A new wonder drug for treating obesity has been described as a “game changer” by UK researchers.
The drug, semaglutide, induces weight loss by reducing hunger and increasing feelings of fullness, which helps people eat less and reduce their calorie intake. Semaglutide is already approved and used clinically at a lower dose for treatment of type 2 diabetes. The drug mimics a hormone that is released into the blood from the gut after meals.
One third of people who took part in a major global study involving semaglutide lost more than one-fifth of their total body weight.
Rachel Batterham, Professor of Obesity, Diabetes and Endocrinology who leads the Centre for Obesity Research at University College London and the UCLH Centre for Weight Management, is one of the principal researchers on the study, which involved almost 2000 people in 16 countries.
She said: "The findings of this study represent a major breakthrough for improving the health of people with obesity. Three quarters (75%) of people who received semaglutide 2.4mg lost more than 10% of their body weight and more than one-third lost more than 20%. No other drug has come close to producing this level of weight loss - this really is a game changer. For the first time, people can achieve through drugs what was only possible through weight-loss surgery."
To put that into context, someone who is 136kg could lose upwards of 20kg in a little over a year while taking semaglutide.
The average participant in the trial lost 15.3kg; this was accompanied by reductions in risk factors for heart disease and diabetes, such as waist circumference, blood fats, blood sugar and blood pressure and reported improvements in their overall quality of life.
Participants from Asia, Europe, North America, and South America took part and were required to take a single pill once a week. They also received individual face-to-face or phone counselling sessions from registered dietitians every four weeks to help them adhere to the reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity, providing guidance, behavioural strategies and motivation.
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