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“We have seen skyrocketing increased utilisation of GLP-1 over the past several years,” Dr Ziyad Al-Aly, the Washington University study author, told reporters.
“Really, almost everybody is on it in the US, with increasing utilisation in the EU, and the UK, and elsewhere in the world.”
Several studies have investigated the link between weight loss medications and individual health issues but this study was the first to offer a macroscale analysis of their potential impact on all health outcomes.
“Interestingly, there was a reduced risk of seizure disorders, neurocognitive disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease and dementia,” Dr Al-Aly said.
“We also saw reduced risk of clotting disorders and reduced risk of infections and several other things.
“However, the beneficial profile is not without risks. We know there are also increased risks of gastrointestinal problems, and this is very common.”
The scientists believe there are two mechanisms that each have an impact on how the GLP-1 drugs influence so many health outcomes.
One is that, by losing weight, a person is healthier and therefore less exposed to the risks posed by obesity, and the other is that the drugs have a role in the brain and alter psychological pathways.
“We tend to think of these drugs as surgically designed to do only one thing,” Dr Al-Aly added. “But the reality is, it’s almost never like this. Biology is complex.
“The general message here is that there are two key mechanisms. One is probably related to obesity and the second pathway is reduced inflammation, and things related to reward signaling and impulse control in the brain.”
The study, published in the journal Nature Medicine, found that there was a reduced risk of kidney disease in people taking weight loss jabs, but a higher risk of kidney stones.
“It may be related to the possibility that when people take GLP-1 they eat a whole lot less to lose weight, but they also hydrate themselves less. They drink less water because their stomach shrinks and they feel full very quickly.
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“And maybe, I’m theorising here, perhaps chronic dehydration leads to increased risk of kidney stones.”
Other surprising findings from the study are how GLP-1 drugs make arthritis more likely when a person is lighter and bearing less weight, and also how they could be responsible for making a person less prone to bacterial infections, including sepsis and pneumonia.
The Telegraph
