Latest news with #EuropeanObesityCongress
Daily Mirror
13-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mirror
'Gastric bypass in a pill' helps weight loss without side effects, inventors say
Obesity conference hears how daily pill causes food digestion to bypass part of the stomach so fewer calories are actually absorbed by the body A 'gastric bypass in a pill' could help dieters feel full quicker and shed pounds, inventors say. The new daily tablet produces a coating at the top of the intestine, moving digestion to the lower part where fullness hormones are triggered. Manufacturer Syntis Bio reckons it could become 'the go to drug for weight management' as it will have fewer side effects than powerful appetite-suppressing injections. Gastric bypass operations have been performed by the NHS on the dangerously obese for over 20 years. They involve creating a small stomach pouch and directly connecting it to the small intestine, bypassing the rest of the stomach and the upper part of the small intestine. This reduces the body's ability to absorb calories and causes the release of key hormones. A new study, presented at the European Obesity Congress in Malaga, Spain, trialled a pill which works in the same way. It activates an enzyme in the gut to create a temporary coating in the top part of the intestine. Food cannot be absorbed through the coating and it directs it to lower parts of the intestines. Participants feel full before they have absorbed much of the food, so eat less. Researcher Rahul Dhanda, president of Syntis Bio, said: 'We make this to restrict absorption in the top part of the intestine, while the lower part of the intestine remains fully functional and unobstructed. The intestine is two to three metres long and this covers roughly 15cm at the top of it. It's about directing absorption to the lower intestine.' Glucose tolerance tests revealed delayed uptake of glucose and at 30 and 60 minutes, glucose absorption was far lower than in untreated patients. This delay suggests that absorption occurs later in the intestine, as expected, rather than in the coated region of the duodenum. The pilot study was not designed to measure weight loss, but participants receiving a full dose of the pill, currently called SYNT-101, also received blood tests to look at hormones linked to feelings of fullness. They showed elevated levels of leptin and lower levels of ghrelin, consistent with reduced food intake. The early stage trial suggested the drug is safe and the manufacturers believe it will come with fewer, if any, side effects when compared to weight loss injections. However more trials are needed to prove this and if it brings about sustained weight loss. Mr Dhanda said: 'What this does is integrate with the mucosal membrane which is naturally excreted by the body, and this goes along with it. You take the pill once a day in the morning and it should be cleared by the next morning or evening, depending on the patient. 'I anticipate the side effects to be minimal to none, and we haven't seen any yet in human tests. That is because we're not entering the bloodstream like injections do. It's a mechanical molecule so it's like we're inserting a stent, as opposed to a drug that is acting with the target and also off the target.'
Daily Mirror
13-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mirror
'Golden age' of weight loss jabs coming – some are about to get a lot cheaper
Scientists herald 150 new jabs and pills to tackle obesity going through the research pipeline - but issue urgent warning to the NHS A 'golden age' of weight loss drugs is on the horizon which could finally reverse the rising tide of obesity, scientists say. The leader of the first head-to-head trial comparing the two leading appetite-suppressing jabs revealed at the European Obesity Congress in Malaga, Spain, there are 150 more such drugs in the pipeline. A host of obesity experts have called on the NHS to urgently ramp up capacity at its weight loss clinics so pills and jabs can be cheaply prescribed to much of the population as they come 'off patent'. Professor Jason Halford, of the European Association for the Study of Obesity, said: 'If the government and NHS are serious about prevention they need to reconsider their position on the speed of the rollout of these drugs, as this evidence comes to light. "In ten years time the landscape is going to be completely different. There will be lots more obesity drugs available, they should be in more usable forms and they should be a lot more affordable.' Dr Louis Aronne, director at Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, US, led a trial showing the Mounjaro jab saw users lose 50% more weight than Wegovy, and that newer versions would keep getting better. He said: 'I think we're going to see more medications. The other day I saw a list of 150 medications, many GLP-1s, but also other mechanisms. I call it the golden age of obesity treatment.' 