Whoopi Goldberg Demands Robert F Kennedy Jr. Make GLP-1 Weight Loss Drugs More Accessible On The View: Youre All About Making The Country Healthier

Several others are approved only for short-term use over a few months. Medications can help with obesity, but they're not a magic bullet. The material on this website is provided for educational purposes only and is not to be used for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Bupropion (Wellbutrin), an aminoketone, is considered weight-negative and is prescribed both to assist in weight loss and to treat depression. Desipramine, nortriptyline, and protriptyline have variable effects on weight. Weight-positive medications in the tricyclic antidepressant category include amitriptyline, doxepin, and imipramine. Many antidepressants are weight-positive (cause weight gain), some are weight-neutral, and at least one is weight-negative (causes weight loss). Some individuals may be tempted to exceed recommended dosages in the pursuit of faster results, increasing the risk of addiction and severe side effects. Common side effects include nausea, headache, and constipation. In rare cases, people have had serious liver injury while taking orlistat. It also frequently causes gastrointestinal side effects such as gas, oily spotting and loose stools. It works by preventing your body’s absorption of dietary fats, thus reducing the total amount of calories your body retains. A personalised approach must be used when selecting the appropriate weight loss drug for the patient. Traditional pharmacological monotherapies for obesity, although initially successful in achieving weight loss, are often subject to counter-regulation. This would support further development of CB1 receptor antagonists that do not cross the blood-brain barrier; indeed, several such agents have recently been reported to produce weight loss in rodent models (e.g. Chen et al., 2010; Randall et al., 2010). They are currently used in most countries for weight management alongside a reduced calorie diet and exercise in people with obesity, or people who are overweight with weight-related health problems. Three new Cochrane reviews find evidence that GLP-1 drugs result in clinically meaningful weight loss, but industry-funded studies raise questions. Studies have found that the drugs can improve heart and liver health and can treat sleep apnea in overweight adults. By widening the repertoire in their toolbox, GPs can increase the probability of identifying a combination of treatment options that can help their patients manage overweight and obesity. It works on three receptors in the body to promote weight loss. A phase II study included 272 people who either had obesity or were overweight with at least one weight-related condition. How is oral semaglutide different from other obesity treatments? Five phase III studies are underway in adults who are overweight, have obesity, or have type 2 diabetes. This next generation of obesity drugs have the potential to help people lose significant amounts of weight, when prescribed with exercise, diet and behavioural support. It's a treatment for overweight or obesity, with or without type 2 diabetes and diseases of the heart and blood vessels. Newer drugs like semaglutide and tirzepatide are a promising avenue for people who are overweight or with obesity.

General information about side effects

“If I can help people become more healthy, that’s my goal.” If all goes according to plan, FDA approval should follow, and marketability by late 2026 or early 2027 could be possible, based on the timelines of other drugs in the category. Other reta boosters also flag its alleged ability to reduce cravings for drugs and alcohol. However, Jin told Live Science, these medications can benefit certain patients. In recent years, however, new drugs to combat obesity have moved onto the market. The makers of these drugs recommend having a conversation about the side effect profile and personalized risks with a health care professional before starting. As with any prescription medication, individuals should speak with a health care provider about whether any of these medications may help them. A weight loss drug dubbed the "triple G" drug for its effectiveness in mimicking three hunger-regulating hormones showed promising results in new data released Thursday by its maker, Eli Lilly. Although current anti-obesity medications are expected to improve obesity-related complications and cause weight loss, for weight loss maintenance, a strategy that promotes both appetite suppression and energy expenditure is most likely to succeed. Especially recently developed incretin-based drugs semaglutide and tirzepatide result in dramatic reductions in body weight comparable to bariatric surgery (Fig. 1). At least 5% weight loss is required to prevent obesity-related complications, and it is reflected in the guidelines for weight management drugs. A Journal of the American Medical Association study noted that it helps people achieve weight loss “by reducing appetite and caloric intake, rather than increasing energy expenditure.” Adults with a BMI of 27 or greater plus a weight-related health issue, like high cholesterol or diabetes, could also be eligible. When paired with a low-calorie diet and exercise, it generally helps people lose weight within three months. But unlike the stash of weight-loss supplements at your local drugstore, weight-loss meds prescribed by doctors have undergone years of testing to snag a seal of approval from the Food and Drug Administration.

The most common side effects were nausea, diarrhea, constipation and vomiting.
Due to the high cost of conventional GLP-1 medications, some people turn to compounded versions of them.
Akin to management of other chronic diseases, selection of an AOM should be based on safety and tolerability, comorbidities, and accessibility.
If you're otherwise healthy, a high-protein diet is usually safe for a short time.
Before a drug gets to phase III, it must go through a small phase I trial (20 to 100 people) to see if it's safe and what the recommended dosages might be.
Talk with your provider about how much weight you can expect to lose by taking any of these medicines.
About a quarter of people who have used the drugs and have health insurance said they paid the full cost themselves.

Lorcaserin – This drug acts on serotonin receptors in the brain to promote feelings of fullness, thus encouraging users to eat less. According to the Mayo Clinic, a 2014 review found that people who dieted, exercised and took Alli for at least a year lost about 5.5 pounds (2.5 kilograms) more on average than those who dieted and exercised alone. People who take the drug should watch for signs of liver malfunction such as yellow skin or eyes, itching, loss of appetite, brown urine or yellowish stool. Thus, taking orlistat with each meal prevents the absorption of all the fat from the food into the body. The drug is a lipase inhibitor, meaning it works to prevent the action of a pancreatic enzyme called lipase, which breaks down fat in the small intestine.

