Weight loss drugs could help with alcohol and opioid addiction, new study shows
Diabetes and weight loss drugs like Mounjaro and Ozempic may also help patients suffering from addiction, according to a new study.
In the study, published Thursday in the scientific journal Addiction, researchers found people with opioid or alcohol use disorder who take Ozempic or similar medications appear to have a 40% lower rate of opioid overdose and a 50% lower rate of alcohol intoxication compared to people who aren't on the medications.
Dr. Céline Gounder, CBS News medical contributor and editor-at-large for public health at KFF Health News, said these are "significant clinical impacts for patients."
The study used a large data set, looking at almost 10 years of data from patients in over 100 health systems across the country.
Previous research has also looked at whether the medications may help people quit smoking.
Gounder says it's possible we'll see these drugs prescribed primarily for addiction treatment in the future, but more study is needed.
"We would need to see some randomized clinical trials over time to prove that this is truly cause and effect. That's what you would need also for the FDA to expand the indication, which paves the way also for insurance coverage. But I think it's quite possible we see that down the line," she said on "CBS Mornings."
That doesn't mean these drugs don't have risks, though, Gounder cautioned.
"These drugs are working on the brain, and we don't know what the long term effects of having this kind of hormone impacting your brain would be. We don't know what the risks in the long term for cancer would be," she said. "We know that there are risks of pancreatitis, gallbladder issues, kidney issues, and there are some reports of suicidal thoughts, so that would be a concern."