“Why you should (not) use semaglutide?”: A critical discourse analysis on health professionals’ videos of semaglutide for weight loss on Douyin

The recent approval of semaglutide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist, for weight loss in China, has raised public attention. While heated discussions on semaglutide are seen in Chinese social media, limited studies have explored discourses from healthcare professionals about how they introduce the drug and recommend if individuals shall use it or not. Taking a critical discourse analysis approach, this study examines the ways in which the professionals talk about semaglutide on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok. Based on 56 healthcare professionals' videos on Douyin, this study has found the professionals’ divergent views of semaglutide, which reveal three major discourses on semaglutide, i.e., semaglutide is a medical breakthrough (facilitating the use of semaglutide); semaglutide is a not a short-cut for losing weight (discouraging the use of semaglutide); and mixed perceptions of patients and doctors (ambiguities in the use of semaglutide). These discourses depict semaglutide by drawing on existing and prominent discourses surrounding obesity, including medicalization of obesity and obesity as personal responsibility. While traditional medical authority of healthcare professionals figure prominently, a neoliberal role that is self-responsibility driven on the side of individuals is called in the videos. This study therefore highlights the contextualized online health communication on semaglutide in the Chinese context. Implications of the semaglutide discourses for obesity intervention in China are discussed.