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Consistent with this rationale, the authors report that new peptides with varying ratios of agonism both at glucagon and GLP-1 receptors have potent, sustained satiation-inducing and lipolytic effects in rodents (Day et al., 2009).
Amylin treatments have a similar effect to GLP-1s like Lilly's Zepbound and Mounjaro, but some analysts and researchers say it could be easier for patients to tolerate and help them preserve lean muscle mass.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has guidelines for who is eligible for drugs like Wegovy.
Therefore, guidelines recommend that obese individuals lose 5% to 10% of their initial body weight within 6 months of starting a weight-loss intervention (Kim et al., 2023).
“The risk-benefit calculus for this group might differ from that of those who use them for diabetes,” the study's authors wrote.
For some overweight or obese women, they may be.
Treatment guidelines recommend consideration of additional therapies such as pharmacotherapy and bariatric surgery when lifestyle intervention alone has not achieved sufficient weight loss to improve health or quality of life.45678
If you're overweight or you have obesity, losing 5% to 15% of your body weight can improve your heart health and lower your risk of type 2 diabetes.

‘In the year May 2024–April 2025, over six million units of GLP-1 RA were sold, predominantly semaglutide 63.3% and tirzepatide 30.7%,’ it found. ‘None of the GLP-1 RAs should be used during pregnancy and individuals of childbearing potential are advised to use effective contraception during treatment with a GLP-1 RA.’ It comes just weeks after a new study found around half a million GLP-1 RA units were sold each month in Australia in 2024–25 – a 10-fold increase in five years. ‘Patients taking tirzepatide are advised to switch to a non-oral contraceptive or add a barrier method of contraception for four weeks after first taking the medicine and for four weeks after each increase in the dose,’ the TGA says. In response, and as a precautionary measure, product warnings for tirzepatide have also been updated to include further advice for patients using oral contraceptives. An additional TGA investigation into the potential for reduced effectiveness of oral contraception when first taking or increasing the dose of Mounjaro revealed an association ‘could not be ruled out’. The dose can be slowly increased up to 3 mg daily, if required. It requires a daily injection with a starting dose of 0.6 mg. Use of antidepressant drug Coronary artery disease Increased heart rate and blood pressure The most common adverse events experienced with semaglutide were gastrointestinal events; similar to other GLP-1 RAs, these were transient and mild or moderate in severity. Improvements in body composition were observed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry in STEP 1, while reductions in visceral fat areas were observed in a subpopulation of participants assessed by computed tomography in STEP 6. The Satiety and Clinical Adiposity-Liraglutide (SCALE) Obesity and Prediabetes study was a key trial in determining liraglutide efficacy. If only one pathway is targeted, as in monotherapy, this can lead to the occurrence of compensatory mechanisms, which reduces drug efficacy; the use of phentermine/topiramate as a combined therapy can overcome these compensatory mechanisms. Some patients may lose about 5% of their body weight by taking phentermine. Some weight loss medications have been on the market for many years, and new ones emerge frequently. Most medications are prescribed for someone with a BMI of 30 or greater, or a BMI of 27 or greater if the person has weight-related health conditions. In people with type 2 diabetes, survodutide may improve both weight loss and A1c levels. After 46 weeks of treatment, people who took survodutide lost an average of 6% to 15% of their body weight. Another trial will see how well retatrutide works in people with obesity and diseases of the heart and blood vessels. It's a treatment for overweight, obesity, and fatty liver disease. Orforglipron is in phase III studies to see how well it works in people who are overweight, or who have obesity or type 2 diabetes. Nothing seemed to make much difference — until 2023, when her body mass index slightly exceeded 40, the threshold for severe obesity. While drinking lots of water makes Winfrey’s kidneys “very happy,” Jastreboff said there are other ways to “lessen nausea” while on weight-loss medication. Hydration is also one of the best ways to lessen nausea, a side effect that can frustrate GLP-1 users, as is increasing the dose of the medication very slowly, she said. Every medicine for any disease has side effects, and there’s always a risk-to-benefit ratio to consider, Jastreboff added. Oprah Winfrey says she had one big main side effect from taking a GLP-1 weight-loss drug. Up to half of all new-onset diabetes cases in this country are linked to obesity, a disease that now affects more than 40% of Americans. Tirzepatide (Mounjaro) was approved for treating type 2 diabetes in May 2022 and tagged for accelerated review for approval to treat obesity, which is anticipated sometime in 2023. These injectable drugs include dulaglutide (Trulicity), liraglutide (Victoza), and semaglutide (Ozempic); the latter is also available as a pill called Rybelsus. Who's a good candidate for these medications, and what else should people know about them? From week 36 to week 88, participants lost an addition 5.5% with tirzepatide and gained 14.0% with placebo. A post hoc analysis showed that the proportion of participants who increased anti-diabetic therapy intensity decreased in the tirzepatide arms and increased in the placebo arm. A1c was equally reduced by 2.1% with both tirzepatide 10 mg and 15 mg vs 0.5% with placebo. It is administered via once weekly subcutaneous injection at doses of 2.5, 5, 7.5, 10, 12.5, and 15 mg. Liraglutide is a daily injectable medication that acts on hormones that send signals from the gut to the brain to make the patient feel full quicker and decrease hunger signals. Ozempic may be a more familiar name to some patients. It is intended to be used indefinitely, in combination with a healthy diet and exercise. The next generation of weight-loss drugs will also mimic another natural gut hormone — amylin, which is released by the pancreas in response to food. Jastreboff is on the scientific advisory boards of several pharmaceutical companies that make weight-loss medications. When people stop treatment, "rapid weight regain" can happen, a 2026 review of studies found. GLP-1 drugs now account for more than 7% of all prescriptions in the U.S., according to Truveta Research, a health data company. Oprah Winfrey is among the high-profile GLP-1 users, and credits the medication with finally helping her find lasting weight loss.

