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Joe Harker
A team of researchers has examined the impact drinking alcohol has on the body of someone taking weight loss drugs.
In the past couple of years, various brands of weight loss drugs have become incredibly popular as they've had a tremendous effect for many who've taken them.
Even those who've not had such a good time have often found a different drug that works for them and seen significant weight loss as a result, which comes with a plethora of health benefits.
However, there are people who end up putting the weight back on quickly after they've completed their course of drugs and they're not some kind of magic jab that'll keep the weight off afterwards, that takes sticking to a lifestyle change.
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With these drugs becoming increasingly popular, there has been research into some of the other aspects of a lifestyle they affect, including drinking alcohol.
A team from Virginia Tech's Fralin Biomedical Research Institute found that GLP-1 agonists, which is what weight loss drugs like Wegovy are, can slow down the speed at which alcohol enters the bloodstream and affects the brain.
Assistant Professor Alex DiFeliceantonio compared it to the 'difference between nursing a glass of wine and downing a shot of whiskey', with both drinks containing 0.6 ounces of alcohol but the shot increasing a person's blood alcohol content much faster.
“Why would this matter? Faster-acting drugs have a higher abuse potential," DiFeliceantonio said.
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"They have a different impact on the brain. So if GLP-1s slow alcohol entering the bloodstream, they could reduce the effects of alcohol and help people drink less."
In their study, they found that the group who took weight loss drugs consistently felt less drunk than the group that hadn't taken them.
Other studies into the effects weight loss drugs have on alcohol intake have produced interesting results.
A study in Ireland found that patients taking weight loss drugs had an 'effortless' reduction in the amount of alcohol they were consuming, with an average drop of 68 percent in alcohol intake.
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Regular drinkers saw the largest decrease, and Professor Carel le Roux of University College Dublin compared the results to alcohol-reduction drug nalmefene.
Research from Jama Psychiatry indicated that people on weight loss drugs find it can 'reduce craving and some drinking outcomes', though they indicated that more studies would need to be conducted to shore up the claims from people taking the treatment that they were developing 'no desire to have alcohol'.
LADbible Group has contacted Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk for comment.