'They will be less expensive, and hopefully the oral small molecules which are cheaper to manufacture and distribute. I think health systems should be ready to roll them out at scale.' Obesity rates have been rising globally for the last 30 years and more than a billion people are now considered obese. This has contributed to a rising tide of chronic illness, particularly in the West, where we live longer with diseases such as cancer, heart disease, dementia and diabetes placing a huge burden on healthcare systems. Pharmaceutical companies are pumping tens of billions of pounds into a new generation of appetite-suppressing medicines which could finally help reverse the rise in obesity. Weight loss pills are expected to take over from injections making them more readily available. Prof Halford added: 'The Holy Grail would be the small molecule, something that works as a hormone would do. But we could take orally like a regular tablet and that's where I think we will be going in probably the next 10 years. In a decade from now we'll have some of the medications off license so they'll be much cheaper. The more treatment we have, the more competition we have, the lower the prices. At the moment the NHS rollout does not take into account the number of medications potentially available in the next 10 years.' Novo Nordisk manufactures market leading jabs Wegovy and Ozempic, for type 2 diabetes which are both due to come 'off patent' in the coming years so generic versions will be sold for a few pence rather than hundreds of pounds. It also has a pill form of the drugs going through clinical trials. Another study presented at the conference showed Wegovy halved the risk of dying from stroke or heart attack in people with obesity and cardiovascular disease. The Select trial also found Wegovy protected against heart disease even before people had lost any weight, possibly by reducing inflammation. Author Professor Donna Ryan, presenting the findings from manufacturer Novo Nordisk, said they "should change public policy everywhere". She added: "I think what our study today does is it further emphasises there is no need to wait. There's always inertia in medicine. We're slow moving. What this analysis says is that this treatment works early - so why wait?' Currently around half a million Brits are taking the weekly jabs, mainly by paying for private prescriptions, despite over four million being eligible for them on the NHS. NHS England responded justifying its gradual rollout of jabs such as Mounjaro, which will only see 220,000 people being prescribed it in the next three years due to the cost and resources needed to provide accompanying weight management support from a specialist. Dr Claire Fuller, NHS England's medical director for primary care, said: 'Weight loss drugs are a powerful part of our arsenal to tackle obesity and support people to lose weight and reduce their risk of other illnesses like diabetes, heart attacks and stroke. From next month, some eligible patients will be able to access the weight loss drug Mounjaro for the first time. The drug has already been approved for use for some adults in specialist weight management services, and 220,000 people will be eligible to benefit over the first three years. 'This phased roll out will ensure those with the greatest clinical need can access the treatment as a priority, at the same time as the NHS develops new and innovative services through which other weight loss treatments can also be delivered in the future. Local NHS organisations will be providing further information on how patients can access services in due course.' The powerful drugs must be prescribed alongside specialist support to help people transform their diet and activity levels. Without substantial lifestyle changes users will pile the weight back on if they ever come off the jabs. Some people have to stop taking them due to side effects, such as vomiting. Novo Nordisk patented its blockbuster GLP-1 drug semaglutide in both its branded forms Ozempic and Wegovy. Its 'core' patient expires in 2026 but the pharmaceutical company has 220 'secondary' patients in 28 countries which could extend its market exclusivity to 2033. After then the price of drugs based on its semaglutide molecule will plummet and the availability of generic versions of the drugs will explode. Other first-generation weight loss jabs such as liraglutide, sold under the brand names Saxenda for obesity and Victoza for diabetes, and dulaglutide, brand name Trulicity, are set to see their patents expire soon paving the way for generic alternatives. Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, director at the British Heart Foundation, said: 'A generation ago, effective drugs for obesity would have been a pipe dream. Yet here we are with the potential to make a massive dent in the number of lives cut too short by cardiovascular disease and other conditions such as dementia and cancer. It is imperative that the health service embraces this opportunity and ensures those in need of these lifesaving treatments can access them.' Big pharma is competing to find new drugs including one drug dubbed the 'Godzilla' of appetite-suppressing injectables which saw trial participants lose up to 24% of their body weight in less than a year. The weekly jab called retatrutide helps the body burn more fat as well as making users feel more full so they eat less. This twin approach has helped it outperform Wegovy, Ozempic and Mounjaro which only suppress appetite. As well as GLP-1 and GIP hormones, retatrutide targets a third hormone known as glucagon which triggers the body to burn more fat when we move. The trial results showed it helped people with obesity shed 60 pounds on average in just 48 weeks. Women lost even more shedding 28.5% of their body weight compared to 21.2% in the male half of the trial. But experts insist these drug breakthroughs should not stop political leaders from ignoring the root causes of obesity, namely that society is now set up so we usually have cheap, unhealthy food at our finger tips and it is difficult or expensive to make the healthy choice. Katharine Jenner, director of the Obesity Health Alliance, said: 'It's no surprise that major pharmaceutical companies are investing heavily in obesity treatment. They recognise the scale of the opportunity. That opportunity exists largely because we've failed to tackle the root causes of obesity.'