If that serotonin enters the blood stream, it normally would cause no harm, due to the avid uptake of serotonin by red blood cells.
With the exception of naltrexone/bupropion, the currently approvedantiobesity drugs have not been tested for short- and long-term changes inambulatory blood pressure, which provides a better assessment of hypertensionthan office blood pressure alone andis superior to office-based measurements in predicting cardiovascular events andtarget organ injury 83–85.
Alli (pronounced AL-eye) is an over-the-counter drug meant for overweight adults struggling to shed excess pounds.
Therefore, new treatments for obesity that are both better tolerated and more efficacious are urgently needed (Halford et al., 2010; Kennett and Clifton, 2010; Rodgers et al., 2010; Vickers et al., 2011).
The results of this research will determine whether it eventually gets approved.
Www.fda.gov/drugs/new-drugs-fda-cders-new-molecular-entities-and-new-therapeutic-biological-products/new-drug-therapy-approvals-2022

Researchers from Oxford University analyzed 37 studies that examined what happened when people stopped taking weight loss drugs. Www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-approves-weight-management-drug-patients-aged-12-and-older You should feel comfortable asking whether your health care professional is prescribing a medication that is not approved for treating overweight and obesity. Side effects and other reactions to weight management medications are possible.10 For more information, visit the FDA drug database, DRUGS@FDA. If you do not lose at least 5% of your starting weight after 12 weeks on the full dose of your medication, your health care professional will probably advise you to stop taking it. It’s a milestone for the industry, which has struggled to make effective pill versions of the weight-loss injections for years. A phased approach allows NHS England to build an evidence base for sustainable and effective delivery of weight management services. Access to the medication will be provided in combination with a reduced calorie diet and increased physical activity, as outlined in the final NICE guidance. NICE has directed NHS England to prioritise a cohort of 220,000 patients, based on clinical need, over the first 3 years of a 12 year rollout. Not surprisingly, these medications are in high demand, especially semaglutide (for a list of these drugs and their brand names, see "Diabetes and anti-obesity drugs"). With the exception of orlistat, the currently approved antiobesity drugshave not been studied well among patients with overweight/obesity andhypertension. Whereas a small degree (2–5%) of weight loss, if maintained for 2years, can significantly reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes among patients withoverweight/obesity and weight loss of 5–10% significantly improvesglycemia in patients with type 2 diabetes, reductions in blood pressure are lesssignificant and vary with mild to moderate weight loss .

Does a High-Protein Diet Help With Weight Loss?

The amount of weight a person loses depends on the medication they take, their overall health, and other individual factors. More detailed information about each of the above weight loss medications can be found in the latest edition of Obesity Medicine Association’s Obesity Algorithm®. Some patients may lose about 5% of their body weight. Some patients may lose 5–10% of body weight. Some patients may lose an average of 5–10% of body weight. Orlistat is contraindicated in patients with malabsorption diseases, such as pancreatic insufficiency. Discontinuation for adverse effects is not different from placebo. Common adverse effects include insomnia, irritability, and anxiety; adverse effects do not appear to be different from placebo in limited study. Phentermine is contraindicated in patients with uncontrolled hypertension, history of cardiovascular disease, or untreated hyperthyroidism.

Side Effects and Other Factors to Consider

By July, CMS will launch its own short-term program to allow eligible Medicare Part D prescription plan beneficiaries to pay $50 a month for GLP-1 medications for the rest of the year. She has edited and written stories that tackle a wide range of subjects, including the COVID pandemic, emerging diseases, evolutionary biology and health inequities. “Even if you end up at the same weight as you were before, metabolically, you are likely a lot less healthy,” she says. Weight loss drugs are one part of the ongoing management of obesity. In Australia, the two drugs can be prescribed separately.8 Liraglutide or semaglutide could be combined with phentermine and topiramate or the bupropion/naltrexone combination. When to start drug treatment depends on the diet being used for the management of obesity. Additional trial data showed that a higher dose of the pill could deliver greater efficacy – more than 15% weight loss – surpassing the results seen with the highest dose of Eli Lilly's orforglipron. He also called the company's drug the "most efficacious pill," saying that no other products in development have been able to show its same level of weight loss in a late-stage trial. He told CNBC in December it has not been an issue for the more than a million people who are taking the lower-dose version of the pill for diabetes, marketed as Rybelsus, which entered the market in 2019. Eli Lilly's orforglipron is a small-molecule drug that is absorbed more easily in the body and doesn't require dietary restrictions like Novo Nordisk's pill, which is a peptide medication.

How does Ozempic work for weight loss?

