Amazing health benefits of GLP-1 weight loss pills

The GLP-1 class of weight loss drugs can help users shed dozens of pounds, leading to a more active, energetic lifestyle.

Now one in eight Americans say they shoot, which first became popular in the United States in early 2020.

Since then, researchers have examined the additional benefits that the drug may have on many organ systems.

They have found positive effects on harmful inflammation that can lead to deadly cancer, life-threatening dementia and cardiovascular health.

“Given the newness and skyrocketing popularity of drugs, it’s important to systematically examine their effects on all body systems — leaving no stone unturned — to understand what they do and don’t do,” said Dr. Ziad Al-Ali, a clinical epidemiologist and nephrologist at John J. Cochrane Hospital in Missouri.

So what does the research say so far about the most beneficial effects?

the heart

Lower inflammation associated with the drug protects blood vessels. Inflammation is a big part of how the most common heart disease starts in the United States, according to Nebraska Medicine cardiologist Dr. Christina Dunbar Matos.

“If we can treat the disease at its root, that’s great,” she said.

The shots can reduce hospitalizations and deaths in people with a type of heart failure where the heart doesn’t pump properly, known as “HFpEF.”

Many recent studies have found that the drug helps reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke.

A study from the University of Bristol and University College London in England showed that GLP-1-mimicking drugs can prevent further tissue damage after a heart attack and limit the risk of other complications.

“With an increasing number of similar GLP-1 drugs now being used in clinical practice, for conditions ranging from type 2 diabetes and obesity to kidney disease, our findings highlight the potential of these existing drugs to treat ‘no-reflow’ risk in heart attack patients, offering a potentially life-saving solution,” said the University College London professor.

the kidneys

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one in seven Americans are living with chronic kidney disease—and most of them don’t know they’re affected.

The American Kidney Foundation said that GLP-1s can reduce the risk of worsening kidney disease as well as the development of kidney failure.

“This medication helps control your blood sugar levels. This means less sugar enters your kidneys, preventing damage to your kidney filters,” Fund wrote.

A Johns Hopkins study published earlier this week found that for 15 diabetic patients taking the drug, the five-year risk of major cardiovascular events and end-stage kidney disease was reduced by 15 percent and 19 percent, respectively.

the liver

The drug also shows promise in treating liver disease. Harvard researchers found that taking the drug led to a reversal of liver lesions caused by a metabolic disorder – steatotic liver disease, also known as “MASH”. One of the most common reasons for liver transplantation is scarring.

A study from King’s College London showed that semaglutide – the active ingredient in Ozempic and Vigoi – effectively treated liver disease in two-thirds of patients.

In August, the US Food and Drug Administration approved the use of Vigo to treat MASH in adults with excess scar tissue in the liver.

disease

Finally, there are even some benefits for the 7.2 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s disease — the most common form of dementia in the United States — and the 100 million Americans living with obesity.

People with obesity are at a higher risk of developing life-threatening cancer, and according to the American Cancer Society, 2.1 million new cases are expected this year.

However, GLP-1 users may have a reduced risk of developing 14 types of cancer, including a 47 percent lower risk of ovarian cancer, Purdue University researchers found.

For people suffering from Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative brain conditions, GLP-1s have shown mixed results.

The semaglutide pill did not slow disease progression more than a placebo, researchers said last November. However, a separate study using a GLP-1 drug called liraglutide showed a nearly 50 percent reduction in brain volume and an 18 percent slower decline in cognitive function in Alzheimer’s patients in December.

Scientists are still working to understand the relationship between GLP-1s and Alzheimer’s.

“A negative test result may indicate a lack of drug access to the brain, rather than a failure of the concept itself,” explained Paul Addison, professor of neuroscience at Imperial College London.