this post was submitted on 31 Aug 2025
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Weight loss drugs can halve heart patients’ risk of early death, study finds (www.theguardian.com)
submitted 2 weeks ago by FlashMobOfOne@lemmy.world to c/science@lemmy.world
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Weight loss drugs can reduce by half the risk of heart patients being hospitalised or dying early, according to the largest study of its kind.

The class of drugs, known as GLP-1 agonists, have been found to offer “dramatic benefits” to heart patients, significantly cutting their risk of falling seriously ill or dying prematurely from any cause.

The discovery, revealed at the world’s largest heart conference in Madrid, means they could be given to millions of heart patients to help them stay out of hospital and live longer.

Weight loss drugs mimic the glucagon-like peptide (GLP) 1 hormone, which makes people feel full, and were initially developed to treat diabetes. In recent years evidence has emerged suggesting they could prove to be lifesaving across a range of conditions beyond obesity.

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[–] HybridSarcasm@lemmy.world -2 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Losing weight has always had heart benefits. This isn’t news. Maybe it’s news that a weight loss drug actually works ? It feels disingenuous for the article and/or the quoted studies to leapfrog the actual cause of reduced heart problems and attempt to give the credit directly to the drugs. As if only the drugs could produce these results.

[–] StupidBrotherInLaw@lemmy.world 3 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Did you read the article? There's more to it than just weight loss, which is called out in the article. GLP-1 agonists are also powerful anti-inflammatories and immune cell regulators, providing health benefits before significant weight loss.