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A new study challenges the years’ worth of negative media portrayal of GLP-1, revealing its potential benefits in treating and preventing substance use disorders.
In these past few years, GLP-1 has become the centerpiece of cultural renaissance.
Discovered in the early ‘80s, the hormone was solely developed to treat Type 2 diabetes, with the first FDA approved variant being approved years later in 2005.
Coincidentally, during the early clinical trials of drug testing, they noticed an unintended side effect of the hormone: significant weight loss. What was initially seen as a bonus for diabetics who were likely to face weight issues from their condition, triggered a global boom in GLP-1 consumption, Type-2 diabetes or not.
Variants of this hormone such as Ozempic and Wegovy have become household names under the pretense of weight-loss miracles, where society preaches body standards. Regardless of whether GLP-1 is used for medical treatment or weight loss, users are often negatively labelled. They are criticized with terms like ‘Ozempic face’ and accused of taking a shortcut to reach a healthy, or in some cases unhealthy, weight.
As a result of this pessimistic media narrative, GLP-1 has amassed a bad rap, despite its original intentions being medically righteous. However, a study that was recently published might just turn the tide on these waves of pessimism with the revelation that GLP-1 could potentially be used to treat and mitigate addiction issues.
The study
The aim of the researchers involved in the study was to see if GLP-1 variants could do more than just manage weight and blood sugar. Specifically, they want to probe into the hormone’s ability to prevent and treat substance use disorders. By looking at the health records of over 600,000 US veterans with Type-2 diabetes, they compared those who started using a GLP-1 drug to those who started using a different sort of diabetes medication.
These veterans were then split into two groups ‘prevention’ and ‘treatment’. The former included people with no history of drug or alcohol problems, while the latter included people who already had a diagnosed substance use disorder (SUD).
The veterans who were taking GLP-1 drugs and were in the ‘Prevention’ group were significantly less likely to develop a new addiction, with risks being lower from 14% to 25%. On the other hand, those with existing addictions in the ‘Treatment’ group reaped more dramatic benefits, such as a 50% lower risk of death from causes related to their addiction. Those in this group had a 39% lower risk of drug overdose and a 25% drop in risks of suicidal thoughts or attempts.
GLP-1 simplified
When you see your favorite food, your brain immediately releases a ‘feel-good’ chemical called dopamine at your brain’s Reward Center. This release creates a spike of pleasure that tells the brain that you want more of that favorite food of yours. This is the same for addiction, except continuous spikes of dopamine are what causes the cycle of addiction.
According to the researchers involved in the study, it is possible that the GLP-1 drugs travel into the brain and target the Reward Center. Here, its presence essentially turns down the volume on that dopamine spike that comes with consuming alcohol or drugs. As a result, one suffering from a SUD would not feel the intense pleasure from such consumption, so the brain doesn’t feel a desperate need to repeat the behavior.
In short, GLP-1 quiets the brain’s reward pathways, making the individual more conscious about their cravings before being forced to act on it by their biological impulses.
