The pharmaceutical industry has been searching for a safe and effective remedy for obesity for decades. Logically, humanity has never been so fat. In trials, a new drug resulted in an average reduction of 22.5 percent in body weight.
Fourteen percent of the Dutch have a BMI of more than 30, so they are called obese. More than a million people suffer from type 2 diabetes. In some countries, such as the United States, this problem is even greater.
hunger hormone
When the human body needs energy (calories), the hormone ghrelin is released, making us hungry. After a meal, the hormone balance changes, so that we no longer feel hungry.
While dieting, these hormones make it extra difficult for us. More ghrelin is released and less satiety hormones. The new drug addresses this mechanism.
Medicine maker Lilly studied more than 2,500 overweight people from nine countries. They were given different doses of the drug tirzepatide. The results were very good.
“Tirzepatide is the first drug to achieve greater than 20 percent weight loss in a Phase 3 trial. This gives us even more confidence in the drug, and its ability to help overweight people,” said Lilly’s Jeff Emmick.
Not fun
There are still many hurdles to overcome. The research has not yet been published in a scientific journal and has not yet been peer-reviewed by other researchers.
There are also quite a few unpleasant side effects, such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and constipation. But if all goes well, the drug will be on the market within a few years.