Fresh fruits and vegetables provide hydration, she said, and patients should also drink water throughout the day. This article is part of AP’s Be Well coverage, focusing on wellness, fitness, diet and mental health. The nutritional needs of GLP-1 users aren’t that different from those of the general population, said Shannon Christen, a dietitian and diabetes educator with UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital. “You’re not magically going to be educated — without a doctor’s help — to eat healthy.” “A drug does not educate you on how to eat properly,” said Suzy Badaracco, a registered dietitian and president of the food trends forecasting firm Culinary Tides.

Byetta side effects

Liraglutide 1.8 mg resulted in significant reductions in cardiovascular outcomes in the LEADER trial, which enrolled patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and high cardiovascular risk. Furthermore, there are more non-responders to orlistat than to other drugs and the cardiovascular safety of orlistat is still unclear. Several other treatment options against obesity are being studied in clinical trials, including cannabinoid type 1 receptor blockers, amylin mimetics, peptide YY, neuropeptide Y inhibitors, fibroblast growth factor 21 analogs, and vaccines . Even when a patient is engaging in exercise and other lifestyle adjustments, medications can help with hunger, cravings, and metabolic preservation. Some patients who are less comfortable with injections may ask about weight-loss pills. Some medications are administered orally, and others are given as subcutaneous injections. It was FDA-approved for obesity in November 2023 under the brand name Zepbound. In addition to impressive weight loss, studies show improvements in cardiovascular risk factors and metabolic markers. The most common side effects were nausea, diarrhea, constipation and vomiting. Wegovy mimics one gut hormone the body produces after eating, GLP-1; and Zepbound mimics two, GLP-1 and GIP. The most common side effects were nausea and fatigue. This amylin drug from Eli Lilly is injected once a week. This drug from Novo Nordisk also mimics both GLP-1 and amylin, and is being tested as a daily pill and a weekly injection.

Who might benefit from weight management medications?

