The Truth About Muscle Loss and Weight Loss Drugs.

The most common fear about GLP-1s just got a major reality check.

The benefits of weight loss medications for those who need them are crystal clear.

• Weight loss of between 15-25%.

• Lower Blood Pressure.

• Prevention of diabetes.

• Fewer cardiovascular events.

• Less liver fat.

• Less insulin resistance.

The list goes on, but you get the point.

But as Thomas Sowell so famously said about all things in life:

“There are no solutions, only trade-offs.”.

Every medication has the potential to cause adverse effects, and weight loss medications are no different.

But one particular aspect of these medications has caused significant concern, and that is the potential for excess muscle mass loss and all the downsides that could go with it.

We know that low muscle mass and low muscle strength are key determinants of poor health outcomes.

The question is whether weight loss therapies such as Semaglutide and Tirzepatide are trading weight loss for excess muscle mass loss.

Initial data suggested that this was potentially the case, but more recent data may suggest otherwise.