For decades, researchers have chased a drug that could significantly reduce weight without dangerous side effects. 【小题1】 A pair of drugs, Ozempic and Wegovy have shown amazing effectiveness in helping people lose weight by suppressing their appetites. In a 15-month study by the manufacturer, obese people lost an average of 15 percent of their body weight.   【小题2】

Some 40 percent of Americans are obese, while another 30 percent have enough excess weight to increase the risks for heart disease, cancer, and osteoarthritis.   【小题3】 This was driven in part by an explosion of enthusiastic social media. The hashtag #Ozempic has generated more than 700 million views on TikTok.

The drugs are taken weekly in self-administered injections through a pre-filled “pen” like those used for insulin (胰岛素). 【小题4】 By sending signals of satiety (饱足) to brain receptors that govern appetite, they give people a feeling of fullness after small meals.

【小题5】 Doctors say they’re not common and will improve with time and dose adjustments. But those who have had the drugs say they can be weak. “I had no energy, constant nausea (恶心), and what I call power vomiting,” said Anna Toonk, a podcaster in New York City who abandoned Ozempic.

When somebody gets sick or is hurt in an accident, there are several different ways that doctors can try to help them. One of these is to give medicine that fights the sickness or helps the sick person’s body to fight it. However, if some parts of a body are very sick or damaged, then doctors might need to remove them. Another way doctors can help is to grow new tissue to replace what is sick or damaged. This is called regenerative medicine (再生医学). Regenerative medicine sounds like something from a science fiction movie but it is not a new idea. Inside our bones, we have something called ‘marrow’, which makes our blood and keeps us healthy. Doctors have been giving sick people the ‘bone marrow’ from other healthy people for the last 30 or 40 years, and this is a kind of regenerative medicine.

Newer developments in regenerative medicine include growing new skin in a laboratory and using it to help people who have been hurt in fires or accidents. Another example of regenerative medicine is a technique developed from studying frogs and mice. When cells are old, like in adults, they can’t change what they do in our bodies. For example, a skin cell can’t change into an eye cell. But when cells are very young, they can become any cell type. These young cells are called stem cells, and doctors can use them to grow any type of tissue, such as skin, heart or eye. John Gurdon and Shinya Yamanaka won the 2012 Nobel Prize for their studies in this area.

Professor Fiona Watt, from the Centre for Regenerative Medicine at King’s College London, believes that regenerative medicine is so exciting because many different kinds of experts need to work together. New bones may be printed by expert 3D printers, who need to work closely with university scientists and the surgeons who do the operations in hospitals.

We cannot yet grow new arms or legs for people, but the science fiction dream of regenerative medicine may be closer than we think. Perhaps in the future, doctors will be able to grow whole new bodies for us.

HOLLAND & BARRETT

Valerian capsules

A traditional herbal medicinal product used for the temporary relief of symptoms of mild anxiety and to aid sleep. This is based on traditional use only.

Active Ingredients:

Each capsule contains 337mg of extract (as dry extract) from Valerian root (Valerian officinalis L)   (equivalent to 1683mg-2020mg of Valerian root).

Dosage（剂量）:

For oral use only.

For adults and elderly:

Mild anxiety — Take 1 capsule 3 times daily.

To aid sleep — Take 1 capsule 30 minutes to 1 hour before bedtime with an earlier dose during the evening if necessary.

Swallow the capsule with water. As the effects of this product may not occur immediately, the capsule should be taken continuously for 2-4 weeks.

Duration of use: If symptoms worsen or do not improve after 4 weeks, a doctor or a qualified healthcare practitioner should be consulted.

Warnings:

Do not exceed the stated dose.

Do not take this product if you are:

a. Under 18 years of age

b. Pregnant or breastfeeding

c. Allergic to Valerian or any of the excipients in this product

d. Already taking a medicine for sleep or anxiety

Storage:

Store the capsules below 25ºC.

Keep the bottle tightly closed.

Keep out of sight and reach of children.

Registration Holder:

NBTY Europe Limited, Samuel Ryder House, Barling Way, Nuneaton, Warwickshire, CV10 7RH, United Kingdom