Ozempic Reshapes The Kinds of Food People Eat. Here's What Happens.
Along with other semaglutide drugs like Mounjaro and Wegovy, Ozempic is what's known as a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA), which means it mimics the body's natural response to food to reduce appetite and slow digestion.
Led by the US Department of Agricultural Economics & Agribusiness, the study analyzed the eating habits of 1,955 participants, split into four groups: those currently taking GLP-1RAs, those who had taken them in the past, those who were planning to take them, and those who had never taken them and weren't planning to.
"Results show that consumers currently taking a GLP-1RA consume significantly fewer calories than the other groups surveyed, and calorie reduction while taking a GLP-1RA for weight loss could be around 720 to 990 calories," write the researchers in their published paper.
As well as cutting down on the calories, those taking GLP-1RAs were most likely to reduce the amount of processed foods, sugary drinks, refined grains (such as white bread), and beef in their diet. Consumption of fruits, leafy greens, and water all went up, however.
There was a twist in the data story: people taking GLP-1RAs reported that they still wanted to eat high-calorie foods like processed foods and sugary drinks as much as before, they just chose not to, for whatever reason. Those effects could be the subject of future studies, the researchers suggest.
With tens of thousands of people starting a course of a GLP-1RA drug every week in the US, this shift in eating habits could have a major impact on food and drink production. We might even see foods specifically marketed towards people taking these drugs.
"Our study shows that adoption of GLP-1 agonists changes both the amount and types of food people eat," says agricultural economist Jayson Lusk of Oklahoma State University.
"These results have important implications for the food industry."
It's worth bearing in mind that Ozempic and drugs like it are still relatively new, and there's still a lot more to discover about them and how they work, beyond the average 15-20 percent weight loss they can lead to.
Originally developed to treat diabetes, these drugs are not without their side effects, and can trigger digestive problems in some people. One of the ways in which this new research might help is by pointing to dietary routines that could help boost the positives of GLP-1RAs while minimizing the risks.
"These findings underscore the need for further research into the specific physiological and metabolic pathways affected by GLP-1RAs, particularly regarding how they reshape dietary behaviors," write the researchers.
The research has been published in Food Quality and Preference.
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Almost everyone who stops taking the medications regains about two-thirds or more of the weight they lost on them — a widely accepted statistic that can make it hard for someone with an eating disorder to quit the drugs. But we don't yet have solid evidence on the long-term impacts of these drugs on health. "In our population, people take it to a new level," Jahraus said. "They don't understand the risks involved. What are you going to do when you stop taking the medication for whatever reason, and you gain back two-thirds of the weight you lost? To an eating disorder patient, that's a disaster." Labels for Wegovy and Zepbound warn of side effects such as nausea and vomiting, but they say nothing about eating disorders, which affect nearly 1 in 10 people in the United States, according to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders. Anorexia nervosa has the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. Doctors fail to recognize eating disorders in people with larger bodies Another issue is that many doctors aren't properly trained in eating disorder treatment. "People are often surprised to learn that routine screening for eating disorders risk does not occur in many medical settings, including those where GLP-1 drugs are prescribed," said Dr. Doreen Marshall, the CEO of the National Eating Disorders Association. Many general medical practitioners receive limited or no training or education on eating disorders." This is especially true when it comes to patients with larger bodies, who may suffer from BED or atypical anorexia. Many doctors see a heavier patient and assume they simply need to lose weight, but that's not always true. "We're prescribing for higher-weight people what we diagnose as eating disorders in thin people," said Deb Burgard, a psychologist and eating disorders specialist who's one of the founders of the Health at Every Size framework of care. 