Daily Mirror
10-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Just five minutes of exposure to junk food advertising makes children eat more
Junk food advertising loophole revealed as experts warn children have favourite fast food logos for outlets like McDonalds, KFC and Burger King even by the age of five Scientists have revealed how just five minutes of exposure to junk food advertising causes children to consume more calories later that day. Research has shown how even adverts which show a familiar fast food brand logo - but no food product - cause kids to eat more of any food they are given. The study involved 240 children aged seven to 15 at schools across Merseyside and is being presented at the European Obesity Congress in Malaga, Spain. It has sparked warnings that marketers are becoming more sophisticated in advertising junk food to children. Experts warn the study exposes a serious loophole in the Government's planned ban on junk food TV adverts before 9pm, which comes into force in October. The research looked at the power of brands including McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, Domino's, Kelloggs, Walkers, Cadbury and Ben & Jerry's. Study lead Emma Boyland, a professor of food marketing and child health at Liverpool University, said: 'This is the first study to show that brand-only food advertising effects what children eat, where the advert just shows branding elements like logos, rather than specific food products. For the first time we've shown that that type of advertising, which is becoming more frequent does affect children's food intake. 'It just shows the strength of the brand imagery, that in many cases are very familiar to children from a very young age, children are able to identify brands and have special preferences for particular products or fast food outlets etc. before they start school.' Children involved in the trial were, on two different occasions, shown five minutes of food-related and non-food adverts. After each exposure, they were offered snacks such as grapes or chocolate buttons, and, a while later, trays of lunch food with savoury, sweet and healthy items. Those who saw a five minute junk food advert consumed 130 more calories a day and the effect was the same for adverts featuring specific food products or with only branding. The Government confirmed in December that a 9pm watershed will be introduced for TV adverts featuring junk food products, along with restrictions on paid online adverts. It claimed the measures would prevent thousands of cases of childhood obesity by removing around 7.2 billion calories per year from the diets of UK children. Prof Boyland said the Advertising Standards Authority had yet to set out final guidance but brand-only advertising is expected to be exempt. She added that this type of content, which seeks to more subtly create a positive impression of brands, was becoming increasingly popular. Prof Boyland said: 'This research suggests that we need to look at what's happening in the media and advertising trends, and that is certainly towards a greater emphasis on brands and creating positive associations with positive attributes like happiness, positive emotions and so on.' Katharine Jenner, director of the Obesity Health Alliance, said: 'Food advertising is driving excess calorie intake in children. From October, new restrictions will limit unhealthy food adverts on TV before 9pm and online at any time - a vital step forward that will protect children from the worst offenders. But loopholes remain. 'Brands will still be able to advertise to young people even without showing specific products, on billboards and at bus stops, and children living with overweight or obesity are especially vulnerable. 'Small reductions in calorie intake can lead to meaningful improvements in children's health. If the government is serious about ending junk food advertising to children, they must close the loopholes that will allow companies to keep bombarding them.' Children ate 58 calories more in snacks and 73 calories more at lunchtime after being exposed to junk food adverts. The additional calories combined were equivalent to extra two slices of bread every day and experts are warning that all adds up. Prof Boyland added: 'We also showed that children don't just eat more immediately following food advertising, they actually ate more at the lunch meal as well, a couple of hours after they had seen the advertising. 'This led to an overall increased consumption of 130 calories in the day, just based on five minutes of advertising exposure which of course is much less than children would typically be seeing on a normal day. That's a substantial uplift in calorie intake that over time, if repeated, would clearly lead to weight gain in young people. RCPCH Officer for Health Improvement Dr Helen Stewart said: 'Childhood obesity is stubbornly high, with children in the most deprived areas facing rates more than twice as high as their peers. Paediatricians recognise that tackling this crisis is impossible without also introducing necessary measures such as regulations on the food industry. 'We call on the government to implement the junk food marketing ban as planned, and without further delay. Reducing children's exposure to unhealthy food advertising is a crucial step in curbing rising obesity levels. Every child should be given the chance to grow up healthy and happy.' A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "This government has taken bold action to end junk food ads targeted at children on TV and online, which will reduce the number living with obesity by 20,000, and deliver health benefits to the economy worth £2 billion. 'We are encouraging the industry to focus on healthier options, by allowing companies to advertise healthier alternatives in identified categories. Through our Plan for Change, we will shift the focus from sickness to prevention, reducing the burden of obesity on public services and the NHS.'
