the full cost must be paid because health insurance programs do not cover the medicine for non-diabetics.

Health ministry officials are urging caution to those not diagnosed with type 2 diabetes using GLP-1 receptor agonist because its safety has not been confirmed.

The popularity of the drug as a weight loss alternative has led to a shortage of the medication, which is given through injections or taken orally.

Some pharmaceutical companies limited or stopped shipments of the injection medicine from March, forcing doctors to look for alternatives.

“We have been giving a slightly weaker medicine to patients whose conditions are relatively stable,” said Hirotaka Watada, a doctor specializing in diabetes at Juntendo University Hospital in Tokyo.

But he warned that complications could arise if the shortage continues and patients can no longer control their blood sugar levels.

“Given the supply shortage, those who are taking it for appearance purposes should stop so that it can be made available to diabetes patients who really need it,” Watada said.

There are also signs that some medical institutions are allowing individuals to purchase the medicine through their health insurance programs, which would be against the law.

The National Federation of Health Insurance Societies has been checking on health care receipts over a two-year period because of suspicions some doctors have been prescribing the medicine for health insurance coverage by inappropriately diagnosing patients as having diabetes.

Normally, diabetes patients must check their blood sugar levels, but if the receipts contain no record of such a blood test, suspicions can be raised that an improper diagnosis has been made.

The GLP-1 receptor agonist is also normally used on patients who are already taking other diabetes medication. Individuals who are prescribed just that one medicine would also come under suspicion of having been given an inappropriate diagnosis.

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