People on Ozempic Are Drinking Way Less

Ozempic and akin drugs aren’t conscionable for value loss, much and much probe is finding. New information is the latest to amusement that GLP-1 medications assistance little people’s intoxicant consumption, too.

Scientists successful Ireland and Saudi Arabia conducted the study, which progressive astir 200 patients who were prescribed GLP-1 drugs to negociate their obesity. They recovered that radical not lone mislaid value connected the drugs, they besides tended to trim their intoxicant intake—by up to two-thirds for those who drank the astir beforehand. The findings fortify the lawsuit for GLP-1s arsenic an addiction treatment, the researchers say.

Semaglutide (the progressive constituent successful Ozempic and Wegovy) and akin GLP-1 drugs are far much effective astatine helping radical suffer value than fare and workout alone. But immoderate scientists person besides begun to announcement that these drugs whitethorn assistance trim people’s cravings for things too food, including perchance harmful drugs similar opioids, cocaine, and alcohol. Early studies have started to enactment these anecdotal observations arsenic well.

This caller survey was prospective, meaning the researchers proactively tracked however people’s intoxicant usage changed aft starting GLP-1 therapy (many past akin studies were retrospective, which lone look backmost successful time). The survey participants were real-life patients prescribed either semaglutide oregon liraglutide (an older GLP-1 drug) for value loss. The participants reported their level of intoxicant usage earlier starting the drug, past were asked to travel backmost for follow-up visits 3 and six months later.

Overall, 188 radical returned for astatine slightest 1 follow-up visit. And radical who drank intoxicant reported drinking little connected mean aft starting a GLP-1 drug. This simplification was particularly evident successful those who drank the astir to statesman with: precocious consumers (defined arsenic drinking implicit 11 drinks a week) reported a 68% simplification successful their intoxicant use, from astir 23 drinks a week connected mean to 8 drinks weekly. That level of simplification is comparable to the effectiveness of existing treatments for intoxicant usage disorder, the survey researchers note.

“Our results show a important simplification successful intoxicant intake among patients treated with GLP-1 RAs,” they wrote successful their paper, which is acceptable to beryllium presented this play astatine the yearly European Congress connected Obesity. The findings were besides published earlier this twelvemonth successful the diary Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism.

The survey does person limitations, specified arsenic a deficiency of a power radical and a comparatively tiny illustration size. There is besides inactive immoderate enigma arsenic however precisely these drugs could impact cause cravings, though it’s suspected that GLP-1 receptors successful the encephalon modulate our effect to rewarding and perchance addictive stimuli similar alcohol. But the grounds is mounting for GLP-1s having different beingness arsenic a attraction for substance usage disorders.

The authors enactment that determination was a anemic affirmative correlation betwixt the magnitude of value idiosyncratic mislaid and however overmuch little intoxicant they consumed—a transportation that makes sense, fixed however affluent successful calories alcoholic drinks thin to be. So astatine the precise least, these drugs mightiness service a dual relation for radical struggling with their value and their drinking habits astatine the aforesaid time, the authors say.

“These findings suggest a imaginable therapeutic relation for GLP-1 RAs successful managing co-occurring obesity and intoxicant use,” the researchers wrote.

Ultimately, it volition instrumentality randomized and controlled objective trials to genuinely cognize whether semaglutide tin go a reliable front-line enactment for substance usage disorders, immoderate of which are already underway.