Sorry, Ozempic users.
Bariatric surgery leads to longer-lasting weight loss compared with medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy or behavioral changes such as diet and exercise. New research findings.
“Metabolic and bariatric surgery is the most effective and durable treatment for severe obesity. Unfortunately, it is also one of the most underutilized,” said study co-author and bariatric surgeon Jonathan Mather. Dr. Marina Kurian From NYU Langone Health.
The researchers examined data from nearly 20,000 weight-loss patients who had participated in clinical trials and studies over the past few years.
The researchers found that obesity drugs and weight-loss surgery were far superior to diet and exercise, which led to an average weight loss of 7.4%, but the weight lost was usually regained within four years.
Five months of weekly injections of semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovi, led to a 10.6% weight loss. The drugs mimic GLP-1, a hormone the body naturally produces after meals, to make you feel full and suppress your appetite.
After taking tirzepatide, sold under the brand names Maunjaro and Zepbound, for nine months, participants lost 21.1 percent of their body weight.
But the researchers found that once these treatments were stopped, patients regained about half the weight they had lost within a year.
Patients who continued tirzepatide injections lost 22.5% weight over 17 to 18 months and tended to plateau, while patients who received semaglutide plateaued at a 14.9% weight loss over the same period.
By contrast, two common surgical procedures resulted in about 30% weight loss in the first year after surgery, and the researchers found that patients maintained 25% of their weight loss up to 10 years after surgery.
“Surgery needs to play a larger role in the treatment of obesity and be considered earlier in the disease progression,” Kurian added. “Surgery is no longer a last resort and should not be withheld until the disease is more severe. There is no medical reason to do so.”
The study was presented Tuesday at the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) 2024 Annual Scientific Session.
The ASMBS reports: Approximately 280,000 weight loss surgeries The tests performed in the United States in 2022 represent approximately 1% of people eligible to be tested based on their weight and height.
Gastric bypass and sleeve gastrectomy are two types of weight loss surgery that reduce the size of the stomach. Some people may be hesitant to opt for surgery because recovery can take several weeks.
Obesity medications also have potential drawbacks, including a variety of unpleasant side effects. In a July 2023 survey4% of adults admitted to taking prescription drugs to lose weight.
forever, Obesity rates continue to rise, affecting more than 42% of Americans.According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
This serious condition has been shown to weaken the body’s immune system, cause chronic inflammation and increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain cancers.
Recent studies warn that at least six in 10 American adults will be diagnosed with cardiovascular disease within the next 30 years due to uncontrolled high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity.
