{"id":228008,"date":"2025-07-01T01:13:47","date_gmt":"2025-07-01T01:13:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/228008\/"},"modified":"2025-07-01T01:13:47","modified_gmt":"2025-07-01T01:13:47","slug":"weight-loss-drug-taken-monthly-helps-people-lose-20-of-body-weight-but-adverse-gi-events-were-common-trial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/228008\/","title":{"rendered":"Weight-loss drug taken monthly helps people lose 20% of body weight \u2013 but adverse GI events were \u2018common\u2019: trial"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Your support helps us to tell the story<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-1uza6dc-0 cKWiEj\">From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it&#8217;s investigating the financials of Elon Musk&#8217;s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, &#8216;The A Word&#8217;, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-1uza6dc-0 cKWiEj\">At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-1uza6dc-0 cKWiEj\">The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.<\/p>\n<p><strong class=\"sc-1uza6dc-1 huxBsk\">Your support makes all the difference.<\/strong>Read more<\/p>\n<p>A new trial has found that a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/topic\/weight-loss\">weight loss<\/a> drug taken monthly helps people to lose 20 percent of their body weight. <\/p>\n<p>Other weight loss medications such as <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/topic\/ozempic\">Ozempic<\/a>, Wegovy and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/health\/ozempic-mounjaro-nhs-prescription-poll-b2775048.html\">Mounjaro<\/a> have become popular in the U.S. Now, researchers are testing a new GLP-1 drug known as MariTide that could be competitive in the market. <\/p>\n<p>MariTide, from the California drugmaker Amgen, is different from the other weight loss drugs as it also has a monoclonal antibody, which allows the medication to stay in the body longer, according to <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/health\/health-news\/monthly-weight-loss-drug-helps-people-lose-20-body-weight-trial-finds-rcna214080\">NBC News<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>In a new trial published in <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nejm.org\/doi\/full\/10.1056\/NEJMoa2504214\">The New England Journal of Medicine,<\/a> physicians from Yale School of Medicine and other institutions analyzed the health of nearly 600 participants. They were broken up into two groups: those with obesity and people with both Type 2 diabetes and obesity. <\/p>\n<p>The trial found that those with obesity alone who were treated with MariTide lost up to about 20 percent of their body weight, on average, after 52 weeks. Those with obesity alone who didn\u2019t take the MariTide only lost up to 2.6 percent of their body weight, on average. <\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-1491059980.jpeg\"  loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"A new trial has found that a weight loss drug taken monthly helps people to lose 20 percent of their body weight. It\u2019s made by drugmaker Amgen\" class=\"sc-1mc30lb-0 ggpMaE inline-gallery-btn\"\/><\/p>\n<p>open image in gallery<\/p>\n<p>A new trial has found that a weight loss drug taken monthly helps people to lose 20 percent of their body weight. It\u2019s made by drugmaker Amgen (Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p>Participants who had diabetes and obesity lost an average of up to 17 percent of their body weight, while taking MariTide, according to the study\u2019s authors. Those with both diseases who weren\u2019t on MariTide lost up to 1.4 percent of their body weight, on average.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;MariTide delivered strong efficacy, including sustained weight loss without a plateau in the 52-week Phase 2 study and meaningful improvements in cardiometabolic risk factors, representing a defining advance for the obesity field,&#8221; Dr. Jay Bradner, executive vice president of Research and Development at Amgen, said in a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amgen.com\/newsroom\/press-releases\/2025\/06\/results-from-amgens-phase-2-obesity-study-of-monthly-maritide-presented-at-the-american-diabetes-association-85th-scientific-sessions\">statement<\/a> announcing the results.<\/p>\n<p>MariTide researchers said gastrointestinal issues were \u201ccommon\u201d with the drug, but the drug&#8217;s side effects are similar to those of other GLP-1 medications. They include nausea, abdominal pain, and vomiting.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGastrointestinal adverse events were common with maridebart cafraglutide, although less frequent with dose escalation and a lower starting dose. No unexpected safety signals emerged,\u201d they wrote.<\/p>\n<p>Notably, drug <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/business\/healthcare-pharmaceuticals\/low-start-dose-amgen-experimental-weight-loss-drug-limits-side-effects-2025-06-23\/\">needs to be given at a low starting dose<\/a> to limit those side effects and there were high discontinuation rates in mid-stage trial. The company plans to adjust its dosing, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.statnews.com\/2025\/06\/23\/amgen-maritide-obesity-drug-trial-discontinuations-side-effects-dosing-changes\/\">STAT News<\/a> noted.<\/p>\n<p>The company said it plans to start additional studies this year in patients with multiple serious health issues. <\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-1741637040.jpg\"  loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Other weight loss medications are taken weekly. Amgen said it plans to start additional studies this year in patients with multiple serious health issues\" class=\"sc-1mc30lb-0 ggpMaE inline-gallery-btn\"\/><\/p>\n<p>open image in gallery<\/p>\n<p>Other weight loss medications are taken weekly. Amgen said it plans to start additional studies this year in patients with multiple serious health issues (Sebastien Bozon\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p>Ozempic and similar drugs can help patients lose 15 to 20 percent of their body weight, according to<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/columbiasurgery.org\/news\/ozempic-effect-everything-you-need-know-about-medical-weight-loss\"> Columbia University\u2019s Department of Surgery<\/a>. Ozempic and other GLP-1 medications are taken weekly, but MariTide only needs to be taken monthly, making it more convenient for patients. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s always just easier for patients to only have to take something once per month,\u201d Dr. Michelle Ponder, an assistant professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine in <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/topic\/north-carolina\">North Carolina<\/a>, told NBC. <\/p>\n<p>Ponder, who wasn\u2019t a part of the MariTide trial, added: \u201cA lot of patients we see in endocrinology are diabetes patients, and so they\u2019d be taking multiple shots of insulin per day. And so, every last shot matters, even if it\u2019s three less shots per month.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":228009,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4315],"tags":[105,4326,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-228008","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-medication","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-medication","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228008","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=228008"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228008\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/228009"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=228008"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=228008"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=228008"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}