HQ Team
July 31, 2024: A new research published in the Annals of Internal Medicine reveals that semaglutide is effective in helping people quit smoking.
The GLP-1 receptor agonist semaglutide is an active ingredient in anti-diabetes and obesity drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy,.
The study, conducted by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), reviewed the health records of nearly 223,000 new diabetic patients who were prescribed semaglutide and six other drugs. They found that people taking semaglutide were significantly less likely to be diagnosed with tobacco use disorder compared with people taking other diabetes drugs.
The researchers found that between December 2017 and March 2023, nearly 25% of people who had started on insulin and were obese, saw a medical provider about tobacco addiction, compared with fewer than 20% of people on semaglutide. That means that about 21% fewer people needed help quitting smoking while taking the new class of medications.
The research results are promising about the potential of semaglutide in helping in cigarette smoking cessation. What is more, it adds to the previous studies that have indicated that GLP-1 medications, like semaglutide, might alleviate cravings for various addictive substances, including alcohol and cannabis.
Semaglutide mechanism
Understanding how semaglutide affects cravings is “crucial” to determining whether the medications could be used for smoking cessation, said Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse and a co-author of the new report.
Semaglutide and other GLP-1 medications work via the brain’s reward system in a way that helps modulate cravings, whether for food, nicotine, alcohol or other drugs.
“The main driver of why many of us overeat relates to those reinforcing positive responses that we get from eating certain foods. And it’s the same circuit for foods as for drugs,” Volkow said.
The research authors said that people with diabetes seem to have a harder time quitting smoking. Also quitting smoking can lead to weight gain, which deters people with diabetes from stopping. Semaglutide now can aid in both the tasks; aid in weight loss and reduce cravings.
There are FDA approved treatments to aid nicotine cessation such as nicotine lozenges, gums and patches but they are not terribly effective. About 65% of people taking medication to help them quit smoking eventually relapse, according to one study.
Researchers emphasize the importance of randomized controlled clinical trials to better understand the underlying mechanisms and potential applications of GLP-1 agonists and GIP/GLP-1 drugs in treating smoking and alcohol disorders.
It will likely be years before there is sufficient data to know whether or not the medications really work to reduce cravings.
