Sufferers might wean themselves off blockbuster weight problems medication reminiscent of Ozempic or Wegovy with out piling the kilos again on, in line with a scientific research.
Knowledge introduced on the European Congress on Weight problems in Venice, Italy on Sunday offers a number of the first proof that it may very well be attainable to cease taking Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic or Wegovy and never regain any weight that has been misplaced — so long as a wholesome life-style is maintained.
When medication like Ozempic and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound had been first launched, they had been pitched as long-term medicines, with analysis indicating that sufferers regain giant quantities of the burden they’ve misplaced once they cease taking the medication.
The Danish research of sufferers utilizing semaglutide, which is the energetic ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy, alongside a weight administration program run by means of the Embla app, means that tapering the drug — as an alternative of a tough cease — might probably stop weight regain.
Nevertheless, simply 353 sufferers had been within the pattern of sufferers who stopped semaglutide, which is a small research measurement. These sufferers had reached their goal weight and diminished their semaglutide dose over 9 weeks. Sufferers continued to drop extra pounds as they tapered, shedding a mean of two.1% over the 9 weeks.
The research additionally means that sufferers would possibly have the ability to preserve their weight for a number of months after stopping. The researchers had knowledge for 85 sufferers at 26 weeks after stopping semaglutide, and located that they maintained a steady weight.
“The mixture of assist in making life-style modifications and tapering appears to permit sufferers to keep away from regaining weight after coming off semaglutide,” mentioned Henrik Gudbergsen, lead researcher and Embla’s chief medical officer, in a press release.
$100 billion market
Weight problems medication have led to a surge in funding and a race to seize a market that analysts at Goldman Sachs forecast might hit $100 billion by 2030.
The research additionally checked out altering how semaglutide doses are ramped up when sufferers start taking the drug. The two,246 sufferers within the wider research began on semaglutide alongside recommendation from a nutritionist. Additionally they had entry to medical doctors, nurses and psychologists by means of Embla.
The sufferers’ doses had been carefully monitored and elevated extra slowly than normal therapy. The common weight reduction was 14.8% at 64 weeks, related ranges to different research of semaglutide.
