The UK’s Daily Mail newspaper notes Novo Nordisk ‘…has spent around $1 billion since 2018 to create the perception that sustained weight loss is only achievable by using the products.’
Scientific American questions if weight-loss drugs are sparking a risky new war on obesity?
In counter to recent clinical trials, weight maintenance after stopping GLP-1 drug semaglutide may be possible, as per the Epic Research study.
Weight reduction and prevention of muscle mass loss – The Wall Street Journal reviews the role of new drugs to partner with GLP-1 meds?
From JAMA Network Open of almost four hundred thousand adults in the UK, an improvement in social isolation, can reduce death rates, by up to 36%, measured over a 12-year period.
The UK’s Daily Mail newspaper notes Novo Nordisk ‘…has spent around $1 billion since 2018 to create the perception that sustained weight loss is only achievable by using the products.’
Tens of millions of dollars have been paid to leading obesity cardiology specialist physicians to promote the drugs, and lobby for insurers to cover costs – but this is not new or only related to this drug.
The focus, with which I agree, is for obesity and related metabolic disease, to be treatable, to be a medical condition, and to necessitate life-long therapy.
Promotional speaking payments from Novo Nordisk to clinical leaders totaled over $34 million in 2022, including UCLA professor of medicine Dr. Ebrahimi, Dr. Josh Stolker from St. Louis, Missouri; Dr. Lee Kaplan and Dr. Donna Ryan, both leading global obesity specialists, were each paid over one million dollars in the past decade by Novo Nordisk.
To be frank, we need greater visibility from all vantage points to adequately treat 110 million Americans suffering from obesity and related metabolic diseases every day; in this vein I am supportive of Novo Nordisk and all other stakeholders to reframe the narrative – for the sake of all our patients.
The American College of Clinical Pharmacology issues a call for action toward timely inclusion of obese participants in clinical trials during the drug development process.
Whilst 42% of the US adult population is obese, typical phase 1 clinical pharmacology trials are conducted in healthy volunteers with criteria that limit participation by those that have a body size, weight, or body mass index (BMI) that falls outside a particular healthy range.
This will assist in dose adjustment, safety, and efficacy to guide optimal usage in patients with obesity.
OPINION
Scientific American questions if weight-loss drugs are sparking a risky new war on obesity?
Viagra’s FDA approval in 1998 led to a financial bonanza for Pfizer, with ‘…aggressive targeted marketing to catapult the drug from an erectile dysfunction treatment to a lifestyle pill.’
And will Ozempic and others experience a similar meteoric explosion?
We are already there – with Hollywood celebs, social media influencers, and those who simply want to maintain a normal weight – taking the drug with liberality.
Moving away from weight loss, or even weight health, toward treatment to afford chronic disease resolution, for those with diabetes, high blood pressure, or arthritis, takes us away from vanity usage.
Indeed, GLP-1s are a major advance in treatment for those with obesity and related metabolic diseases, underpinned by a multimodal care journey, akin to cancer care.
What if… we talked about five-year obesity free survival, just like we measure five-year cancer free survival?
Weight reduction and prevention of muscle mass loss – The Wall Street Journal reviews the role of new drugs to partner with GLP-1 meds?
Blocking the myostatin through dispensing antibodies lead to more muscle, with laboratory rodents at Johns Hopkins recently referred to as ‘mighty mice’.
Roche and Regeneron are actively working in this space, the latter in partnership with Novo Nordisk.
In addition, Keros Therapuetics, Biohaven and Scholar Rock are aiming to demonstrate people can lose weight while preserving muscle mass.
DATA
From a study published in JAMA Network Open of almost four hundred thousand adults in the UK, it is known that individuals with obesity experience higher degrees of social isolation or loneliness, leading to higher rates of death.
An improvement in social isolation, can reduce death rates, by up to 36%, measured over a 12-year period.
The ‘…findings lend support to social isolation and loneliness control to decrease the risk of all-cause mortality in people with obesity.’
Indeed, a lack of social support may exacerbate the health-risk behaviors of people with obesity including smoking, inactivity, and unhealthy diets and might also neglect health-protective behaviors, such as adherence to medical recommendations.
Further, social interaction and support may reduce stress, promote healthy behaviors, and provide emotional support.
In counter to recent clinical trials, weight maintenance after stopping GLP-1 drug semaglutide may be possible, as per the Epic Research study.
Over 20,000 patients who had lost over five pounds whilst on at least 90 days of semaglutide, were assessed at one year after discontinuation of the drug.
One in six regained their weight, though just over half remained around the same weight, or lost more weight.
The data comes from Cosmos, a collaboration of more than 227 million patient records from 1,301 hospitals and more than 28,600 clinics from across all 50 US states and Lebanon.
The Philadelphia Inquirer notes Pennsylvania’s dogs are the most overweight in the country, according Veterinarians.org, a veterinarian-informed information group on pet issues.
The study found that Pennsylvania dogs carry over 18 excess pounds on average.
Across the US, the rate of pet obesity has steadily increased over the past 20 years, reaching 59% of dogs and 61% of cats.
