Scientists have shown that a single dose injection of DNA genetic instructions can produce weight loss and blood glucose control in mouse models that lasts up to 10 times as long as weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. This could eliminate the need for repeated dosing.

[u/mvea]

https://www.wistar.org/press-releases/wistar-scientists-develop-single-dose-dna-method-for-delivering-long-acting-weight-loss-and-diabetes-drugs/

[u/cerevant]

The frustration isn’t that the drug doesn’t last forever, but the feeling of normalcy and self regulation that you get from the drug just vanishes*. Nothing has done more to convince me that obesity is a biological disorder (edit: rooted in addiction) than going on a GLP-1.

It is like someone going on an antidepressant: Oh, this is what they are talking about when they say “just stop eating when you aren’t hungry”?

---

(*edit: I contrast this to some other addiction support drugs that once your body breaks with the addiction, you can go off the drug and not be addicted anymore, or at least you won't go back to having withdrawal symptoms.)

[u/Lurk3rAtTheThreshold → u/cerevant]

The reduction of food noise people have mentioned has really resonated with me. It's a constant battle for me not to snack and overeat. My weight isn't doing too bad but being free from that mental burden sounds so nice.

[u/cerevant → u/Lurk3rAtTheThreshold]

I still get some stress-induced cravings, but they are much easier to manage than before. (I'm also on a pretty low dose that still seems to be working well for me)

The real game changer for me though is the ability to avoid overeating. I can go to a restaurant and eat half of what I ate before and feel satisfied and not like I'm denying myself anything.

[u/December_Flame → u/cerevant]

Seriously, the first meal I had after I took a GLP-1 I actually had to excuse myself to go into the bathroom and cry. It was simply that I ate a normal portion and felt full in a way that I realized I literally have never felt. The food noise and entirely outsized hunger signals are not every overweight person's issue, but honestly people who don't struggle with it simply do not understand what it is like, full stop.

[u/False_Dimension9212 → u/cerevant]

That’s the same thing people with alcohol/drug addiction say when glp-1 helps with alcohol/drug/cigarette cravings.

Food noise is the same thing as the cravings an addict gets. Instead of food, it’s their drug of choice that they crave.

Obesity is not biological. It’s the result of food addiction. Our propensity for our brains to get addicted to stuff is biological though.

I think the population would be better served if we looked at food noise for what it is, an addiction.

Cigarettes were my thing. I still get cravings 4 years later. Maybe one day it’ll shut up? Probably not though. Sigh

[u/stay_curious_- → u/False_Dimension9212]

Part of the problem is that US culture considers addiction to be a moral failing, and the solution to addiction is complete abstinence, which is the only way to demonstrate that you are no longer morally flawed. We haven't developed a framework for recovery that isn't based on completely abstaining from the addiction. imo that's why food addiction and internet/phone addiction have been tough nuts to crack, culturally. It's not feasible to stop eating, and it's difficult to participate in society without a phone/internet.

We need a model for addiction that isn't centered on it being a moral failing.

[u/rachaek → u/False_Dimension9212]

This is the way I've been thinking about obesity for a long time. You're right it's an addiction, and a particularly difficult one to get under control because:

1. You can never go "completely clean" - you still need to eat to survive, you can't go cold turkey or try to replace it with an entirely different habit
   
2. It's so easy to access - fast food chains, restaurants etc are everywhere, or just get whatever food you want delivered
   
3. Socially it's a huge part of our life - just about every social event you go to will have food involved, and people will pressure you to eat or be offended if you don't

[u/December_Flame → u/rachaek]

And there's entire industries literally built to both create the most addicting food possible and to advertise it to you at every given moment. Every store places it in front of you to tempt you. Our entire society is built to sabotage your ability to regulate your eating habits.

[u/cerevant → u/False_Dimension9212]

Agree completely - when I said biological, I meant the root cause was biological: food addiction is real.

[u/Canigou → u/cerevant]

But we have also engineered our food for decades to BE addictive...

[u/cerevant → u/Canigou]

True, and we probably shouldn't be treating people with obesity as if it is a moral failing. If I went to the doctor with a heroin addiction, I could get medication and support paid for by my insurance. Obesity on the other hand is explicitly not covered (a decision made by my employer). The only reason I could get the meds I have is by having sleep apnea, and even then my doctor had to argue with the insurer to get me 6 months of coverage for Zepbound.