Semaglutide linked to lower predicted dementia risk • Hacker News Board

Re: Semaglutide linked to lower predicted dementia risk

#51

Post by AlexErrant » Sat, Aug 15, 2026, 5:52 PM UTC

diath wrote: post #13

toomuchtodo wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Western disease and sugar heavy diets broadly speaking, which Semaglutide is a countermeasure against. Not yet a vaccine, but in due time (probably via gene therapy). Fructose also helps cancer metastases and spread. https://www.sciencealert.com/common-sugar-appears-to-loosen-...

> Western disease and sugar heavy diets broadly speaking No, just being sedentary. There's no such thing as acquired diabetes in physically active people.

To "actshully" you (because there are no absolutes in biology) pro-triathlete Lionel Sanders got his hba1c up to prediabetic range (5.9)

https://www.tri247.com/triathlon-news/elite/lionel-sanders-t...

Also age plays a pretty significant role. I know older asians who regularly walk who still got T2D. You could argue that walking isn't physically active enough... but they'd argue otherwise. It's all relative.

Re: Semaglutide linked to lower predicted dementia risk

#52

Post by kwanbix » Sat, Aug 15, 2026, 5:52 PM UTC

londons_explore wrote: post #23

So has anyone managed to separate the effects of semaglutide from the effects of weight loss? If this is caused by the weight loss, it is a little disappointing that public health didn't act quicker - lots of people have been overweight for a century now, so literally 10's of millions of people could have been saved from dementia had action been taken 100 years ago.

Well, if you consider that is much cheaper to eat trash than healthy, and that food companies' only interest is in maximizing profit, you have what we have.

Re: Semaglutide linked to lower predicted dementia risk

#53

Post by bobthepanda » Sat, Aug 15, 2026, 5:54 PM UTC

hattmall wrote: post #42

object-a wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What should public health have done differently?

Treat junk food like cigarettes

Unfortunately in most countries the blocker is politics, not the desire of public health officials to do anything. See the current US admin going after vaccines while declaring open season for peptides.

Re: Semaglutide linked to lower predicted dementia risk

#54

Post by Juvination » Sat, Aug 15, 2026, 5:54 PM UTC

hattmall wrote: post #45

01100011 wrote: post #38

I'm a big semaglutide proponent after being on it for a year. I know research says it helps with inflammation, arthritis (separately from weight reduction), and all sorts of magical things. I lost 40 pounds in a year(230 to 190) at age 50. Great! I also went from being active and fat(weightlifting with some cardio) to basically having no energy. In the last year I've had arthritis appear in several joints. I'm awake…

You are a proponent, but your outcomes seem worse?

Losing 40 pounds where sometimes it feels like this weight is impossible to lose. That's what makes it worth it.

Re: Semaglutide linked to lower predicted dementia risk

#55

Post by zemvpferreira » Sat, Aug 15, 2026, 5:54 PM UTC

victorbjorklund wrote: post #22

diath wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Western disease and sugar heavy diets broadly speaking No, just being sedentary. There's no such thing as acquired diabetes in physically active people.

Doubt you can eat just pure fructose for 30 years and ”move” and avoid diabetes.

At the risk of being argumentative I had a horrible diet for the past ~10 years and carried 50 extra pounds. However I also exercised a lot as a hobby and to my shock my glucose and other bloods always came out in the normal range.

This year I started Mounjaro and dropped the 50 pounds. Curious to see what my next checkup shows.

Re: Semaglutide linked to lower predicted dementia risk

#56

Post by TheBlight » Sat, Aug 15, 2026, 5:54 PM UTC

bariswheel wrote: post #48

tdlr: This is a Novo Nordisk-funded study focusing on predictive biomarkers rather than real-world dementia cases. Novo Nordisk's actual dedicated clinical trials for Alzheimer's completely failed to show that semaglutide stops cognitive decline. "A predictive biomarker is like a "check engine" light on your dashboard. It warns you that there is a risk of a future problem. In this study, the researchers only checked…

Didn't even bother looking into it because there's obviously not enough data yet to say anything substantial about GLP-1s and Alzheimers. But your comment should probably be the top.

Re: Semaglutide linked to lower predicted dementia risk

#57

Post by peyton » Sat, Aug 15, 2026, 5:56 PM UTC

SoftTalker wrote: post #44

londons_explore wrote: post #23

So has anyone managed to separate the effects of semaglutide from the effects of weight loss? If this is caused by the weight loss, it is a little disappointing that public health didn't act quicker - lots of people have been overweight for a century now, so literally 10's of millions of people could have been saved from dementia had action been taken 100 years ago.

With all the research into dementia and its causes, if there was a simple strong link to overweight I can't imagine that would not stand out in the data and be well known by now. Edit: although, there are well-known links between overweight and a lot of negative outcomes, and yet people are still too fat.

[dead]

Re: Semaglutide linked to lower predicted dementia risk

#58

Post by zulux » Sat, Aug 15, 2026, 5:57 PM UTC

01100011 wrote: post #38

I'm a big semaglutide proponent after being on it for a year. I know research says it helps with inflammation, arthritis (separately from weight reduction), and all sorts of magical things. I lost 40 pounds in a year(230 to 190) at age 50. Great! I also went from being active and fat(weightlifting with some cardio) to basically having no energy. In the last year I've had arthritis appear in several joints. I'm awake…

I'm on the pill version, which allows me to adjust the dosage on a more day-to-day level. It also doesn't need a fridge, so it allows me to travel more easily. There's a level that works best for me long-term, and it's quite a bit less than typical.

Re: Semaglutide linked to lower predicted dementia risk

#59

Post by RobotToaster » Sat, Aug 15, 2026, 5:57 PM UTC

londons_explore wrote: post #23

So has anyone managed to separate the effects of semaglutide from the effects of weight loss? If this is caused by the weight loss, it is a little disappointing that public health didn't act quicker - lots of people have been overweight for a century now, so literally 10's of millions of people could have been saved from dementia had action been taken 100 years ago.

Alzheimers dementia is sometimes called type 3 diabetes, so it may be both.

Re: Semaglutide linked to lower predicted dementia risk

#60

Post by AlexErrant » Sat, Aug 15, 2026, 5:57 PM UTC

zemvpferreira wrote: post #55

victorbjorklund wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Doubt you can eat just pure fructose for 30 years and ”move” and avoid diabetes.

At the risk of being argumentative I had a horrible diet for the past ~10 years and carried 50 extra pounds. However I also exercised a lot as a hobby and to my shock my glucose and other bloods always came out in the normal range. This year I started Mounjaro and dropped the 50 pounds. Curious to see what my next checkup shows.

People kick around the idea of the "personal fat threshold". E.g. caucasians seem to be better at carrying fat than, say, Southeast Asians. White people seem to be able to better store fat without metabolic side effects; SEA seems to get T2D at a much lower bodyfat percentage.