Anti-obesity medications are linked to reduced alcohol consumption

TUESDAY, Dec. 3, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Nearly half of weight-loss program participants who took an obesity drug and consumed alcohol at baseline reported a decrease in their alcohol consumption, according to a research letter published online Nov. 26 JAMA network opened.

Lisa R. Miller-Matero, Ph.D., of Henry Ford Health in Detroit, and colleagues studied changes in alcohol consumption in 14,053 people who participated in a telemedicine weight management program after taking an anti-obesity drug (first- or second-generation glucagon). had taken -like peptide-1 receptor agonists; January 2022 to August 2023). Most participants (86.2 percent) were prescribed a second-generation medication.

The researchers found that about half of the participants reported drinking alcohol at baseline (53.3 percent), and 24.2 percent of all participants experienced a decrease in alcohol consumption. Of the 7,491 participants with alcohol consumption at baseline, 45.3 percent reported a decrease in an alcohol consumption category, 52.4 percent reported no change, and 2.3 percent reported an increase. Additionally, among participants who reported alcohol consumption at baseline, those with a higher obesity class and those with higher alcohol consumption were more likely to reduce their alcohol consumption. There was a greater decrease in alcohol consumption in people who received bupropion and naltrexone compared to metformin. However, when controlling for weight loss, this association was no longer significant.

“Future research would benefit from a randomized trial comparing anti-obesity medications with a placebo-controlled or non-pharmacological weight management group,” the authors write.

Several authors reported connections to WW International.

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