If Ozempic and Wegovy (GLP-1 receptor agonists) can treat cravings of all types the market will simply explode.
The Breakthrough Drug to Conquer Addiction: Ozempic?
By Maia Szalavitz, The New York Times, Oct. 18, 2024
…
Could these medications — collectively known as glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists — also fight America’s most difficult drug problems?
Striking new data suggests they might. On Thursday, the journal Addiction published a study that examined the medical records of half a million people with opioid use disorder and found that those who were taking GLP-1 drugs, for any reason, had a 40 percent lower overdose risk compared to people not on these drugs. The research also looked at the medical records of over 800,000 people with a history of alcohol use disorder, and found that the number of medical visits that noted current alcohol intoxication was halved in patients who were prescribed GLP-1 drugs, compared with patients who did not take the drugs.
In September, another large study of medical records of people with both opioid use disorder and Type 2 diabetes reported that the risk of hospitalization for overdose was cut by 40 to 70 percent if patients took semaglutide (sold as Ozempic or Wegovy) rather than older diabetes medications, including other, less effective GLP-1 drugs…
Significant evidence suggests that GLP-1 drugs may work by lowering the signals in the brain that create craving, with far less impact on the circuits that allow you to enjoy life… [end quote]
Ozempic and Wegovy are manufactured by Novo Nordisk, a Danish company. The drugs are synthetic polypeptides which means they must be injected since they would be digested in the stomach. The drug is so expensive and in so much demand that counterfeiters have sold dangerous fake knock-offs which may contain insulin.
Novo Nordisk is already the largest company in Denmark. If indications pan out the worldwide demand would be mind-boggling.
Wendy