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A drug used to treat Type 2 diabetes and obesity could also slow down the process of ageing, researchers believe.
Semaglutide, better known as Ozempic, “has far-reaching benefits beyond what we initially imagined,” Prof Harlan Krumholz, from the Yale School of Medicine, said following the publication of several new studies.
They found that the drug could be used to treat a wide range of illnesses linked to heart failure, arthritis, Alzheimer’s and even cancer.
“It wouldn’t surprise me that improving people’s health this way actually slows down the ageing process,” Prof Krumholz was quoted on Friday as telling the European Society of Cardiology Conference 2024, where the studies were presented.
The new data has been published in a number of medical journals, including the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC), which Prof Krumholz edits.
“These ground-breaking medications are poised to revolutionise cardiovascular care and could dramatically enhance cardiovascular health,” he said.
The studies – part of the Select trial – tracked more than 17,600 people, aged 45 or older, as they were given either 2.4 mg of semaglutide or a placebo for more than three years.
Participants were obese or overweight and had cardiovascular disease but not diabetes.
Those who took the drug died at a lower rate from all causes, including cardiovascular issues and Covid-19, researchers found.
People using the weight-loss drug were just as likely to catch Covid but they were less likely to die from it, with 2.6% dying among those on semaglutide compared with 3.1% on the placebo.
And while women experienced fewer major adverse cardiovascular events, the drug “consistently reduced the risk” of adverse cardiovascular outcomes regardless of sex.
It also improved heart failure symptoms and cut levels of inflammation in the body regardless of whether or not people lost weight.
Dr Benjamin Scirica, lead author of one of the studies and a professor of cardiovascular medicine at Harvard Medical School, said the findings “reinforce that overweight and obesity increases the risk of death due to many etiologies”.
But, he told the PA news agency, this “can be modified with potent incretin-based therapies like semaglutide”.
The medication is a prescription drug offered by the NHS, which supresses appetite and is sold under the brand names Wegovy – used to treat obesity – and Ozempic, for diabetes.
It comes in the form of an injection and mimics the hormone GLP-1, making people feel fuller and less hungry.
Experts have warned in the past that the drug is not a quick fix or a replacement for eating well and exercising, and should only be offered under medical supervision.
Like any medication, there can be side effects and risks – the most common being nausea, an upset stomach, bloating and gas.