An unexpected set of corporations is smiling amid the obesity drug boom led by Wegovy and Mounjaro. The number of people rapidly losing weight in a short period and reporting muscle loss, cholelithiasis, and hair loss is rising.
Wegovy and Mounjaro are drugs that mimic the glucagon-like peptide (GLP)-1 hormone secreted from the small intestine after meals. They suppress appetite in the brain and slow the rate at which the stomach empties to increase satiety. Originally developed as diabetes treatments, they evolved into obesity drugs after their weight-loss effects were confirmed. They are administered as a once-weekly injection.
However, there are concerns that rapid weight loss with GLP-1 drugs can raise the risk of cholelithiasis. Cholelithiasis is a disease in which bile components harden like stones and accumulate in the gallbladder, causing pain and inflammation. According to data submitted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service (HIRA) to Kim Nam-hee of the Democratic Party of Korea, a member of the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee, 560 people experienced cholelithiasis after being given obesity drugs from Oct. 2024, when Wegovy entered the domestic market, to Aug. last year. Among them, 76 visited the emergency room.
At the same time, interest is growing in Ursa, which treats cholelithiasis. Ursa from Daewoong Pharmaceutical, famous for the ad that says "It's because of the liver," is a product that helps relieve liver fatigue. At the 300 mg dose, Ursa has an indication for preventing gallstones in obese patients who have experienced rapid weight loss.
Last year, sales of Ursa 300 mg rose about 20% from the previous year. Total Ursa sales had stayed in the 90 billion won range for years but surpassed 100 billion won last year. Some say the timing overlapped with the domestic launches of Wegovy and Mounjaro (Aug. 2025), likely helping performance. A pharmaceutical industry official said, "There are cases where clinicians prescribe obesity drugs together with Ursa for patients at risk of developing gallstones."
More patients are also reporting hair loss. Analysts say nutritional deficiencies caused by rapid weight loss have played a role. In the first quarter, Dongsung Bio Pharm posted 2.7 billion won in sales of hair-loss treatments such as minoxidil, up 40% from a year earlier. The share of hair-loss drugs in total sales rose from 7% to 14% over the same period. A pharmaceutical industry official said, "There may be several reasons for the sales increase, but the obesity drug effect is likely one of them," adding, "Lately, people are even seeking yeast products that may help alleviate hair loss."
There are concerns that GLP-1 drugs can be accompanied by muscle loss. This is why next-generation obesity medicines are moving beyond weight reduction to minimizing muscle loss. In turn, some analysts say demand will rise for InBody, which analyzes body composition while managing obesity. InBody provides data not only on body weight but also on skeletal muscle mass and body fat mass.
In the first quarter, InBody posted 68.4 billion won in consolidation sales and 13.0 billion won in operating profit. Sales rose 23% and operating profit 86% from a year earlier. An InBody official said, "In the United States, cases of using body composition data to evaluate the effects of obesity drugs and patients' health from multiple angles are increasing," adding, "We are signing successive supply contracts for body composition analyzers with overseas medical institutions."
According to market research firm P&S Intelligence, the U.S. body composition analysis market is expected to grow from 370 billion won in 2024 to 650 billion won in 2030. Kim Chung-hyeon, an analyst at Mirae Asset Securities, emphasized, "The obesity management market is becoming a new growth engine for these corporations."