United States: A concerning speculation raised concerns among scientific community, which led the researchers at the University of Alberta to investigate the potential effects of popular drugs on significant muscle loss.
More on the Findings
As per Carla Prado, a professor of human nutrition and Canada Research Chair in Integrative Nutrition, body composition, and energy metabolism at the U of A, new work is “calling attention to something called quality of weight loss,” cbc.ca reported.
Prado and her team have examined the muscle loss and metabolic impacts associated with drugs like semaglutide and tirzepatide, marketed as Ozempic and Mounjaro, and their potential to alter a patient’s body composition.
What Are Experts Saying?
In a recent commentary published in The Lancet, Prado and other researchers from institutions like McMaster University and the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Louisiana voiced concerns about the risk of considerable muscle loss with these drugs.
They highlighted that muscle accounts for nearly 39% of total weight loss over a period of 36 to 72 weeks when using these medications.
Understanding Weight-Loss Drugs
Ozempic is one of the well-known medications for weight loss among different available medicines.
The semaglutide injection was authorized in Canada for managing Type 2 diabetes in 2018 before the medication’s weight loss capabilities made it a celebrity darling.
Others in this class include tirzepatide and retatrutide, though retatrutide is not yet available on the market.
Researchers in Prado’s project reviewed existing studies on GLP-1 RAs to assess the effects on muscle mass.
Concerns Over Weight Loss Harms
Prado explains, “When people lose weight, they inevitably lose some muscle,” as reported by CBC.ca.
With the rapid weight loss often seen with these drugs, the associated muscle loss is also substantial.
“For instance, if someone loses 22 pounds, up to 5.5 to 8.8 pounds could be muscle,” she noted.
This is especially significant when patients need to pause these medications due to changes in insurance coverage or side effects requiring a temporary break.