Always talk with your health care provider before you participate in a clinical study. Clinical trials—and other types of clinical studies—are part of medical research and involve people like you. The trials look to find new ways to prevent, detect, or treat disease and improve quality of life. The long history of underground drug use abounds with secret societies—colorful cliques of like-minded individuals surreptitiously experimenting with newfangled compounds in an effort to understand their mysteries. Additionally, articles published within Cureus should not be deemed a suitable substitute for the advice of a qualified health care professional. Currently, no clear guidelines for the pharmacotherapy of obesity exist and such studies could help develop them. Insufficient data regarding long-term effectiveness and risks of side effects was available. The downside is the subcutaneous route of administration which might be inconvenient for some patients, although weekly dosing makes it a bit more convenient than daily subcutaneous dosing of liraglutide. Discover how long it will take to reach your weight loss goals with our free weight loss calculator. The Mayo Clinic Diet now supports your journey with a special Companion program for weight-loss medication. Short-term benefits must be weighed against potential side effects and long-term health implications. While this may aid in weight loss, it's crucial to monitor any changes in nutritional intake and ensure that you are still receiving essential nutrients. Others try to compensate for undesirable effects, such as the fact that some of the weight people shed on GLP-1 drugs is due to muscle loss rather than fat loss. In 2023, another drug called tirzepatide (sold as Mounjaro for diabetes) was also approved for weight loss, marketed as Zepbound. Because of this, doctors might recommend staying on these drugs (perhaps at a lower dose) long term to maintain weight loss. Studies on long-term effects of GLP-1 drugs have found that some people regain weight after they stop taking these medicines. Meanwhile, 63 percent of adults ages 50 to 80 who are overweight expressed interest in taking a weight loss medication, according to research from the National Poll on Healthy Aging. The medication improved her adherence to caloric restriction, and she achieved weight loss of 5 kg. Modest weight loss of 5–10% could result in significant clinical benefit and improvement of Sally’s many obesity-related complications; unfortunately, the weight loss achieved with lifestyle modifications was not durable. She was keen to lose weight to improve her health and overall wellbeing, and wished to explore other options to aid with her efforts to lose weight. Sally had previously tried to lose weight with lifestyle interventions, including VLEDs and structured exercise programs, and achieved modest weight loss of 5 kg, which was not sustainable. In 2025, weight-loss GLP-1s accounted for an average of 10.5% of total annual claims among employers, up from 8.9% in 2024 and 6.9% in 2023, IFEBP found. Limited insurance coverage for GLP-1s is blocking out patients who can't afford their roughly $1,000 monthly price tags. Nedelcovych likened shutting them down to "a case of whack-a-mole." Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk's lawsuits against telehealth companies, pharmacies and others since 2023 have consumed time and resources, with mixed legal outcomes. In August, Novo Nordisk executives noted that around 1 million U.S. patients are taking compounded GLP-1s. The FDA declared an end to the shortages of tirzepatide and semaglutide over the last year. Grabarczyk found that, after 20 weeks of treatment, patients receiving orlistat experienced a 2.1% decrease in weight from baseline, those receiving phentermine-topiramate 4.1%, phentermine alone 3.6%, whereas only 1.6% weight reduction was reported with MOVE! At the one-year point, excess weight loss with orlistat compared to placebo was 2.6 kg (95% CrI -3.04 to -2.16 kg) . Observational and interventional studies written in English investigating the outcomes of obesity management with any of the aforementioned drugs that were published between 2012 and 2022 were included. Although exercise is critically important to good health, especially as you age, it doesn't help much with weight loss,” Wolver said. “Obesity affects every facet of a patient's life, so when you help them get healthy and lose weight, it changes lives,” Wolver said. People have to have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more than 27 if there is a comorbidity, meaning another condition related to obesity like high blood pressure. Excess skin following substantial weight loss can contribute to body dissatisfaction and physical discomfort.57 Long-term follow up is important to monitor and manage potential side effects such as nutrient deficiencies58 and bone density changes for osteoporosis risk.59 Although many people experience improvements in quality of life after bariatric surgery, some people experience the persistence or reappearance of psychological problems such as depression, excess alcohol consumption and other self-harming behaviours.606162 In an analysis of randomised clinical trials of people with and without T2D who used liraglutide, naltrexone-bupropion and orlistat at the recommended doses for ≥1 year, weight loss of 5% or more was achieved by 63, 55 and 44% of participants, respectively, compared with 23% of placebo participants, and ≥10% weight loss occurred in 34, 30 and 20% of participants after 12 months’ use compared to 9% with placebo.21 It should be noted that some of the studies included in this analysis used very intensive lifestyle interventions, and weight outcomes in both placebo and active intervention groups are often better in clinical trials compared with real-world results. Six medications are approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) for the treatment of obesity in Australia Now, scientists say they have developed a new medication that helps patients lose weight and manage blood sugars, while maintaining muscle mass. Wegovy prices have remained more stable, with starting doses costing around £130 and the highest maintenance dose (2.4mg) usually capped at £295. Prices for Mounjaro now typically start at around £149 for the 2.5mg dose, rising to between £300 and £375 for the 15mg maintenance dose. If you are prescribed weight-loss jabs on the NHS, they will cost the same as a standard NHS prescription (currently £9.90), unless you qualify for free prescriptions. In a note Thursday, JPMorgan analyst Chris Schott said retatrutide's tolerability data, or how well patients handle the treatment, is "somewhat worse vs Zepbound, though not surprising, in our view." More than 1 in 8 patients who took the drug were completely free from knee pain by the end of the trial, Eli Lilly said. The company said some patients lost so much weight that they decided to drop out of the trial. Still, the tolerability data, or how well patients tolerated Structure's treatment, appeared to be worse than that of Eli Lilly's pill. Some patients may also not need to take the highest dose of either pill, he added. Researchers continue to study hormones that play a role in appetite for other ways to target obesity with medication. In Phase 2, participants lost up to 24.2% of body weight at 48 weeks. In Phase 2, orforglipron showed weight loss up to 14.7%at 36 weeks. Novo Nordisk is developing an oral version of semaglutide (50 mg)specifically for obesity. In May 2025, they reported 39 new GLP-1 medications in development. It’s important to note, not everything on kffhealthnews.org is available for republishing. You must credit us as the original publisher, with a hyperlink to our kffhealthnews.org site. But as the dose increases, she said, “I’ll stay the course and give it a shot.” For older patients, often underrepresented in clinical trials, questions about GLP-1s remain. “An archaic policy,” said Stacie Dusetzina, a health policy researcher at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Significantly, both groups of mice ate the same amount of calories, indicating that RES-010 changed the body's metabolism, rather than causing the mice to simply eat less. These include the body's fat-metabolizing process, the creation and regulation of mitochondria, and the way in which the body's fat functions and is organized (a process known as adipose tissue remodeling). According to the researchers, miR-22 acts as a "master controller" of multiple processes related to obesity. The drug, which is called RES-010, works by employing an antisense oligonucleotide, a synthetic bit of genetic material that blocks the action of an RNA molecule known as miR-22. Emory Healthcare, with 29,500 employees and 11 hospitals, is the most comprehensive academic health system in Georgia. With injections, you (or a caretaker) gives the drug once a week; the specific time of day doesn't matter. (Notably, the not-yet-approved orforglipron pill can be taken with or without food, at any time of day.) Many patients prefer pills to needles, she said. But there’s good news for women who are battling their own menopausal weight gain. She continued, “Because as you heard, nobody’s laying around and saying, ‘Oh, I want to have obesity.’ This is a disease. The television icon spoke candidly about how the medication helped her overcome obesity and take back control of her relationship with food, inspiring her to push for these medications to become more accessible to the masses. Whoopi Goldberg issued a message appealing directly to Secretary of Health Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on The View after Oprah Winfrey stopped by the talk show to open up about her transformative experience using weight loss medication. Pharmac received two applications to fund Wegovy or semaglutide - a GLP-1 receptor agonist for weight loss. Pharmac is seeking clinical advice on whether weight loss medication should be funded. In June 2024, pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly submitted a study to the FDA of tirzepatide for treatment of moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea and obesity, and the FDA approved its use in December 2024. Before late 2024, Medicare had not been covering Zepbound because the FDA has approved it for weight loss only. “Ozempic is a medication for diabetes,” Levy said before its approval for kidney disease. This relationship can allow for dosage adjustments or alternative medications if one seems like a better fit for the patient. AOMs may counter the effects of metabolic adaptation and prevent weight regain. Additionally, drugs targeting hunger or satiety signaling have been actively studied and have shown increased adoption by physicians. Treating obesity is not just a matter of willpower for some people, Anekwe says, and the results underscore what happens when a helpful weight-loss intervention is interrupted. “It goes back to the effects that the GLP-1 medications have on appetite control. One possible strategy would be for people to go straight into a behavioral program, such as a diet or exercise regimen, as they came off the drugs. People who take a weight-loss medication lose fat, muscle and bone mass—but they tend to mostly regain fat if they don’t regularly exercise, McCoy says. What these findings suggest is that, while weight-loss drugs lead to faster results than diet and exercise alone, quitting them also results in weight being regained much faster, regardless of how much was initially lost. GLP-1 receptor agonists, like semaglutide, work by mimicking this hormone. Studies are ongoing to track the long-term safety of the drug in humans and in rats. This drug also has a black-box warning because rodent studies showed that it caused thyroid tumors. It helps promote insulin production in the pancreas, which in turn controls blood sugar. It was rejected by the FDA because of concerns about its long-term effects on the heart and cardiovascular system. Sally was unable to tolerate higher doses because of gastrointestinal side effects. Her medications included amlodipine 10 mg daily, perindopril 8 mg daily and atorvastatin 40 mg daily. Large cardiovascular outcome studies are currently being conducted for the newer medications (eg phentermine/topiramate combination, lorcaserin, naltrexone/bupropion) and should provide further long-term safety data as these become available. To date, there have not been any safety signals that have emerged to suggest that any of the currently available medications are not suitable for use in the long term.

