How does Ozempic work?

amother

Thistle

Mon, Jul 08 2024, 5:15 pm

I think that some of the mechanisms are similar to bariatric surgery. So for example, in bariatric surgery, part of the stomach is made unavailable, so your body can process less food at a time. And in Ozempic, the food leaves the stomach more slowly, so your body can process less food at a time.

Some of the hunger hormones are found in or connected to the stomach, like ghrelin and leptin. When people have bariatric surgery these get changed, and same with Ozempic. So they have more typical hunger cues and not raging hunger all day long.

Apparently in some of the weight loss meds there are extra components such as reducing pleasure from food (dopamine, that’s why some people get depression or anhedonia) and in most of the meds there is something to do with insulin and/or glucose too which I don’t understand but makes them especially good for diabetics. (Slows the release of something).

Historically, people who had stomach stapling were able to gain weight back by eating foods they could tolerate, like milkshakes. So yeah if you eat a ton of calories, you will gain weight or not lose weight. I think it’s the same with Ozempic. However, if you throw every possible mechanism at this problem, including a lack of pleasure from food, then maybe you won’t want to eat a ton of calories anymore!

As an aside, can someone please explain to me why children on Adderall lose weight? Is this related to the dopamine component or something else?

amother

Mon, Jul 08 2024, 7:57 pm

amother Thistle wrote:

My son on ADHD meds says he doesn't feel hungry. It takes away the appetite.

amother

Clover

Mon, Jul 08 2024, 8:27 pm

It hypercharges metabolic pathways in the gut that control the hunger/satiety feedback loop. It also regulates blood sugar fluctuations. People with robust gut microbiomes do this naturally. We should all be focusing on healing our guts instead of taking medications that come with risks of thyroid cancer, gut paralysis and optic nerve stroke, among others.

https://www.scientificamerican.....mpic/

amother

Thistle

Mon, Jul 08 2024, 8:38 pm

Funny you should say that - my ob/gyn just recommended that I take probiotics. And she has gut environment posters on her walls. Must be the trend.

However, what about the brain component? People on these meds stop drinking alcohol, biting their nails, shopping addictions. Something must (also) be targeting the brain.

amother

Clover

Mon, Jul 08 2024, 8:42 pm

amother Thistle wrote:

These gut microbes talk directly to the brain. They are heavily involved in the autonomic nervous system response, the hpa axis etc, via the vagus nerve. That's how they regulate things. Look up the gut-brain connection. It's very real and very huge and very fascinating.