{"id":11189,"date":"2025-07-21T15:56:18","date_gmt":"2025-07-21T15:56:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/11189\/"},"modified":"2025-07-21T15:56:18","modified_gmt":"2025-07-21T15:56:18","slug":"as-a-reporter-ive-covered-all-things-glp-1-heres-what-ive-learned","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/11189\/","title":{"rendered":"As a reporter, I’ve covered all things GLP-1. Here’s what I’ve learned."},"content":{"rendered":"

I have to admit: When I was assigned to write my first story about the blockbuster weight loss drug Ozempic in 2023, I groaned. Yes, weight loss drugs always generate feverish interest, but historically, they\u2019ve both fed on and fueled an unhealthy cultural obsession with thinness<\/a> and have inevitably become tabloid fodder. So many weight loss medications of the past<\/a> have also turned out to have some scary side effects. So I was skeptical, to say the least.<\/p>\n

Two years and dozens of interviews and articles later, I must say: I had it completely wrong. These new medications have changed people\u2019s lives in ways I never would have anticipated, and it\u2019s very much not just about \u201cgetting skinny.\u201d There\u2019s still an abundance of misinformation about this class of medications \u2014 which includes Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound \u2014 online and even in doctors\u2019 offices<\/a>. But I\u2019ve had the great fortune to learn so much about these GLP-1 medications from experts and patients alike. Here are four of the biggest lessons they\u2019ve taught me.<\/p>\n

1. People using GLP-1 medications aren\u2019t just \u2018taking the easy way out.\u2019<\/p>\n

You\u2019ve probably seen someone online make the accusation, so-and-so lost weight, they must be taking Ozempic \u2014 cheater. But what you might not see is all of the work people on these medications are doing behind the scenes. Research<\/a> has found that people on GLP-1 drugs will likely lose some weight even if they don\u2019t exercise or intentionally change their dietary habits. But people on these medications can lose more weight \u2014 and help sustain it \u2014 if they do. Many people I\u2019ve spoken to were already following intense workout regimens and strict diets before starting on a GLP-1. Still others had always wanted to exercise and finally had the energy or physical ability to do so after losing weight on these medications.<\/p>\n

Before I started reporting on GLP-1s, I knew that obesity was a disease, and still I was shocked by just how hard people had been fighting it on their own. One person I interviewed for Yahoo\u2019s On My Weigh<\/a> series, Michael Donnelly<\/a>, who tried countless diet and exercise routines before taking a GLP-1, put it best: \u201cWhat people forget about the disease of obesity is that [those of us with it] know more about it than anyone else, and we\u2019ve gained and lost weight more times than they can imagine.\u201d<\/p>\n

2. These medications have benefits beyond weight loss<\/p>\n

While they can\u2019t rightly be called \u201cmiracle drugs,\u201d the newfound energy and ability to exercise are two of many surprising effects GLP-1s seem to have beyond just making weight loss easier.<\/p>\n

Take Taylor McDaniels<\/a>, for example. The 24-year-old used to sleep 12 hours, wake up listless at noon and rely on DoorDash for most meals. Favorite post-work activities included bed rotting and scrolling, McDaniels previously told Yahoo. Then, she started taking GLP-1s (first, compounded semaglutide<\/a>, followed by compounded tirzepatide<\/a>). Now, McDaniels loves a 9 a.m. Sam\u2019s Club run. She hits the gym as soon as she\u2019s done with work, and she meal preps. As a result, McDaniels has lost at least 58 pounds, but it\u2019s the habit changes that mean the most to her. \u201cThat\u2019s the thing about my health journey: My mind feels more at peace, and I\u2019m able to meal plan and feel more organized and prepared for the day,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Researchers are also studying semaglutide \u2014 the active ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic \u2014 for its potential to help people quit smoking<\/a> and curb alcohol cravings<\/a>. We\u2019re still a long way from these medications being prescribed for addiction, but, anecdotally, people I\u2019ve spoken to are already seeing their effects. While some people describe experiencing \u201cfood noise<\/a>\u201d \u2014 constant, intrusive thoughts about food that tend to quiet down on these medications \u2014 Johnna Byrd<\/a> had \u201calcohol noise.\u201d After her son was born in 2023, she weighed 350 pounds and was a self-described alcoholic. But taking compounded tirzepatide, her cravings turned to \u201ccomplete silence,\u201d Byrd previously told Yahoo.<\/p>\n

3. It\u2019s not all about vanity<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy to assume that people taking weight loss drugs are simply in pursuit of thinness. But don\u2019t. Every person I\u2019ve spoken to about taking these medications has emphasized that, whether or not they had diagnosed health conditions, they simply wanted to feel better \u2014 and did, after taking a GLP-1. Renata D\u2019Agrella<\/a>, for example, told me she loved her body before taking Zepbound. In fact, she feared that her hundreds of thousands of social media followers would feel betrayed by her weight loss journey because her content had always been body-positive. But beyond the camera lens, 28-year-old D\u2019Agrella was in physical pain and ultimately decided she had to prioritize her health. Her aches, anxieties and \u201ccrippling\u201d food noise were all quelled with the help of a GLP-1.<\/p>\n

After a lifelong struggle with polycystic ovarian syndrome, a chronic condition that can cause women pain and infertility, in addition to weight gain, it was a GLP-1 that finally gave Branneisha Cooper<\/a> hope. For her, weight loss was great, but getting her period back? That\u2019s been the real win. Cooper\u2019s doctor even told her she can likely have a healthy pregnancy now. And even better: She\u2019s broken a generational curse. Most of Cooper\u2019s family has suffered from type 2 diabetes and other obesity-related conditions. Now, many of them are on GLP-1s and seeing improvements to their health too. \u201cIt\u2019s impacted not only me, but my family. Selfishly, I want my mom and grandparents to be around longer, so it\u2019s been a huge blessing,\u201d she previously told Yahoo.<\/p>\n

4. Protein is priority (but eat your fruits and veggies too)<\/p>\n

As you may have noticed, we\u2019re in our protein era. Celebrities, from Khloe Kardashian<\/a> to Venus Williams<\/a>, are launching or promoting protein shakes, powder, popcorn and more. While our current protein obsession isn\u2019t entirely the result of the surging popularity of GLP-1s, they likely have something to do with it. Here\u2019s why: People taking GLP-1s who drop a significant amount of weight are at risk of losing muscle as well as fat. To counteract that, eating plenty of protein is key.<\/p>\n

GLP-1 users have created communities online where they share tips on the best high-protein low-fat fast food options<\/a>, their hacks for protein coffee (aka \u201cproffee\u201d) and easy-to-make air fryer meals. Many people I\u2019ve spoken to prepare for their weekly shot days \u2014 after which the effects of GLP-1s may feel strongest \u2014 by super-loading on protein, which doesn\u2019t just help prevent muscle loss but can also reduce side effects, including nausea. But protein alone isn\u2019t enough. While on these medications, each meal needs to pack the fullest nutritional punch possible so that people get enough of all the essential nutrients<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"I have to admit: When I was assigned to write my first story about the blockbuster weight loss…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11190,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[64,63,137,490,5418,13158,555,13157,13156],"class_list":{"0":"post-11189","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-medication","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-health","11":"tag-medication","12":"tag-medications","13":"tag-photo-illustration","14":"tag-weight-loss","15":"tag-weight-loss-drug","16":"tag-yahoo"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11189","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11189"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11189\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11189"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11189"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11189"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}