April 18, 2025 — The news in obesity research these days is so full of headlines about a multitude of new medicines in development that it is easy to lose count. All too often, these are early stage or even pre-clinical notions of a potential treatment. So yesterday, it was good news indeed to hear that a once-daily oral […]
March 17, 2025 — Nothing succeeds like success. And thus, the success of GLP-1 medicines for obesity seems to be prompting a re-ordering of marketing for packaged food. Under the Healthy Choice brand, ConAgra has begun promoting an ON TRACK badge that identifies their meals as “GLP-1 Friendly,” as well as high in fiber and protein. ConAgra Senior VP […]
March 14, 2025 — Twenty-nine years ago, scientists discovered that GLP-1 agonists, acting in the brain, could regulate feeding behaviors. In a keynote address to the Columbia Cornell Obesity Medicine course yesterday, Richard DiMarchi presented a compelling, detailed description of how this all unfolded. Way back in 1996, DiMarchi and colleagues at Lilly sought a patent for using a […]
March 13, 2025 — Over the last few decades, there have not been a lot of bright spots for metabolic health. But here’s one. A new paper in Diabetes Care tells us diabetes mortality actually dropped between 2000 and 2019. The authors, led by Hasan Nassereldine, suggest that the decline in diabetes deaths could be due to the adoption […]
February 27, 2025 — More than a decade ago, targeting amylin receptors for treating obesity looked like hot opportunity. Amylin, a peptide hormone co-secreted with insulin by pancreatic beta cells, plays a role in regulating satiety and food intake. An amylin analog, pramlintide, gained FDA approval for treating diabetes. But efforts to develop it for treating obesity never quite […]
February 13, 2025 — Early on after semaglutide captured public attention, people started noticing that the drug was not only helping people reduce excessive weight, it seemed to reduce the desire for drinking alcohol. But until now, all we’ve had to support this idea were anecdotes and retrospective observational studies. Yesterday, JAMA Psychiatry published an RCT offering stronger evidence […]
February 11, 2025 — Was the multi-million dollar spend by Hims & Hers on a Super Bowl ad the last gasp of a doomed business? Or was it a clever play for regulatory latitude that could keep them going? Conventional wisdom suggests that GLP-1 compounders should be nearing the end of their rope. But some political observers think they […]
February 3, 2025 — A new study in JAMA Network Open makes one thing very clear. Most people who take GLP-1 medicines for obesity quit within a year. Most who take them for diabetes are less likely to quit. Why are the disparities in GLP-1 medicines for obesity so great in comparison to their use for diabetes? It’s all […]
January 22, 2025 — One of the most important shifts in the approach to obesity in recent years has been an increased focus on the lived experience with this disease. One result has been the identification of food noise as a subjective experience that greatly affects the quality of life for many people living with obesity. Now, new research […]
January 20, 2025 — Two years ago, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed a bill into law to provide better access to obesity care under the state’s Medicaid program. This includes access to GLP-1 medicines. Now, it seems, the state is flouting the law. So people with obesity who rely on Medicaid are left out in the cold if they […]
