GLP-1 Receptor Agonists Reduce Alcohol Intake in Patients Treated for Obesity
MONDAY, May 12, 2025 -- Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) are tied to a reduction in alcohol intake, according to a research letter recently published in Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism and presented at the annual meeting of the European Congress on Obesity, hosted by the European Association for the Study of Obesity from May 11 to 14 in Malaga, Spain.
Maurice O'Farrell, M.B.B.S., from the Medication Weight Loss Clinic in Dublin, and colleagues examined changes in alcohol use when patients were treated for obesity with GLP-1 RAs in a real-world setting. Data were included for 262 adults with a body mass index ≥27 kg/m2 who were initiated on liraglutide or semaglutide; participants were categorized into nondrinkers, rare drinkers, and regular drinkers (11.8, 19.8, and 68.3 percent, respectively).
The researchers found that none of the patients reported an increase in alcohol intake. There was a reduction in alcohol intake observed, from a preintervention mean of 11.8 ± 1.0 units/week to a postintervention mean of 4.3 ± 0.5 units/week. Reductions were confirmed in Mann-Whitney U tests in both high and low consumers, which also confirmed no significant difference in percentage reduction between men and women. After approximately four months, mean weight loss was 7.7 ± 0.3 kg, with no significant difference seen in the percentage reduction between men and women. There was a weak positive correlation noted between alcohol reduction and weight loss (r = 0.24).
"The exact mechanism of how GLP-1 analogues reduce alcohol intake is still being investigated but it is thought to involve curbing cravings for alcohol that arise in subcortical areas of the brain that are not under conscious control," coauthor Carel Le Roux, M.D., from the Diabetes Complications Research Centre at University College Dublin, said in a statement.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Read this next
GLP-1 Receptor Agonists Tied to Reduced Mortality in Patients With Psoriasis
TUESDAY, Sept. 30, 2025 -- Patients with psoriasis treated with glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) have better long-term outcomes compared with those taking...
Alcohol Use Linked to Increased Dementia Risk
FRIDAY, Sept. 26, 2025 -- Alcohol use is associated with increased dementia risk, according to a study published online Sept. 23 in BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine. Anya Topiwala...
Diabetes Tied to Doubled Risk for Sepsis
FRIDAY, Sept. 26, 2025 -- People living with type 2 diabetes experience double the risk for incident sepsis versus matched individuals without diabetes, according to a study...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.