{"id":937562,"date":"2026-10-23T01:38:11","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T01:38:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/937562\/"},"modified":"2026-10-23T01:38:11","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T01:38:11","slug":"more-people-now-use-glp-1s-for-weight-loss-than-for-other-health-conditions-research-finds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/937562\/","title":{"rendered":"More people now use GLP-1s for weight loss than for other health conditions, research finds"},"content":{"rendered":"

More Americans are now taking GLP-1 drugs<\/a> to shed some pounds than to treat diabetes and other health conditions for which the medications were originally prescribed, new research shows.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Roughly 54% of people taking semaglutide medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy do so to lose weight, overtaking the share of people who use them for other medical reasons, according to EY-Parthenon.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, as usage of GLP-1 drugs for weight management surpasses other medical uses, more consumers are changing how they eat and shop, the strategy consulting firm found in a survey<\/a> of nearly 15,000 people, including 3,602 current or former GLP-1 users.<\/p>\n

For example, people taking the drugs typically consume\u00a0fewer unhealthy foods<\/a>\u00a0and less alcohol in favor of healthier products. Sixty-three percent of GLP-1 users say they have reduced their consumption of sweet snacks, while 57% say they eat fewer salty snacks, according to EY-Parthenon’s research.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Food makers, grocery chains and other retailers are adapting to those changes in consumer habits.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“We are finding that manufacturers and retailers are making more room on store shelves for GLP-1-diet-specific foods, or protein-enhanced items, and smaller portion sizes,” Don Johnson, a principal in EY-Parthenon’s consumer strategy practice, told CBS News. “Some consumer packaged goods makers thought this was a blip or fad. Now I don’t hear that. Everyone accepts that this is a structural change that’s not going away.”<\/p>\n

Smaller sizes, fitted styles<\/p>\n

Growing use of the drugs for controlling weight is also changing how consumers shop for clothes. In the apparel department, EY-Parthenon researchers found that consumers taking GLP-1s are gravitating toward smaller clothing sizes and more fitted clothing, swimwear and athletic wear.<\/p>\n

“You’re losing a lot of weight on the drugs, so you’re needing to buy differently,” Johnson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

EY-Parthenon found that 72% of GLP-1 users sized down in clothing after rapidly losing weight, requiring a wardrobe refresh. Roughly half of users increased their spending on fitness services, such as gym memberships, while 46% switched apparel brands.\u00a0<\/p>\n

GLP-1s have become accessible to a broader swath of consumers, driving increased adoption for weight loss, according to EY-Parthenon. The drugs are today available in more forms, such as a pill, and are also more affordable, leading more younger, lower-income and male consumers to use the drugs, according to the research.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Changes in public policy are also helping drive wider usage of the drugs. A Trump administration\u00a0agreement<\/a>\u00a0last year with GLP-1 manufacturers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk lowered the cost of Ozempic and Wegovy to between $150 and $350 per month, down from roughly $1,000 per month. The Medicare GLP-1 Bridge program<\/a> also provides eligible Medicare beneficiaries with access to GLP-1 drugs for $50 a month.\u00a0<\/p>\n

GLP-1 drugs also could have clinical value in helping people deal with other issues, some researchers think. Experts at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania are embarking on a study to see if the drugs can deter\u00a0risky financial decisions<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In a first-of-its-kind study, the researchers will examine how GLP-1s influence the body’s reward system, a network of brain structures that reinforces certain behaviors, to see whether the drugs suppress temptations such as luxury purchases, gambling or other activities that people often find hard to control.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n Edited by<\/p>\n

Alain Sherter<\/a>\n <\/p>\n

\n More from CBS News\n <\/p>\n

\n Go deeper with The Free Press\n <\/p>\n

In:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"More Americans are now taking GLP-1 drugs to shed some pounds than to treat diabetes and other health…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":937563,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[64,63,9636,137,500,490,7532,555],"class_list":["post-937562","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-medication","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-glp-1","tag-health","tag-healthcare","tag-medication","tag-type-2-diabetes","tag-weight-loss"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/937562","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=937562"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/937562\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/937563"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=937562"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=937562"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=937562"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}