New diabetes medication also loses up to 10% of weight

American researchers presented at the 100th annual meeting of the Society of Endocrinology in Chicago on March 18, 2018 the results of a study on a new diabetes drug that also helps obese people lose weight in a really interesting way.

A GLP-1 analogue

Semaglitide has a structure mimicking that of a natural hormone that regulates insulin secretion and appetite. This new drug indeed chemically resembles analogues of GLP-1. It was approved by the FDA in December 2017 for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, in injectable form as an adjunct to diet and exercise.

In practice, the randomized study looked at semaglutide-induced weight loss in people who were obese but not diabetic. 957 people, 35% of whom are men, with a BMI of 30 kg / m², were randomly assigned to 7 groups. Five groups received different doses of semaglutide (0.05 mg to 0.4 mg) by injection daily, a 6^th group received a placebo, and a seventh group received 3 mg of liraglutide, to the other GLP-1 agonist. All the participants also benefited from hygieno-dietetic advice.

Substantial weight loss

After one year, all participants treated with semaglutide lost significantly more weight than those who received placebo. In practice, the higher the dose of semaglutide, the greater the average weight loss.

Participants receiving 0.05 mg of semaglutide lost an average of 6% of their body weight, those who received 0.1 mg lost an average of 8.6% of their body weight, the group receiving 0.3 mg 11.2 % and the 0.4 mg group lost 13.8%.

Those who took liraglutide lost an average of 7.8% of their body weight, the placebo group lost only 2.3% of their body weight on average. In addition, 75% of participants taking 0.4 mg of semaglutide per day lost at least 10% of their body weight compared to 10% in those in the placebo group and 34% in the liraglutide group.

The adverse events identified are mild to moderate nausea, usually seen with GLP-1 receptor agonists.