United States: The active compound, semaglutide, is found in drugs such as Wegovy and Ozempic, which are effective in reducing weight. A newly released study utilizes it to devise a smoking cessation aid.
More about the finding
Researchers have found an association between semaglutide and lower risks for tobacco use disorder; thereby, reducing prescriptions of smoking cessation medications and counseling were observed.
The study findings are published in the Annals of Internal Medicine on Monday.
For research purposes, the study compared 222,942 new customers for antidiabetic medications. Some of them were taking Semaglutide, while others were consuming seven others, as CBS News reported.
All participants had both Type 2 diabetes and tobacco use disorder, and based on the findings, some of the disparities were established between the two groups within 30 days of commencement of the prescription.
More research is needed
However, it cannot be recommended to prescribe the drugs for smoking cessation yet; the outcomes point to the need for further investigation to assess the effectiveness of semaglutide in the treatment of tobacco use disorder.
It’s not the first time people have experienced the connection between such drugs as Wegovy and Ozempic for obesity and weight loss and low desire for such habits as smoking.
Part of the effects that doctors and patients have observed include reduced urge for nicotine, alcohol, and even opioid use as a side effect.
Why is it so that researchers, as well as patients, are witnessing this? Dr. Tamika Henry, founder of the California-based Unlimited Health Institute, talked about how drugs such as Ozempic interact with the reward area of the brain, according to CBS News.
According to her, “When we think about the reward centers, it releases dopamine, which is our feel-good hormone. So what happens is, when you do a certain activity, dopamine surges – and you’re like, ‘Oh, I want to keep doing that,’ whether that’s indulging in alcohol, nicotine or even gambling.”
“How Ozempic works is, it decreases the surge of dopamine, and therefore the desire for that particular activity is decreased,” as she continued.
According to the reports, the production of adverse side effects is one of the factors leading to linked to these drugs besides their usage and weight loss.
Henry said, “As you’re thinking about decreasing an addiction, yes, you want to do that, but is there also going to be some association with nausea? Are you also going to have problems with heartburn, fatigue?” as CBS News reported.
“The other thing is taking a medication is just part of it. You need to start to do the other things that help you along the way. Because if the medication is removed, then what happens?” he added.