Costs and coverage

The goals in managing chronic disease are patient-centric, with an informed patient being able to make choices to improve health outcomes. Weight loss is the most logical, broadly effective and commonly sought outcome by patients with obesity. The low uptake of all effective therapies beyond lifestyle interventions for weight management would be unacceptable for other chronic diseases. It often requires trying multiple medications to find the right one for each person. The Food and Drug Administration approved a pill version of Wegovy on Dec. 22, which probably will cost $149 a month for the lowest dosage, and similar weight-loss pills are expected to be available in the first half of the year. Medi-Cal members will be able to keep their GLP-1 coverage if they can demonstrate it is medically necessary for purposes other than weight loss, the Department of Health Care Services said. Medi-Cal members younger than 21 will remain covered for purposes including weight loss, California officials said, citing a federal requirement. Interest in providing the coverage “appears to be waning,” the survey found, probably because of the drugs’ cost and other state budget pressures. Also, take a multivitamin at least 2 hours before or after taking orlistat because the drug temporarily makes it harder for your body to absorb vitamins A, D, E, and K. Rare cases of severe liver injury have been reported in people taking orlistat, but it's not certain that the drug caused those problems. If you don't lose 5% of your weight after 12 weeks of taking Contrave, your doctor may tell you to stop taking it because it's unlikely to work for you, the FDA says.

"Studies also show that semaglutide and liraglutide, an older drug, can lower the risk of serious cardiovascular problems, such as heart attack and stroke, in people with obesity and diabetes," says Dr. Apovian.
Before trying weight-loss medicines, your health care provider will recommend that you try non-medicine ways for losing weight.
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SACRAMENTO — Many low-income Californians prescribed wildly popular weight-loss drugs will lose their coverage for the medications in the new year.
It's one of four similar weight-loss drugs approved for use for less than 12 weeks, called short-term use.
Eli Lilly on Thursday said it would lower prices by $50 on its own direct-to-consumer platform, LillyDirect, which already offers Zepbound and other drugs at a discount to cash-paying patients.
Novo Nordisk's pill appears to have among the lowest cash prices in the market, at $149 per month for the starting dose and $299 per month for the two highest doses.
And, as with most drugs, we don’t fully understand the effects weight-loss drugs might have in pregnancy.

The results showed that co-administration of GLP-1 and glucagon reduced food intake significantly and ameliorated the hyperglycemic effects of glucagon. It is released in response to physiological challenges that threaten adequate blood glucose levels and drives glucose production to restore euglycemia (Sandoval and D’Alessio, 2015). The safety profile of CagriSema is consistent with the GLP-1 RA and amylin analog drug classes, which means gastrointestinal adverse events are the most common adverse events (Frias et al., 2023). The most common adverse events were gastrointestinal symptoms, including nausea, diarrhea, decreased appetite, and vomiting, primarily during dose escalation (Zhao et al., 2024). A weight reduction of at least 10% by week 36 occurred in 46% to 75% of the participants who received orforglipron. “This will take some time as PCPs have not historically dealt with drugs that require frequent changes in dosage, with accompanying check-ins, until the patient reaches the full dosage. Now adoption of these medications is gaining strength internationally, bolstering their potential market. Many other over-the-counter diet supplements are promoted as helping with weight loss, but few have actually been proven to work. Patients taking both drugs should separate dosages by two hours. Orlistat may reduce levels of supplemental vitamins or medications such as cyclosporine.

Studies have found that the drugs can improve heart and liver health and can treat sleep apnea in overweight adults.
While the pills aren't expected to bring more weight loss than weekly shots, based on separate clinical trials, some health experts say expanding the range of treatments could still be a major win for patients.
According to the Mayo Clinic, a 2014 review found that people who dieted, exercised and took Alli for at least a year lost about 5.5 pounds (2.5 kilograms) more on average than those who dieted and exercised alone.
“Today’s announcement builds upon our … goal of democratizing access to weight-loss medication, which has been out of reach for so many in need,” says Dr. Mehmet Oz, CMS administrator.
In 2024, an enormous study that included 17,604 people in 41 countries found that semaglutide appeared to reduce heart failure in people who were overweight or obese and had cardiovascular disease.
They have become popular through telehealth companies, which prescribe and sell them at much lower prices than the brand versions.
Side effects such as nausea, diarrhea, and constipation are common.
To better understand why people show such big differences in their response to these medications, scientists have started investigating their underlying biology.

