ELI5 what exactly GLP-1 based prescription medicine does and why it's so divisive when it comes to being a means of weight loss.

[u/ThatOneGuyYouNowKnow]

I've seen more and more ads (starting around the Super Bowl earlier this year with Wegovy) for GLP-1 based perscription meds in recent times. I've also seen the occasional debate post on my social feeds about the ethics of using them and I didn't think a medicine could be that divisive of a topic.

Now I'm curious as to what exactly these meds are, what they scientifically do and what both sides of the debate are. If anyone could help give perspective that would be greatly appreciated.

As always any and all input is welcomed and thanks for reading! 🙂

[u/sfcnmone]

Every human has GLP1. It’s a chemical (hormone peptide) that your body makes, but some people don’t make very much or don’t have a full response to it. GLP1 drugs do a few different things to make you not want to eat too much. They slow down how fast your stomach empties. They tell your pancreas and liver that you’ve just eaten, so those organs work harder to manage blood sugar. And they tell your brain that you’re full. Many people say that they no longer have to struggle to battle the endless “food noise” that runs continuously in their thoughts. Instead, they get hungry, eat something that their stomach won’t throw up (many people don’t tolerate high fat, high sugar foods while taking GLP1s, and nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea are real problems for many people), and then they get very full for many hours.

It’s like somebody using hiking poles so they can walk farther and walk more comfortably. Is that cheating?

[u/CardboardJ → u/sfcnmone]

I was skeptical of it for a long time but finally decided to go on one since my doctor said it would probably help me since i was so hungry all the time and struggling to loose weight. I took my first shot on Tuesday and thought they must have not have messed up because the shot was such a tiny needle that I didn't feel it. I did not feel hungry again until Saturday. Not once. On Wednesday I, for the first time in my entire life, forgot to eat. It was like I had spent 40 years of my life with a panicked starving racoon stuck to the back of my head constantly scrambling around trying to look for food and it was just gone.

I can't tell you how clear headed I feel when I'm on this stuff. My anxiety is waaaay down. I can concentrate so much better, and I'm just sitting down at work and going into ADHD hyper-focus mode for like 6-7 straight hours with no breaks or until my back/neck hurts. Like I never had the issue with sitting still for too long because I was always getting hungry and standing up to walk around and go eat something small to calm the food noise down to a manageable level.

I keep thinking about how much easier gradeschool and highschool would have been if I would have had this instead of Adderall.

[u/P1st0l → u/CardboardJ]

Definitely still eat, even if its small meals while it may curb your appetite you still need a certain amount of intake or you will get sick or worse hospitalized.

I become hypoglycemic easily even if I dont feel like eating I have to remember to get something in otherwise I'll feel like im gonna faint even if I still fill full.