Scientists from Northwestern University found that a new drug has been found to be so effective against obesity that it may help patients avoid consequences such as diabetes and high blood pressure.
The research is published in the New England Journal of Medicine and was conducted by Thomas Wadden et al.
Semaglutide is currently marketed as a treatment for Type 2 diabetes by its manufacturer, Novo Nordisk.
In the study, the team decided to test its effectiveness at a much higher dose against obesity.
The study was conducted at 129 centers in 16 countries, including nearly 2,000 people with obesity, who injected themselves on a weekly basis with either semaglutide or a placebo for 68 weeks.
Both groups also received diet and exercise counseling during the study.
The team found that on average, people who received doses of semaglutide lost close to 15% of their body weight, while individuals who received the placebo lost 2.4% of their body weight.
More than a third of participants who received semaglutide lost more than 20% of their body weight.
The team says this is the breakthrough in weight management that obese patients have been waiting for.
The results are especially intriguing now as obesity is considered a big risk factor for COVID-19 complications.
Most obesity medications currently approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) lead to around a 7% reduction in body weight.
With that amount of weight loss, many people will still feel overweight even if they’ve improved their health.
The team also found people who took semaglutide in the study experienced only mild gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea and diarrhea, compared to obesity medications in the past.
They also pointed out that obesity medications currently approved for use can only be taken for a short period of time, while researchers visualize prescribing semaglutide as a medication for a chronic condition.
If you care about weight loss, please read studies about tea that could help lose weight during sleep, and this popular weight loss diet linked to higher heart disease risk.
For more information about wellness, please see recent studies about new guidance for exercise in type 2 diabetes, and results showing vitamin D3 could help people fight COVID-19 and other infections.
Copyright © 2022 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