For example, loss of control over eating, obsessive behaviours, rigidity (eg rigid calorie counting), greater than expected weight loss, excessive self-weighing and/or weight fluctuations.9 Patients need to be informed about the cost of these drugs, in addition to discussing efficacy and safety. They are useful during the weight loss phase, but are essential in the maintenance phase. What it does is it seems to move the needle so patients can become more functional, but they may still need some fine tuning with the other medication,” he tells WIRED. “Tirzepatide has shown to have anti-inflammatory, metabolic, and cardiovascular effects that could be promising to long Covid patients.” In-person drug trials for long Covid have struggled to recruit patients because the debilitating nature of the condition makes it difficult for patients to travel for studies. “What is really exciting is that there are more promising drugs on the horizon that could produce even greater benefit with fewer side effects,” says Heisler. Beyond 2026, more than 100 weight-loss drugs are in development as pharmaceutical companies race to get a slice of the lucrative market. Anecdotal reports suggest drugs like Ozempic may curb not just appetite but also impulsive or addictive behaviour, hinting at links between metabolic health and our brains

Weight loss medications help with weight loss.
The drug should be used with caution, if at all, in patients with a previous history of hypertension, stroke, heart disease, or severe kidney or liver disease.
Naltrexone is approved to treat alcohol and opioid dependence.
Several antihypertensive medications have altered treatment effects inindividuals with obesity compared to the general population.
This medication can also help with Type 2 diabetes because it helps manage blood sugar levels.
At this point, millions of people in the U.S. have tried at least one of a variety of glucagonlike peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist drugs such as Zepbound or Wegovy.
Bimagrumab is a first-in-class novel AOM that is a monoclonal antibody against activin type 2 receptors on skeletal myoblasts; its phase 2 trial focused on the unique endpoint of fat mass loss rather than total body weight loss (167).
In animal studies, the medication improved blood sugar levels without sacrificing muscle mass.

Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus have the generic name semaglutide. We’ve updated our visitor guidelines to better protect patients, visitors and staff. For instance, a trial that finished earlier this year combined semaglutide with bimagrumab, which blocks a receptor that inhibits muscle growth, though the results have yet to be announced. It’s possible retatrutide could be approved in late in 2026, but it might be later. This means your body is actually working against you to lose weight. Our comprehensive weight management team is here to help you successfully lose weight and support you in your weight loss journey. These medications work best when you also eat healthy foods and get regular physical activity. Your body makes more insulin when you take these medications.

Phentermine and Topiramate (Qsymia)

However, preclinical studies of these drugs demonstrate supportive results in rodent and mice models 53–55, and we await further clinical trial data with anticipation. Encouragingly, there are several ongoing and unreported preclinical, phase I/II trials investigating drugs utilising this dual mechanism of action . Whilst these multi-agonists have not yet been licensed for use in people with T2D and/or obesity, preclinical and early clinical trials support a future role for their use . The development of oral semaglutide for T2D and/or obesity is of interest, as other GLP-1 analogues are currently available only as injectables often limiting their use. Absolute weight loss with liraglutide 3.0 mg (Saxenda) is reported up to 5.9 kg over 56 weeks 18, 19.

Ozempic cleared for kidney disease treatment

Indeed, comparative trials have shown that semaglutide 1.0 mg demonstrated greater weight loss efficacy than dulaglutide 1.5 mg (6.5 kg vs. 3.0 kg) . Semaglutide (Ozempic) is the most recent GLP-1 analogue to be approved for use in T2D and is currently available by subcutaneous injection for the treatment of T2D at a dose of up to 1.0 mg once weekly. As monotherapy the use of dulaglutide in people with T2D has been reported to increase weight loss by up to 2.3 kg They can expect to eat around 50% less than they ate before they started taking the medications, she said. The difference is that GLP-1 users eat less because the drugs suppress their appetites, so the foods they do eat need to be packed with nutrients, Christen said. Food and Drug Administration, unlike the popular medications themselves. Contrave, for example, has a lower risk of GI issues, but is known to have other potential side effects such as seizures and high-blood pressure, he said. Lowering the dose helped to reduce these effects. After one year on retatrutide, more than 85% of people with obesity reduced their liver fat so much that they were no longer considered to have MASLD. MASLD is a buildup of fat in the liver that affects some people with obesity. After one year, the 8 mg and 12 mg groups had lost an average of 23% to 24% of their body weight.

Its approval for sleep apnea and obesity allowed Medicare Part D plans to cover it for those reasons.
A 2023 analysis found that 68% of people taking semaglutide or liraglutide for weight loss stopped within a year.
By 2024, more than 645,000 prescriptions were covered by Medi-Cal across all uses of the medications.
See what health experts have to say about Ozempic for weight loss
That same warning also appears on labels for Wegovy and Eli Lilly & Co.'s diabetes drug Mounjaro that's frequently used for weight loss.
Lilly and U.S. government agree to expand access to obesity medicines to millions of Americans.
The med works to control your blood sugar by increasing insulin release and suppressing glucagon, which leads to decreased sugar released by the liver, says Rader.

