Liraglutide, Ozempic’s cousin, will soon be cheaper. But how does it come together?

Fourteen years ago, semaglutide’s older cousin (Ozempic and Wegovy) entered the market. The drug liraglutide is sold under brand names Victoria AND Saxenda.

Patents for Victoza and Saxenda now expired. Likewise other pharmaceutical companies working develop “generic” versions. These are likely to be a fraction of the running costs, i.e around 400 Australian dollars per month.

So how does liraglutide compare to semaglutide?

How do these medicines work?

Liraglutide was not originally developed as a slimming treatment. Like semaglutide (Ozempic), it originally treated type 2 diabetes.

Liraglutide and semaglutide medications are known as GLP-1 mimetics, which means they mimic the natural hormone GLP-1. This hormone is released from the petite intestine in response to food and works in several ways to improve the way the body handles glucose (sugar).

How do they stop hunger?

Liraglutide works in several areas of the unconscious part of the brain, particularly the hypothalamus, which controls metabolism, and in parts of the brainstem responsible for transmitting information to the hypothalamus about the body’s nutritional status.

His actions seem to reduce hunger in two different ways. First, it helps you feel full faster, making smaller meals more satisfying. Second, it changes yourmotivational significance” towards food, which means it reduces the amount of food you are looking for.

The original formulation of liraglutide, intended for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, was marketed as Victoza. Its ability to cause weight loss was obvious soon after entering the market.

Shortly thereafter, a stronger preparation called Saxenda appeared releasedwhich was intended for weight loss in obese people.

How much weight can you lose using liraglutide?

People react differently and lose weight to varying degrees. But here we will highlight the average weight loss that users can expect. Some will lose more (sometimes much more), some will lose less, and a petite proportion will not respond.

The first GLP-1 mimetic drug was exenatide (Bayetta). It is still available for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, but there are currently no generics. Exenatide does provide some weight loss, but it is quite modest, usually around 3-5% body weight.

In the case of liraglutide, people taking the drug to treat obesity will operate a stronger drug (Saxenda), which usually gives approximately 10% weight loss.

Semaglutide in a stronger form called Wegovy usually causes 15% weight loss.

The newest GLP-1 mimetic drug on the market, tyrzepatid (Mounjaro for type 2 diabetes and Zepbound for weight loss), causes weight loss of approximately 25% body weight.

What happens when you stop taking them?

Despite the effectiveness of these drugs in weight loss, they do not appear to change the patient’s established weight.

Therefore, in many cases, when people stop taking them, they experience: rebound to original weight.

What is the dose and how often does it need to be taken?

Liraglutide (Victoza) for type 2 diabetes is a medication Exactly the same drug as Saxenda for weight loss, but Saxenda has a higher dose.

Although the target of action of each preparation is the same (GLP-1 receptor), in order to control glucose levels in type 2 diabetes, liraglutide must reach (primarily) the pancreas.

However, to achieve weight loss, it must reach part of the brain. This means crossing the blood-brain barrier – and not everyone does this, which means you have to take more.

All current formulations of GLP-1 mimetic are injectable. This will not change when generics of liraglutide appear on the market.

However, they differ in the frequency of injection. Liraglutide is given as an injection once a day, while semaglutide and tirzepatide are given once a week. (This makes semaglutide and tyrzepatide much more attractive, but we won’t see semaglutide as generics until 2033.)

What are the side effects?

Because all of these drugs serve the same purpose in the body, they mostly have the same side effects.

The most common are various gastrointestinal disorders, incl nausea, vomiting, flatulence, constipation and diarrhea. These occur partly because these medications sluggish the passage of food from the stomach, but they can generally be managed by slowly increasing the dose.

Recent clinical data suggests that slowing gastric emptying can be and may be problematic for some people increase the risk of food entering the lungs during surgerytherefore it is vital to tell your doctor if you are taking any of these medicines.

Since these are injections, they can also lead to injection site reactions.

Several cases of thyroid disease and pancreatitis have been reported during clinical trials. However, it is not clear whether this can be the case attributed to drugs that mimic GLP-1.

Drugs that mimic GLP-1 have been found to work in animals negatively affect the development of the embryo. There is currently no data from controlled clinical trials regarding their operate during pregnancy, however animal data suggest that these drugs should not be used during pregnancy.

Who can operate them?

GLP-1 mimetic drugs used for weight loss (Vega, SaxendaZepbound/Mounjaro) are approved for operate by obese people and are intended to be used only in conjunction with diet and exercise.

These drugs must be prescribed by a doctor and are not covered by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme for obesity, which is one reason they are high-priced. However, over time, generic versions of liraglutide will likely become cheaper.