GLP-1s Had a Surprising Effect on the Liver in a New Study

Type 2 diabetic patients were among the very first groups to experience the positive effects of semaglutides and similar injectable drugs impacting blood sugar levels and metabolism. Now, a new study involving that group reveals yet another possible health win related to the drugs.

The Italian medical journal Minerva Medica has published a new paper about the effects of GLP-1 drugs (and other methods) on metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (“MASLD”), which, until recently, was referred to as “fatty liver disease.”

The research team was composed of doctors from Italy and Austria who specialize in areas like digestive health and endocrinology and who note that chronic MASLD can evolve into conditions such as liver cirrhosis, fibrosis, and cancer.

“New glucose-lowering agents have demonstrated benefits beyond glycemic regulation,” they say of metabolic injectables as they set out to assess the role of such medications on risks associated with fatty liver and liver fibrosis, measured in part as what the team calls “stiffness.” (As defined by the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, liver stiffness is “hardness of the liver caused by liver scarring.”) Blood tests and imaging diagnostics were used.

The researchers evaluated results from 132 participants taking one of two types of glucose-lowering injectables: GLP1s, and SLGT2 inhibitors. This was compared to 60 patients taking other types of blood sugar-lowering therapies, such as metformin, insulin, and several others.

Checking in with the participants after six months, the researchers found that “significant reductions were observed” in enzymes that indicate liver damage from fatty liver disease, hepatitis, and other factors.

At 12 months, HbA1C (measuring blood sugar) was reduced, as was cholesterol—especially for individuals who took the SLGT2 inhibitors. “Liver stiffness values decreased significantly after 12 months in GLP-1RA, SGLT2i, or combination therapy groups,” the team also reports.

Although this study was small and observational, the study authors conclude that based on their research, “GLP-1RA and SGLT2i improve glycemic control and reduce hepatic steatosis and stiffness in patients with MASLD and [type 2 diabetes].”

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