{"id":603549,"date":"2026-08-24T22:44:18","date_gmt":"2026-08-24T22:44:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/603549\/"},"modified":"2026-08-24T22:44:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-24T22:44:18","slug":"weight-loss-drugs-may-help-with-mental-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/603549\/","title":{"rendered":"Weight loss drugs may help with mental health"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA), commonly known as drugs for diabetes and weight loss, may have additional mental health benefits, especially for people with bipolar disorder, new Griffith University research has found.<\/p>\n

Diabetes, obesity, and bipolar disorder often co-occur and may have shared pathophysiology with the latest World Health Organisation data estimating one in 200, or 37 million people, live with bipolar disorder.<\/p>\n

GLP-1 medications treat diabetes and obesity, but their impact on bipolar disorder is unknown.<\/p>\n

\"\"Professor Mark Taylor <\/p>\n

A large Swedish nationwide study was conducted whereby researchers, led by Professor Mark Taylor from Griffith\u2019s School of Medicine and Dentistry<\/a>, analysed data from nearly 15,000 people with bipolar disorder who were prescribed GLP-1 medications over a 15-year period.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople with bipolar disorder who were taking semaglutide (otherwise known as Ozempic or wegovy), a type of GLP-1 medication, had significantly lower rates of psychiatric hospitalisation compared with periods when they were not taking GLP-1 medicines,\u201d Professor Taylor said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe findings add to growing evidence that GLP-1 receptor agonists may have benefits beyond diabetes and obesity treatment, and could represent a promising new avenue for bipolar research.\u201d<\/p>\n

Semaglutide was associated with a 21 per cent lower risk of psychiatric hospitalisation.<\/p>\n

The study suggested GLP-1 signalling may help to protect the brain by reducing inflammation, cellular stress and other biological processes which have been linked to bipolar disorder.<\/p>\n

This could potentially improve mood stability and reduce the risk of relapse.<\/p>\n

While semaglutide was associated with reduced psychiatric hospitalisation risk, liraglutide and dulaglutide were not, suggesting the effect may not apply to all GLP-1 medicines.<\/p>\n

Professor Taylor hoped the research findings would be further tested in a randomised controlled trial.<\/p>\n

The paper \u2018Use of glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists and the associated risk of hospitalisation in bipolar disorder, from a nationwide cohort, 2009-2024\u2019 has been published in Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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