
Stunkard Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and Dr. John Wilding, professor of cardiovascular and metabolic medicine at University of Liverpool Institue of Ageing and Chronic Disease is the study’s first author. Kushner was the corresponding author for the Semaglutide Treatment Effect in People with Obesity (STEP) 1 study group. Food and Drug Administration is currently reviewing its use at a higher dose with the explicit use of helping individuals lose weight.ĭr. Semaglutide currently is on the market to help manage diabetes, but it is approved only for a lower dose.

Side effects from the drug included mild-to-moderate nausea and diarrhea that were transient and generally resolved without permanent discontinuation from the study, Kushner said. Additionally, participants received incentives such as kettlebells or food scales to mark progress and milestones. These face-to-face or phone counseling sessions provided participants with guidance, behavioral strategies and motivation. Participants took semaglutide through subcutaneous injection (similar to someone taking insulin for diabetes) once a week and received individual counseling sessions from registered dietitians every four weeks to help them adhere to the reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity. “A lot of the health concerns we see in people who are struggling with their weight, such as diabetes, high blood pressure or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), tend to improve when they reach a weight loss of 10%,” Kushner said.Ī total of 1,961 overweight or obese adults participated in the 68-week study from fall 2019 to spring 2020 at 129 sites in 16 countries. Overall, 94.3% of participants completed the trial. When compared to other weight-management drugs currently on the market, which are proven to help individuals lose between 6 to 11% of their body weight, semaglutide is about 1.5 to two times more effective.Īpproximately 70% of study participants reached a weight loss of at least 10% of their baseline body weight, which is clinically relevant, Kushner said.


and body mass index of 38 kg/m 2, participants’ average weight loss was 14.9% (34 lbs.) compared to 2.4% (5 lbs.) for the placebo group. Starting from an average baseline weight of 230 lbs. The multi-site study investigated the effectiveness and safety of taking a weekly injection of semaglutide 2.4 mg along with individual lifestyle counseling sessions. “Semaglutide sets the bar for a new generation of more effective weight-loss medications.” Robert Kushner, professor of medicine and medical education at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and an internal medicine physician at Northwestern Medicine. “This is by far the most effective intervention we have seen for weight management when you compare it to many of the currently existing drugs,” said corresponding author Dr. 10 in the New England Journal of Medicine. Obesity is associated with multiple complications such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, arthritis, sleep apnea, some forms of cancer and decreased life expectancy.

It could be a gamechanger for those who struggle with obesity, which impacts more than 40% of adults in the U.S. The drug, semaglutide, taken once a week at 2.4 mg, works by suppressing appetite centers in the brain to reduce hunger and calorie intake. A new anti-obesity medication was shown to be almost twice as effective at helping individuals lose weight than some of the current weight-loss drugs on the market, according to a new landmark study conducted at Northwestern Medicine and other institutions.
