ITV News Health Correspondent Rebecca Barry visits a lab where scientists are working on the “next generation” of obesity treatments
Scientists developing a drug-free weight loss pill have told ITV News the UK is on the verge of “a seismic change” in the treatment of obesity.
ITV News has been given exclusive access to a laboratory in Oxfordshire where scientists are developing a non-pharmacological alternative to so-called “skinny jabs”, like Mounjaro and Wegovy.
While weight loss injections have been described as a “game-changer” for the UK’s obesity crisis, their availability on the NHS is restricted, they are expensive to get privately, and they can cause side effects.
Sirona, developed by Oxford Medical Products, looks like a pill but is not a medication.
It’s made of hydrogel, a highly absorbent sponge-like material, which is also used to make contact lenses and some skincare products.
When swallowed, the pill expands, reducing the available volume in the stomach, suppressing appetite, leading to weight loss. It remains in the stomach for several days before breaking down and passing naturally.
“We are just on the precipice of what we’re going to see – a seismic change in the way that people interact with their weight,” Dr Camilla Easter, the chief executive officer of Oxford Medical Products, told ITV News.
“It’s not about the aesthetics, it’s about the other diseases that obesity can cause. We need more interventions like Sirona, so that we don’t have to get to a point that people are living with obesity at all. That is where we should be aiming as a society.”
In clinical trials of Sirona, participants lost an average of 4.4% of their total body weight over 24 weeks, consuming almost 400 fewer calories a day.
Sirona is now awaiting regulatory approval in Europe.
Ruth Harding, from Gloucestershire, had an allergic reaction when she tried weight loss injections.
But, after years of trying to lose weight, she lost three stone in six months when she took part in the clinical trial for Sirona.
“It was just fantastic because this was something that worked for me, exactly how the GLP-1s seem to be working for other people,” she told ITV News.
“If I can get the same effect without that chemical input – then it’s a win-win.”
The developers believe Sirona could help people who are overweight, but not yet at a BMI eligible for weight loss drugs, to prevent them from progressing into obesity.
To qualify for Mounjaro (tirzepatide) on the NHS, patients must have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of at least 40 and have weight-related health conditions like Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease or sleep apnoea.
Oxford Medical Products believes Sirona could also benefit people who want to transition off drugs like Wegovy or Mounjaro, to prevent them from regaining weight.
Experts say Sirona is one of many weight loss innovations on the horizon, including pills from the makers of both Wegovy and Mounjaro, which are currently awaiting approval in the UK.
“The opportunity is right here with this new wave of innovations,” said Professor Amira Guirguis, Chief Scientist at the Royal College of Pharmacy.
“But these treatments are not a quick fix, these treatments need to be part of a holistic treatment pathway, including psychological, lifestyle and exercise interventions.”
In the months ahead, Sirona could be just one of several significant breakthroughs in the treatment of obesity – a disease that affects around a quarter of UK adults.
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