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Weight Loss Medication

What Are Weight Loss Medications?

Think of weight loss medications as partners in your wellness journey. We know that only 5% of people can lose weight and keep it off long term with diet and exercise alone. Which leaves the remaining 95% fluctuating and struggling with their weight over their lifetime. Medications are not “magic pills”, but rather tools designed to work alongside healthy lifestyle changes that will help you manage appetite, reduce cravings and increase metabolism. They come in various forms, each with its own unique mechanism of action:

What Types of Medication Do We Prescribe?

  • Appetite suppressants: Medications like phentermine or Qsymia will reduce your overall appetite as well as speed up your metabolism to burn more fat. These medications are inexpensive and easy to take. Other oral weight loss medications include medications like Contrave. This medication targets the dopamine centers in the brain to help with stress eating, emotional eating and other behavioral challenges when it comes to food and hunger.

  • GLP-1 receptor agonists: Medications like semaglutide (branded as Ozempic for diabetes, and Wegovy for weight loss) and liraglutide (branded as Victoza for diabetes, and Saxenda for weight loss), mimic a natural gut hormone that regulates appetite and insulin production, promoting feelings of fullness and reducing hunger and food cravings. These medications have also been studied and are now documented to reduce adverse cardiovascular events by 20%! Studies around effectiveness of these medications show an average overall body weight loss of 15-18% after 68 weeks on these medications. Some can lose more or less.

  • GLP-1 & GIP: Tirzepitide: Branded as Mounjaro (for diabetes) and Zepbound (for weight loss). These medications work similarly to Semaglutide by increasing the feeling of fullness, reducing overall food intake and reducing hunger. Studies show a 22% overall average body mass loss after 72 weeks on this medication. Also, with the additional heart health benefits.

Our Philosophy on Weight Loss Medication

Our approach to weight loss and wellness is comprehensive and personalized. We believe in addressing the root causes of weight gain and poor health, which often requires a holistic strategy. 

In general, we like to avoid adding medication to treat a symptom of a greater problem, but as we start to reframe how we approach obesity, we do see an important role for medication initiation.

Anti-obesity medication is not a cure, but it can be a very effective treatment that is adjunct to all the other lifestyle interventions we will also be working on together.