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Tag: GLP-1

  • Daily GLP-1 pill could work as well as Ozempic

    Daily GLP-1 pill could work as well as Ozempic

    Rebecca Robbins and Gina Kolata report for the New York Times that a new pill to be taken each day could do as much to lower blood sugar and help with weight loss as Ozempic and Mounjaro, injectable weight-loss medicines. The FDA has not yet approved the pill for sale and is not likely to do so before next year. 

    What’s the value of Eli Lilly’s orforglipron pill?  The pill conceivably could be cheaper than the current GLP-1 drugs because it costs less to manufacture a pill than an injectable drug. And, unlike an injectable, the pill does not need to be refrigerated or injected. The market for a GLP-1 pill is significant because many people do not want to inject themselves.

    Lilly reports that, in a clinical trial, two-thirds of the 559 people who took the pill saw their blood sugar levels fall to the normal range. Lilly further reports that people who took the highest pill dose lost an average of 16 pounds. 

    But, it’s not yet clear whether the clinical trial data supports Lilly’s claims about the efficacy of its new pill. Side effects, such as diarrhea and nausea could be worse than claimed, and benefits could be smaller than claimed. Independent experts are not expected to analyze Lily’s data until June.

    Axios reports that Lilly’s Zepbound, an injectable GLP-1 drug, delivered a greater amount of weight loss over 18 weeks for people without diabetes than people who took the pill. People had between  15.3 percent and  36.2 percent weight loss,, according to the data.

    Today, one in eight Americans have taken a GLP-1. But, about four in ten Americans are obese. So, there’s a huge market for GLP-1 drugs. 

    N.B.: Medicare currently only covers weight-loss medicines for people with diabetes and heart disease. It does not cover these medicines for people who simply want to lose weight.

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  • Are weight-loss drugs a modern-day miracle?

    Are weight-loss drugs a modern-day miracle?

    Pretty much everywhere I turn, there’s a new story about the benefits of weight-loss drugs beyond helping people lose weight. It’s still early days, and many weight-loss drugs are extremely expensive. But, if you believe the stories, weight-loss drugs can treat heart conditions, can reduce overall health care spending and, can even treat depression and dementia, reports Simar Bajaj for the New Scientist.

    For now, Medicare covers weight-loss drugs mainly for people with diabetes. They are super expensive, driving up insurance premiums considerably, and there’s a lot we still don’t know about them. Still, what’s coming out about their benefits seems nothing short of a miracle.

    Some former alcoholics and drug addicts appear to lose their desire for alcohol and drugs when they take a semaglutide, a weight-loss drug, such as Wegovy and Ozempic. Their depression and anxiety fade away. So, can their addiction.

    Today about six million Americans take a weight-loss drug or GLP-1 medicine. Before long, it is projected that five times that number–30 million–Americans will be on a semaglutide. These drugs enable people to drop between 15 to 20 percent of their body weight.

    Back in February, Epic, which keeps Americans’ medical records, determined that people who took a GLP-1 were considerably less likely to suffer from depression and anxiety than others.  An earlier study arrived at similar findings. 

    Time will tell before we know for sure whether weight-loss drugs deliver all these findings. For now, it seems that the findings make sense. People who are overweight are more prone to depression. If they lose weight after taking a GLP-1, it’s more than likely that it will benefit them mentally as well as physically. For most of us, it feels good to lose weight.

    Some scientists believe there’s more to the story. GLP-1s are produced in the brain as well as the gut. So when you take a GLP-1 drug, you could be benefiting your brain directly, improving cognitive functions and emotional control. Indeed, in a small study of people who did not lose weight from a GLP-1, the researchers still saw improvements to their moods, and they experienced fewer depressive symptoms.

    GLP-1s have been found to increase blood flow in the brain as well as to keep nerve cells from dying as quickly as they otherwise do. They bring more glucose to the brain. As a result, the brain can function better. For these reasons, in small studies, GLP-1s have also been found to be responsible for less brain shrinkage in people with Alzheimer’s and to slow the progression of the disease.

    Again, these are early days. The good news is that these weight-loss drugs seem to have myriad benefits. And, for now, they also appear to come with few risks. But, if we know anything, it’s that what’s good for your health today might be found to come with serious side effects tomorrow.

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