Authoritative journal research warns: Weight loss drugs may cause rare but serious gastric problems such as gastric paralysis.

A recent study published in the authoritative medical journal "Journal of the American Medical Association" has poured cold water on the popular weight-loss drug.

On Thursday, October 5th, the University of British Columbia in Canada published a study in the "Journal of the American Medical Association" which found that drugs like semaglutide (Wegovy) developed by Novo Nordisk and its low-dose version, Ozempic, may increase the risk of three rare but serious gastrointestinal diseases in non-diabetic patients.

Currently, the officially approved peptide-based weight-loss drugs, liraglutide (Saxenda) and semaglutide, belong to the class of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists. Their mechanism of action is to mimic the effects of GLP-1, increase insulin secretion, and control blood glucose levels in diabetic patients.

Due to the observation in clinical practice that GLP-1 receptor agonists can slow gastric emptying, increase satiety, and reduce appetite, these GLP-1 receptor agonist drugs have become popular weight-loss drugs. In simple terms, GLP-1 inhibits appetite by slowing down digestion. However, if the digestion process slows down too much, it may lead to health problems.

The study published on Thursday warns that taking GLP-1 class weight-loss drugs may cause gastric paresis, which refers to the slowing down or complete obstruction of food movement from the stomach to the intestines, leading to symptoms such as persistent vomiting. It may also lead to intestinal obstruction and an increased risk of pancreatitis.

The conclusions of the above study were based on the analysis of medical insurance claims records of approximately 16 million American patients. The researchers specifically examined the impact of weight-loss drugs and made comparisons. They focused on patients who had taken semaglutide or liraglutide between 2006 and 2020 and had a history of obesity, excluding diabetic patients and patients who had taken another type of weight-loss drug, phentermine-topiramate, which has a different mechanism of action from semaglutide.

Although most of the patients involved in the study only took liraglutide, the researchers stated that the increased risk they observed may apply to the entire class of GLP-1 drugs.

The study found that compared to taking phentermine-topiramate, GLP-1 increased the risk of pancreatitis by 9 times, the risk of intestinal obstruction by 4 times, and the risk of gastric paresis by more than 3 times. During the period of taking liraglutide, approximately seven out of every 1,000 patients experienced gastric paresis and eight patients developed pancreatitis. During the period of taking semaglutide, nearly ten patients experienced gastric paresis, and approximately five patients developed pancreatitis. Approximately eight patients experienced intestinal obstruction during the period of taking these two GLP-1 drugs.

The researchers pointed out that previous studies have emphasized the risk of gastric diseases in diabetic patients taking GLP-1, and even without treatment, the overall risk of gastric paresis and pancreatitis in diabetic patients would increase. This is why this study excluded diabetes and why millions of people worldwide are taking these drugs for weight loss, which is also part of the reason. The media pointed out that the above-mentioned study aims to examine the risk of severe gastric diseases in non-diabetic patients, especially those who take GLP-1 class drugs for weight loss. This is the first large-scale study of its kind targeting a wide range of people globally.

Novo Nordisk has not yet commented on the findings of the study. Considering the large number of users of GLP-1 class weight loss drugs, the study undoubtedly sounded the alarm for many "miracle drug" enthusiasts and the industry.

Wall Street News previously mentioned that this year, semaglutide has become a "hot item" and the growing momentum has led to the development of the drug tirzepatide, attracting widespread attention and investment from the pharmaceutical and health industry for this new molecule GLP-1.

The article "FDA Warning: Severe Shortage of Weight Loss Miracle Drug" states that the global shortage of semaglutide has been going on for nearly a year and is expected to continue.

Tirzepatide, the dual-target (GLP-1R/GIPR) weight loss miracle drug from Eli Lilly, has shocked the market with its rapid increase in volume, becoming the fastest-growing drug in history.

Tirzepatide achieved sales of $1.55 billion in the first half of the year, with sales in the second quarter alone reaching $980 million, a quarterly growth of 72%. Eli Lilly even further raised its annual sales forecast for tirzepatide to $4 billion.