Ozempic, Wegovy may pose hidden danger for people…
Neurologists are warning that fashionable weight-loss medicines might have extreme damaging results on neurodegenerative circumstances like ALS.
Jinsy Andrews, MD, a neurologist and director of NYU Langone’s ALS Center, says the very mechanism that makes these medicine fashionable — fast weight loss — can go against the organic wants of sufferers with neuromuscular problems.
GLP-1 agonists have shown to be extremely efficient at managing diabetes and obesity, that are major health considerations across the population.
However, the doctor emphasised that the medical guidelines shift when dealing with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
In addition to mitigating some of the inflammation associated to obesity and diabetes, GLP-1 medicines have been linked to other protecting results.
The therapies have been helpful in lowering cardiovascular disease, stroke risk, liver disease and habit, according to Andrews.
However, when it comes to an incurable neurodegenerative disease, dropping weight and physique fats can speed up a affected person’s bodily decline.
Neurologists warn fashionable GLP-1 weight-loss medicine may worsen neurodegenerative illnesses such as ALS. millaf (Nemchinova) – stock.adobe.com
For an ALS affected person, dropping weight may cause the condition to progress sooner, Andrews said, because the disease’s distinctive traits make it harmful to be in a caloric deficit.
In fact, normal medical care pointers for ALS often suggest that sufferers actively keep or even gain weight to help protect their remaining nerve and muscle operate.
“In certain conditions where hypermetabolism is something that negatively affects the disease […] losing weight actually makes the disease worse and move faster,” Andrews told Fox News Digital.
Rapid weight loss from GLP-1 medicine may velocity bodily decline in people with ALS, according to Jinsy Andrews, MD. Chinnapong – stock.adobe.com
“So, in the setting of a person with ALS — whether they have diabetes or not — using GLP-1s may actually worsen the disease and make for a rapid progression.”
In a 2025 case report printed in the medical journal Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Degeneration, a 52-year-old ALS affected person was prescribed semaglutide to deal with her kind 2 diabetes.
Prior to beginning the medication, her bodily features had been declining at a predictable fee on the usual ALS ranking scale.
Doctors say sustaining physique weight and muscle mass is key for people with neurodegenerative illnesses. Sheila – stock.adobe.com
According to the case report, the affected person misplaced 25 kilos in three months. At the same time, she skilled a sudden, dramatic shift in her disease trajectory, with symptoms worsening considerably.
Once the semaglutide was discontinued at the advice of medical professionals, the affected person’s fast bodily decline stabilized.
Andrews identified that this printed documentation, alongside retrospective cohort data of ALS sufferers with diabetes, supplies growing evidence that clinicians must watch out and considerate about who they deal with with GLP-1 receptor agonists.
While weight-loss medicines offer vital advantages for many sufferers, specialists say sustaining physique weight and muscle mass stays an important consideration for people with neurodegenerative illnesses.
“Patient safety is of utmost importance to Novo Nordisk, and we take all reports about adverse events from the use of our medicines very seriously,” Ambre James-Brown, global head and AVP of global media at Novo Nordisk, maker of Ozempic and Wegovy, told Fox News Digital.
“It’s important to note that ALS and other neurodegenerative diseases are not listed adverse reactions or warnings and precautions in the prescribing information for our semaglutide products, including Ozempic or Wegovy,” he added.
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