Could semaglutide provide full-body benefits?

There’s no doubt semaglutide has taken the medical world by storm.

(This is the active ingredient marketed under brand names like Ozempic and Wegovy.)

While it was originally developed as a diabetes medication, its unintended side effects, like weight loss, are really turning heads.

In fact, I’ve previously reported on the SELECT trial, which uncovered semaglutide’s promising cardiovascular benefits. Researchers found that weekly injections of 2.4 mg of semaglutide significantly reduced the risk of both fatal and nonfatal cardiovascular events.

And now, even more promising results are emerging…

Less hospital stays

In a new analysis of SELECT trial data, once-weekly injections of 2.4 mg of semaglutide reduced all-cause hospital admissions. (We’re talking about more than cardiac issues!)

It also helped reduce the length of one’s hospital admission.

In fact, patients on semaglutide were 11 percent less likely to be hospitalized for any reason. And hospitalizations for cardiovascular-related events fell by 17 percent.

Those are big numbers!

This is just another reason why it frustrates me that insurance companies won’t approve the medication for more patients.

In my view, they should be paying it—no questions asked! After all, prevention saves money. Prevention also saves lives! (There, I said it.)

Yes, it’s an expensive. But do you know what’s even more costly? A day in the hospital!

Getting to the bottom of old hang-ups

I know that for Big Pharma, and even modern medicine, prevention can be a difficult concept to grasp.

Yes, Big Pharma funded the study. And yes, it was the same Pharma company that makes the drug. But that doesn’t mean we should ignore these findings.

This medication might be that good. And this might very well be the tip of the iceberg!

Time will tell—and so will the results of further analyses, which are sure to be coming.

To be a bit more specific, those on semaglutide were less likely to be hospitalized for things like cardiac disorders, infections, surgical and medical procedures, and respiratory disorders. That’s a broad range of benefits!

Of course, it’s still unclear if these results are directly due to the drug’s protective effect or the improved health of the patients who lost weight. The SELECT trial participants included individuals with obesity or who were not overweight. And, as we know, obesity often leads to more complex medical issues during hospital stays.

But this only reinforces my point: Maintaining a healthy weight is one of the best ways to protect yourself against illness and disease. There’s no such thing as “healthy obesity.”

And guess what? Semaglutide helps people overcome obesity. So, why the hang-up?

Source:

“Semaglutide 2.4 mg Reduces All-Cause Hospital Admissions.” Medscape, 11/04/2024. (medscape.com/viewarticle/semaglutide-2-4-mg-reduces-all-cause-hospital-admissions-2024a1000k3a)