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‘Breakthrough’ obesity drugs that have stunned researchers

nature.com

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Re: ‘Breakthrough’ obesity drugs that have stunned researchers

#131

Post by SystemOut »

0xB31B1B wrote: post #21

I’m currently taking one of these drugs and it has been no less than a miracle in my life. I became obese when I was around 5, topping out around a 34 BMI. When I was 20 I lost a substantial amount of weight the old fashioned way (diet and exercise), and within 8 months I was BMI 23. Losing weight was extremely challenging and socially isolating. 7 years later, I had a bad ankle injury and regained weight to about 29…

Have the side effects stopped? Or have you only been on it 3 months? My wife has been on Ozempic for longer than three months and the side effects haven't stopped. The nausea is typically bad for a few days after taking each dose but some of the others linger most of the cycle. For some I can see that tradeoff being okay but I can't see non-obese, non-diabetic folks making that trade-off for longevity. I know I wouldn't.

Re: ‘Breakthrough’ obesity drugs that have stunned researchers

#133

Post by kenjackson »

rajin444 wrote: post #56

This drug is a net good for society, but we have to fix the root problem. Much of the food we eat is filled with addictive ingredients (sugar, excess fats/oils, etc) that provide little nutritional value but are highly addictive. We’re subsidizing companies that create unhealthy addictive food and subsidizing companies to create drugs to counter the unhealthy addictive food. This is an enormous waste of resources.

Isn't all food addictive? Is there something more specific you mean about addition when it comes to these foods? It seems like it may be more about caloric density than addiction.

Re: ‘Breakthrough’ obesity drugs that have stunned researchers

#134

Post by dbspin »

fnordpiglet wrote: post #93
jobs_throwaway wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Helping obese people lose weight is unidimensionally a good thing

Obese doesn’t mean unhealthy. Correlation isn’t causation. There are many obese people who are extremely healthy. I for one have had no health issues of any sort, have great blood panels, and am in decent physical condition but sit stubbornly at a 31BMI. The only “issue” I face is psychological, and it’s rooted in precisely this statement you made.

This is unfortunately completely untrue. Obesity, especially severe obesity, underlies the diabetes and heart disease epidemics. However obese people, particularly in the US and Western Europe, now represent a sufficiently large lobby (no pun intended) that there is significant public messaging parroting the 'healthy at any size' propaganda.

Re: ‘Breakthrough’ obesity drugs that have stunned researchers

#135

Post by elcomet »

EamonnMR wrote: post #108
rajin444 wrote: post #56

This drug is a net good for society, but we have to fix the root problem. Much of the food we eat is filled with addictive ingredients (sugar, excess fats/oils, etc) that provide little nutritional value but are highly addictive. We’re subsidizing companies that create unhealthy addictive food and subsidizing companies to create drugs to counter the unhealthy addictive food. This is an enormous waste of resources.

If we're going to treat calories as addictive and addiction as a disease rather than a personal failing it should follow that we treat the disease with a drug.

But not only. It also follow that we need to regulate the industry and stop advertising for sugar for example

Re: ‘Breakthrough’ obesity drugs that have stunned researchers

#136

Post by djur »

0xB31B1B wrote: post #21

I’m currently taking one of these drugs and it has been no less than a miracle in my life. I became obese when I was around 5, topping out around a 34 BMI. When I was 20 I lost a substantial amount of weight the old fashioned way (diet and exercise), and within 8 months I was BMI 23. Losing weight was extremely challenging and socially isolating. 7 years later, I had a bad ankle injury and regained weight to about 29…

How was the process with insurance? About a year ago I tried to get on semaglutide and my insurer shut down every option. It was extremely demoralizing.

Re: ‘Breakthrough’ obesity drugs that have stunned researchers

#137

Post by darreninthenet »

xwdv wrote: post #127
sfusato wrote: post #79

> I believe that everyone, even the skinny folks, should be on GLP1 drugs for the longevity effects. Are you for real? Serious question.

[flagged]

Unless you're in a country with a proper social healthcare system anyway...

Re: ‘Breakthrough’ obesity drugs that have stunned researchers

#138

Post by hodgesrm »

xwdv wrote: post #127
sfusato wrote: post #79

> I believe that everyone, even the skinny folks, should be on GLP1 drugs for the longevity effects. Are you for real? Serious question.

[flagged]

> And even if he was, doctors push pills for commission, so don’t trust them too much either.

Can you cite sources? Otherwise please don't post such claims. It's unworthy of Hacker News.

Re: ‘Breakthrough’ obesity drugs that have stunned researchers

#139

Post by watwut »

jobs_throwaway wrote: post #15
ethanbond wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because this isn't an article about biology, it's about health, and health isn't unidimensional

Helping obese people lose weight is unidimensionally a good thing

Strongly depends on how much they weight in the end and what is the price of weight loss. Loosing too much weight makes you less healthy, sometimes very damagingly so.

It also depends on what is the price of that weight loss. Quite a few diets make you loose weight and simultaneously make you much less healthy or less fit - because your body is missing nutricients it actually needs.

Re: ‘Breakthrough’ obesity drugs that have stunned researchers

#140

Post by LordDragonfang »

mcculley wrote: post #116
0xB31B1B wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean, if you have perfect bloodwork and a marvel movie body probably not necessary but otherwise yes. Heart disease, hypertension, high cholesterol, colon cancer rates are rising amongst everyone, even thin people. These drugs positively impact indicators of these things in everyone. Longevity makers have been betting on metformin for a long time and these drugs are like a supercharged metformin

I think I will wait for some version that does not cause "strong nausea, extreme fatigue, brain fog, and constipation".

Those are mostly just second-order symptoms of hypoglycemia/running a severe caloric deficit.
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