Liraglutide, all crazy about antidiabetics that (also) make you lose weight
Not only semaglutide and Ozempic, liraglutide, the active ingredient of Saxenda also produced by the Danish Novo Nordisk, also promises good results for weight loss, so much so that the WHO could include it in the list of essential drugs to combat obesity. Facts, numbers and comments
Less famous and fashionable than semaglutide , liraglutide, another antidiabetic active ingredient with slimming effects, as well as being a trending topic on social media , could soon be included in the World Health Organization's (WHO) list of essential medicines. A sign that obesity is a disease that will already be a problem for many countries in the present but also in the future.
WHAT IS LIRAGLUTIDE
Liraglutide, the active ingredient of Saxenda, a medicine produced by the Danish company Novo Nordisk (the same as Ozempic and Wegovy, the two antidiabetic medicines that are driving Hollywood stars crazy) belongs to a class of drugs called GLP- receptor agonists 1, used for years for the treatment of diabetes.
The additional slimming effect is due to the fact that they also influence the hunger signals to the brain and slow down the stomach emptying rate, making the person feel fuller for longer.
As Dr. Rossella Strano, an outpatient specialist and endocrinologist, explained to Open : “Liraglutide and semaglutide both belong to the same family of GLP-1 receptor agonists, an intestinal hormone that acts to reduce the sense of hunger. Produced by the cells of the small intestine, which slows down gastric emptying, giving the brain a signal that the stomach is full, thus giving a sense of satiety".
It is important, however, to remember that both Saxenda and Wegovy have insufficient data on their long-term safety and efficacy for obesity.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SEMAGLUTIDE AND LIRAGLUTIDE
"Liraglutide seems to work almost exclusively on the hypothalamic part of the sense of satiety, while semaglutide would also act on the areas of the limbic system, those that control pleasure and are connected to addictions ," Professor Luca Busetto, president of of the Italian Obesity Society.
THE MORE YOU PAY, THE MORE YOU LOSE
But the differences between Wegovy and Saxenda are not limited to the mechanisms of action on the organism. The first, in fact, promises to make you lose up to 15% of your weight with a weekly injection, at the modest sum of over 1,300 dollars a month in the United States – in Italy it is only authorized for blood sugar control in people with diabetes of type 2.
The second, on the other hand, must be injected daily and with 450 dollars a month in the United States and 140 euros in Europe, it reduces body weight by between 5% and 10%. In Italy, Saxenda is indicated, as an adjunct to diet and physical activity, to promote weight management in adult patients. Among other things, from 2026 it will no longer be covered by patent and this paves the way for cheaper generic versions.
In addition, another diabetes drug from US Eli Lilly may soon be approved for weight loss.
WHY IT COULD BE CONSIDERED “ESSENTIAL”
The inclusion of liraglutide in the WHO list of essential medicines, however, is not obvious but if this were the case it would represent a new approach to global obesity, no longer considered a fault but a disease in all respects. The WHO list, which lists the most effective, safe and cheapest medicines for priority conditions, is intended to guide governments in purchasing decisions based on current and future public health concerns.
It is no coincidence that overweight and obesity, to be considered mainly problems of rich countries, according to the WHO , "are dramatically increasing today in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in urban contexts".
In fact, the health agency says that in 2017 more than 4 million people died as a result of being overweight or obese. More than 650 million adults worldwide are obese – more than three times as many as in 1975 – and another 1.3 billion are overweight. Most of the people who suffer from these diseases, or 70%, live in low- and middle-income countries.
However, as University of Toronto obesity expert Professor Zulfiqar Bhutta said : “Preventive strategies and sustained efforts for education, gender-focused interventions must take precedence over the use of obesity, requiring much more research for safety and efficacy.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/sanita/liraglutide-tutti-pazzi-per-gli-antidiabetici-che-fanno-anche-dimagrire/ on Thu, 06 Apr 2023 07:20:53 +0000.