Obesity, excess weight, and high blood sugar are closely related to—and typically play a role in the development of—serious health conditions including:
- Increased insulin resistance
- Metabolic syndrome
- Respiratory problems like asthma or sleep apnea
- Cardiovascular conditions like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and heart disease
- Diabetes and prediabetes
- Dementia
- Kidney and liver disease or failure
- Certain cancers, like breast, colon, colorectal, endometrial, and kidney
- Reproductive problems, such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), low sperm production, and testosterone levels
The risk of health problems starts when someone is just slightly overweight and gradually increases as they gain more weight. However, for people carrying excess weight, even a moderate amount of weight loss—just 5-15% of their starting body weight—can significantly reduce these health risks, leading to improvements in everything from energy levels and physical activity to mood and mental health. With Semaglutide, you could lose up to 20% of your body weight, for exponentially more health benefits.
By helping you lose excess weight and manage conditions like diabetes and prediabetes, Semaglutide can deliver a host of additional benefits for your overall health, such as improvements in:
Metabolic health
Losing excess weight reduces inflammation and cholesterol levels while improving your body’s ability to use insulin, helping your body to metabolize food better while reducing your risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. Semaglutide’s ability to produce higher amounts of GLP-1s can also help prevent metabolic syndrome, a collection of conditions that includes high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and high blood sugar, all of which also harden the arteries and increase your risk of heart disease, heart attack, and/or stroke.
Weight management
Semaglutide works by reducing hunger, cravings, and appetite; slowing your digestion; and producing longer-lasting feelings of satiety and fullness, allowing your body to shed stored fat at a more consistent rate and reducing critical metrics like BMI and waist circumference. This also makes it easier for you to make changes to your lifestyle, adopt a low-calorie diet, and develop healthy habits, so you can keep the weight off even after you discontinue the medication.
Cardiovascular health
Elevated blood sugar and excess weight are risk factors for a slew of cardiovascular conditions, and excess fat can restrict the airways, resulting in decreased airflow and making it more difficult for you to breathe.
By reducing both weight and blood sugar levels with Semaglutide, you can drastically reduce your chance of a heart attack or stroke and reduce your risk of developing pulmonary hypertension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), or a pulmonary embolism. In fact, a recent study showed that Semaglutide could lower the risk of a cardiovascular event by as much as 20% in people with excess weight and/or a cardiovascular condition but no diabetes diagnosis, and in March 2024, the FDA approved the use of semaglutide to help lower the risk of heart attack, stroke, or cardiovascular death even in people who do not have diabetes.
Lifestyle
Thanks to reduced fatigue and shortness of breath as well as fewer pounds to carry, weight loss is often accompanied by improvements in physical limitations and exercise tolerance, helping you to lead a healthier, more active lifestyle.
Digestive health
Excess fat buildup can cause liver damage or failure, and increases your risk of developing gallstones, which require surgery to treat. By helping you shed those extra pounds, Semaglutide can help reduce liver fat content, improve conditions like nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and lower your chances of developing acute pancreatitis or gallstones.
Blood sugar control
By increasing insulin production and slowing gastric emptying, Semaglutide can help keep your blood sugar levels at healthier thresholds. Lowering blood sugar levels helps improve glucose utilization and insulin secretion and reduces inflammation and blood vessel damage throughout the body.