Second, it is known that tolerance develops to the acute anorectic effect but not the weight loss effects of rimonabant-like compounds, and that the weight loss effect might involve CB1 receptors in peripheral tissues. Recent preclinical evidence suggests that neutral antagonists might retain the weight loss advantages of rimonabant, but without the adverse effects of this agent (e.g. Cluny et al., 2011). At the time of writing, orlistat is the only weight loss agent approved for long-term clinical use in Europe. It is therefore unsurprising that anti-obesity drug discovery programmes have been littered with false starts, failures in clinical development, and withdrawals due to adverse effects that were not fully appreciated at the time of launch. This Special Health Report covers cholesterol tests, the genetics of cholesterol, treatments based on the latest scientific evidence, and the pros and cons of statins and other medications. “People who have a history or family history of a rare thyroid cancer (medullary thyroid carcinoma) should not use this medication,” says Gudzune. “Obesity is a complex condition — so many factors contribute to its occurrence (and reoccurrence) over time, and these factors are not the same for all people,” says Gudzune. “Right now we use BMI combined with other medical conditions to determine eligibility for a medication,” says Gudzune. “People should always pursue a healthy diet for their overall cardiometabolic health and for adequate nutritional status,” says Dr. Kumar. "It's a worthwhile discussion for the patient and provider to really think about what is going to help them stay on the medication longer," said Watanabe. “A small number of patients have such significant nausea and vomiting that they cannot take this medicine.” They will see how you respond at each dose. Your doctor usually begins with the lowest dose for at least four weeks. You may get a prescription from your primary care doctor, obesity medicine specialist, endocrinologist or cardiologist. Zepbound and Mounjaro are brand names for a newer medication called tirzepatide. You also don't want to be taking any medications that could interact with a weight-loss drug. In studies, women lost about 5% to 10% of their initial body weight over a year on prescription weight-loss drugs. Novo Nordisk's newly acquired drug is a clear potential competitor to retatrutide because it similarly uses a three-pronged approach to promoting weight loss and regulating blood sugar. Eli Lilly said those dropout rates were "highly correlated" to patients' starting body mass index and included discontinuations due to "perceived excessive weight loss." One concern with current weight loss drugs is that they can lead to the loss of lean muscle mass. “It is my hope as a physician that the FDA will choose to approve all three doses so that we have flexibility in choosing the best dose for our patients that optimises health and minimises side effects,” she says. Eli Lilly is hoping the drug will be approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for treating obesity and type 2 diabetes early next year, says Horn. About a tenth of the participants on the high and medium doses had to stop taking the drug due to side effects such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea, which was about twice the rate seen in the low-dose and placebo groups. People taking the high dose also saw a reduction in their blood sugar levels of nearly 2 per cent, on average, with about 75 per cent of them achieving levels commonly targeted by diabetes patients, says Horn. The companies have agreed to sell the treatments for $245 a month across both programs for weight loss and diabetes. Researchers concluded that those taking tirzepatide were “significantly more likely to achieve weight loss,” but added that more studies are needed to better understand the full range of benefits and effects both drugs have on patients. Recent studies have shown that patients on high-dose semaglutide can lose an average of 15% to 20% of their body weight, a level previously achievable only with bariatric surgery. Www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-approves-first-treatment-weight-management-people-certain-rare-genetic-conditions Www.fda.gov/drugs/news-events-human-drugs/fda-approves-treatment-chronic-weight-management-pediatric-patients-aged-12-years-and-older PubMed database was searched using the keywords “pharmacotherapy”, “weight loss”, “FDA-approved”, “orlistat”, “phentermine-topiramate”, “naltrexone-bupropion”, “liraglutide”, and “semaglutide”. However, a massive obstacle in developing treatment guidelines remains the lack of prolonged studies monitoring the long-term safety and efficacy of obesity medications. “None of these medications were tested in long-term trials prior to repurposing them for the treatment of obesity. Researchers are also currently studying if the drug can help lower the risk of cancer for people who have type 2 diabetes, lower the risk of dementia and stroke and prevent age-related diseases. A randomised controlled trial compared patient outcomes at 5 years post SG and RYGB and found both effective but no statistically significant difference in weight loss.39 A systematic review and meta-analysis in 2022 compared outcomes of SG, RYGB and OAGB. One of the newer procedures is the endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty in which stitches are placed inside the stomach to reduce its capacity.232 A randomised controlled trial found significantly greater weight loss achieved from endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty than lifestyle modification.33 The endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty is similarly minimally invasive, however achieves greater and longer lasting weight loss than the intragastric balloon with mean total weight loss at 12 months of 17.51% and 10.35% respectfully.32 They promise easy weight loss but there is no evidence that any of these products are of any value to assist weight loss, and some may be counterproductive or unsafe.26 There is a plethora of non-prescription weight loss supplements and herbal medicines available for sale in pharmacies and supermarkets in Australia, and sales suggest that they are widely consumed. Weight loss of 5% is sufficient to bring about improvements in some weight-related complications see Health benefits of weight loss. Many of them are used to treat both obesity and Type 2 diabetes. Several of these medications (for example, phentermine and diethylpropion) are still used in practice, mostly in generic forms. Some are oral medications (taken by mouth) while others are self-administered once-a-week injections. And according to Dr. Butsch, this new generation of drugs is safer and more effective than ever. “It’s a dysfunction of the complex system that controls body weight, which is largely based on genetics.” We’re clearing the air about which medications are available, how they work, and who they may be right for. If you’ve had lingering questions about the array of weight loss meds on the market, read on. Much has changed in recent years, however, with the advent of newer prescription weight-loss meds approved by the U.S. Among those who have ever used GLP-1 drugs, cost is among the most commonly cited reasons for stopping, the poll found. Why some people lose their hair when they’re on GLP-1s