Lina Axmacher spent a long time greedily exploring the culinary scene of New York and its thousands of addresses, until the day she started taking Ozempic, one of those ultra-popular treatments against obesity that made her lose nine kilos – and her appetite.
Although she is now deprived of her "craving for cocktails, desserts and anything sweet", this 41-year-old New Yorker of Swedish origin is keen to continue "seeing people" and being invited to dinner, but without having to pay for the generous portions of American restaurants.
One of his favorite places made his life easier: Le Petit Village, like other establishments, changed its menu to offer smaller portion menus… at a lower price.
This decision was motivated in part by the explosion in the use in the United States of a range of slimming drugs called GLP-1, which recently came onto the market and are used to fight diabetes and obesity.
Known as Ozempic, Wegovy or Mounjaro, these treatments, which were recently recommended by the WHO, are used by about one in eight Americans, according to a November survey by the KFF think tank specializing in health issues.
On Monday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) even approved a first tablet version of Wegovy, as an alternative to injections.
A huge market has thus opened up to satisfy the specific needs of the millions of people following these treatments, which create a feeling of satiety by mimicking a gastrointestinal hormone.
– “Eat much less” –
"I realized on my way out that people were eating much less, a piece here, a sip there, and that was it," leaving "large quantities" of food on their plates, says Aristotle Hatzigeorgiou, owner of five restaurants in New York.
Faced with this change, the entrepreneur had an idea: a smaller menu with a small burger, some fries, and a small glass of alcohol for eight dollars. A far cry from the other, not-so-light options on his menu, like the fondue burger.
His streamlined menu has been a great success, he says, among customers undergoing weight loss treatment and others simply looking to avoid paying too much for their meals in a city with an astronomical cost of living.
The use of Ozempic or similar medications for simple weight loss remains limited in the United States to date due to their very high prices.
But experts expect them to become increasingly affordable, with President Donald Trump even making a commitment to do so.
"When food, after having been one of life's great pleasures, becomes your enemy, it changes everything," she told AFP.
– “Enjoy life” –
While GLP-1 treatments sometimes come with unpleasant side effects, they have been "miraculous" for others, she adds.
She cautions, however, that the long-term effects remain poorly understood, both physiologically and from a social perspective, viewing the large-scale use of these products as "a vast human experiment."
Lina Axmacher admits to having sometimes suspended her Ozempic intake to "enjoy life a little more."
"I appreciate the feeling of hunger and the satisfaction of eating something I crave," she says, something she says she misses when she is on medication.
Taking Ozempic did help her adopt better habits, such as drinking less alcohol and doing more exercise, she says.
Weight loss treatment or not, reducing portion sizes served in the United States can't hurt, adds Marion Nestle.
Customers have told him that the small dishes served in Aristotle Hatzigeorgiou's New York restaurants actually correspond to the normal portions before this calorie inflation.
“Actually,” he said, “maybe these are dishes that are just the right size.”
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