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They would be devastated if they knew why I'm really taking it Rose, who asked a relative to get her Ozempic, saying it was for diabetes As for Rose, she has lost about 45 pounds since starting Ozempic. After her insurance stopped covering it, she began paying $1,000 a month out of pocket for a similar drug, Rybelsus, that a family member — believing she wanted it for her diabetes — helped her procure. "They would be devastated if they knew why I'm really taking it," she said. She has had regular appointments with her endocrinologist but never discussed her GLP-1 use. In mid-May, she ran out of Rybelsus and didn't refill it; it was too expensive. Around this same time, she landed in the hospital with low potassium, which doctors blamed on her overuse of diuretics. If she had her way, she'd go back on Ozempic to lose another 45 pounds. She's thinking about buying some online, which won't require a doctor's prescription. This, of course, is dangerous in its own right, as unregulated or unlicensed vendors have been selling fake Ozempic online or in medical spas. In June 2024, the World Health Organization warned about falsified batches of Ozempic; the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy identified thousands of websites illegally selling fraudulent weight-loss drugs. Worldwide, 42 people were hospitalized after taking fake injections, according to the FDA's Adverse Event Reporting System. Some people died. Rose knows she's playing with fire. Still, she isn't ready to give up the drug. "I feel like I'm doing better than I have in a while, but the thoughts of wanting to lose weight or take Ozempic don't ever go away." Read the original article on Business Insider Solve the daily Crossword


Vogue
3 hours ago
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First Came Ozempic Face. Now People Are Dealing With Ozempic Hair and Muscle Loss
Ever since Ozempic flooded the mainstream consciousness, the controversial weight loss drug of choice has come with some well-documented downsides. Many have dealt with the infamous Ozempic face, which experts describe as rapid weight loss to the face and loss of elasticity in the skin, causing one to look much older. 'Ozempic face can look gaunt, deflated, and saggy,' New York-based facial plastic surgeon Dr. Jennifer Levine once told Vogue. 'Think raisin as opposed to grape!' Now, people are noticing that Ozempic and similar GLP-1 drugs (Mounjaro, Wegovy, Rybelsus, and Zepound, to name a few) are affecting their hairline and possibly weakening their muscle strength. So what gives? Why is this happening? Though some studies link these drugs to hair loss, experts still say it is not a direct side effect of GLP-1s like Ozempic or other medications like Mounjaro. Marisa Garshick, MD, board-certified dermatologist at MDCS Dermatology, explains that it's actually more of an indirect result of rapid weight loss, nutritional deficiencies, or stress on the body. 'Telogen effluvium is a type of hair shedding that may be noticed a few months after the body experiences some type of change or stress,' says Dr. Garshick (it's akin to the dramatic hair shedding some saw in the months post-COVID-19). 'People on GLP-1s may not actually notice hair shedding or thinning for several months after they are on it.' As for muscle loss—that's just a general side effect of losing weight, regardless of whether the impetus is diet, exercise, surgery, or a medication like Ozempic. Holly Lofton, MD, director of the medical weight management program at NYU Langone Health, tells Vogue that experts see medications like Wegovy and Zepbound are causing the same—and sometimes more—amount of muscle loss as one might experience through more traditional weight loss methods. Studies show that 25 to 30% of the total weight loss caused by calorie restriction and exercise comes from lean body mass, which includes muscles. So if someone were to lose 20 pounds, she says around 5 to 6 pounds of that might be muscle that is lost. Studies on medications like Wegovy and Zepbound show patients can lose roughly 15 to 22% of their total weight, with about 25% of that weight loss being lean muscle mass. 'These drugs are not necessarily muscle-sparing,' she says. 'However, because people tend to lose more total weight on these medications, the absolute amount of muscle loss can be greater (unless we intervene with resistance training and adequate protein intake).' What can you do about it? There are a few things you can do to treat hair and muscle loss that you might experience when on these medications. Dr. Garshick says that it is normal to shed about 50 to 100 hairs a day, so you should only be concerned if you notice significantly more hair falling out or if your hair loss persists longer than three to six months. If that is the case, she recommends seeing a board-certified dermatologist to be properly evaluated. 'Since telogen effluvium is considered a temporary process, once the weight stabilizes, it is possible the hair loss will slow down and hair regrowth will resume and normalize even without doing any specific intervention,' she says. 'While this process can take six to 12 months, providing reassurance that it can get better on its own is often sufficient.' She says getting bloodwork done to see if there are hormonal changes or nutritional deficiencies that can be addressed through diet (making sure you are consuming enough protein is key) or the use of oral supplements like Nutrafol or Wellbell. You can also turn to thickening and volumizing shampoos, like the Nioxin Hair Fall Defense Shampoo or the Vegamour GRO Revitalizing Shampoo, and leave-in products like the Virtue Flourish Density Booster, to help increase hair density. For more intense treatments, you can inquire about platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy to stimulate hair growth.