GLP 1 Agonists News and Research

Latest GLP 1 Agonists News and Research

Weight loss drugs could widen health inequalities without nutritional support

Drugs such as semaglutide (Wegovy/Ozempic) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro) are transforming obesity treatment, but without affordable, healthy food and appropriate support, they could widen health inequalities in the UK, according to researchers at UCL and the University of Cambridge.

1 Jun 2026

Scientists rethink GLP-1 delivery to improve dosing, tolerability, and adherence

The review highlights nanocarriers, microspheres, hydrogels, microneedles, long-acting formulations, and co-formulations as promising but mostly early-stage strategies that still require stronger long-term clinical evidence.

27 May 2026

New analysis shows obesity rates plateauing in many countries

An international large-scale study involving the University of Granada (UGR) examines obesity trends since the 1980s and reveals that the increase has slowed, stabilized, and even reversed in many countries, though it is still rising in developing nations.

26 May 2026

Semaglutide helps patients who gain weight after bariatric surgery

New UCL research supports use of the weight loss drug semaglutide for patients who do not get enough benefit from bariatric surgery.

22 May 2026

NIH researchers discover how weight-loss drugs alter brain cells

A team of researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have unveiled new details about the events GLP-1 receptor agonists trigger within neurons, which have been largely unexplored until now.

22 May 2026

GLP-1 drugs may help curb addiction by targeting reward pathways

GLP-1 receptor agonists, already used for Type 2 diabetes and obesity, show promise in reducing alcohol and drug-seeking behaviors through central reward and dopamine-related pathways. Most evidence remains preclinical, with limited early human data, so larger clinical trials are needed before these drugs can be recommended for addiction treatment.

21 May 2026

Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty outperforms oral semaglutide in short-term weight loss

A comparative study, presented at ESGE Days 2026, has found that endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty (ESG) is associated with significantly greater short-term weight loss than oral semaglutide in adults with obesity.

15 May 2026

GLP-1 weight loss medications linked to significant drop in asthma flares

New research presented at this year's European Congress on Obesity in Istanbul, Turkey (12-15 May) shows the use of the new GLP-1 class of obesity drugs in people with asthma is associated with a 26 % fall in the number of asthma exacerbations and a 14% drop in use of asthma inhaler reliever use. The study is by Simon Høj and Dr Kjell Erik Julius Håkansson, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark and colleagues.

15 May 2026

Semaglutide significantly reduces obesity in treatment-resistant young adults

A weekly dose of semaglutide (2.4 mg) leads to a clinically significant reduction in body mass index (BMI) and related health outcomes in young adults with severe obesity who are treatment resistant following hospital-based non-pharmacological obesity care during childhood, according to a randomized controlled trial being presented at this year's European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Istanbul, Turkey (12-15 May).

13 May 2026

GLP-1 obesity drugs mainly reduce fat while preserving muscle mass

New research to be presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO2026) in Istanbul, Turkey (12–15 May) shows that following treatment with GLP-1 drugs for obesity, most weight loss is fat mass (80–85%) and relative muscle mass is preserved.

13 May 2026

Once-daily orforglipron helps preserve weight loss after semaglutide or tirzepatide

Oral orforglipron helped adults maintain clinically meaningful weight loss after prior injectable tirzepatide or semaglutide therapy. The phase 3b ATTAIN-MAINTAIN trial suggests switching to once-daily oral therapy may help reduce weight regain when injectable treatment is discontinued.

13 May 2026

New obesity drugs may shift blame toward food industry

An essay presented at this year's European Congress on Obesity in Istanbul, Turkey (12-15 May) suggests that new age of obesity drugs could shift the blame for living with obesity from individuals to the food industry – just as smoking has been blamed on tobacco industry and to a lesser extent alcohol consumption on the alcohol industry.

11 May 2026

Semaglutide shows sustained weight loss benefits in older adults

A new analysis of the STEP trails carried out by semaglutide manufacturer Novo Nordisk has analysed various trials to show the safety and efficacy of the obesity drug semaglutide in older adults (over 65 years), and found similar efficacy and safety as in the general trial populations .

11 May 2026

Daily orforglipron treatment reduces weight and blood sugar in seniors

A new analysis to be presented at this year's European Congress on Obesity (ECO 2026, Istanbul, Turkey, 12-15 May) examined daily oral orforglipron treatment for the treatment of obesity, with or without diabetes, in users aged 65 years and over, with results and a safety profile similar to that seen in the ATTAIN clinical trial programme population.

11 May 2026

Greater weight loss from GLP-1 drugs lowers health complication risk

New research to be presented at this year's European Congress on Obesity (ECO 2026, Istanbul, Turkey, 12-15 May) shows that, following treatment for obesity or diabetes or both using incretin-based drugs, losing more weight versus less weight, and losing a little weight versus gaining weight, both lead to relatively lower risk of obesity-related conditions.

10 May 2026

Asthma medication formoterol shows promise for treating fatty liver disease

MUSC researchers are tackling MASH, or metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, a liver disease affecting hundreds of millions worldwide.

8 May 2026

People judge GLP-1 users more harshly than dieters

Stigma surrounding GLP-1 weight loss treatments reveals societal biases, impacting individuals' mental health and the effectiveness of obesity interventions.

7 May 2026

GLP-1 weight-loss drugs modulate brain reward circuits to suppress eating for pleasure

A National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded study has found that an emerging class of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs suppress eating for pleasure, or hedonic feeding, in mice by modulating a reward circuit deep within the brain.

6 May 2026

Bariatric surgery offers greater long-term health protection for seniors than GLP-1 drugs

Metabolic and bariatric surgery offers significantly greater long-term protection against heart attack, stroke and death than widely-used GLP-1 drugs in older adults with obesity and diabetes, according to new real-world analysis study presented today at the annual meeting of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.

6 May 2026