Semaglutide shows promise in reducing alcohol cravings
For years, semaglutide has gained attention as a breakthrough treatment for diabetes and obesity. Now, researchers are exploring another surprising benefit – its potential to reduce alcohol consumption.
Sold under brand names like Ozempic and Wegovy, this medication has transformed the lives of many by improving blood sugar control and aiding in weight loss.
A new study suggests that semaglutide may help individuals struggling with alcohol use disorder. The research was led by Dr. Christian Hendershot from the USC Institute for Addiction Science and Dr. Klara Klein from the UNC School of Medicine.
The findings indicate that weekly injections of semaglutide can significantly reduce alcohol cravings, lower consumption, and decrease the frequency of heavy drinking episodes.
Alcohol-related deaths are rising
Alcohol-related deaths in the U.S. exceed 178,000 per year. Long-term alcohol use is linked to severe health complications, including liver disease, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.
Despite these risks, many individuals with alcohol use disorder do not seek or receive treatment.
The FDA has approved only three medications to treat alcohol use disorder, but they remain underutilized. This treatment gap leaves many without effective medical support.
With semaglutide already widely prescribed for diabetes and weight loss, researchers see an opportunity to explore its use in alcohol reduction. The potential for a well-known medication to provide a new treatment option could change how alcohol use disorder is managed.
Testing semaglutide for alcohol addiction
To better understand semaglutide’s effect on drinking behavior, the researchers recruited 48 adults diagnosed with alcohol use disorder who were not actively seeking treatment.
The study aimed to evaluate whether semaglutide could help them control their alcohol consumption in both real-world and controlled settings.
One week before the trial began, participants attended a drinking session in a comfortable laboratory setting. They were provided with their preferred alcoholic beverages and asked to drink over a two-hour period.
The researchers documented their drinking patterns, including the number of drinks consumed and whether they delayed drinking.
Following this initial session, participants were randomly assigned to receive either weekly injections of semaglutide or a placebo for nine weeks.
Throughout the study, weekly drinking habits were closely monitored. At the end of the trial, all of the participants returned to the lab for another controlled drinking session to measure any changes in their behavior.
People drank less alcohol with semaglutide
The results were striking. Participants in the semaglutide group consumed significantly less alcohol than those in the placebo group.
This reduction was measured in both total grams of alcohol consumed and breath alcohol concentration. The data indicated that semaglutide helped lower alcohol intake both in a controlled setting and in the participants’ everyday lives.
Beyond reducing the quantity of alcohol consumed, semaglutide also decreased cravings. The researchers observed that participants taking the drug reported fewer urges to drink, drank less frequently, and had fewer heavy drinking days.
Compared to currently available medications for alcohol use disorder, semaglutide showed a potentially greater effect, even though it was administered at the lowest clinical dose.
Unexpected link to smoking reduction
In addition to its effects on alcohol consumption, the researchers noticed another surprising outcome. Among participants who smoked cigarettes at the beginning of the study, those who received semaglutide significantly reduced their cigarette intake compared to those who received the placebo.
This observation could be important because no single medication is currently approved for both alcohol reduction and smoking cessation. If semaglutide continues to show promise in this area, it could lead to a new approach for addressing multiple substance use behaviors at once.
“The first clinical trial testing the impact of an older GLP-1 receptor agonist on alcohol use in humans was inconclusive,” said Dr. Klein.
“However, as prescription of semaglutide and similar medications escalated, anecdotal reports of reduced alcohol use became very common, and suggested the potential of these more potent therapies for treatment of alcohol use disorder.”
Changes in the brain’s response to alcohol
While the findings are promising, the researchers still need to determine exactly how semaglutide reduces alcohol cravings.
Early studies suggest that GLP-1 receptor agonists like semaglutide affect reward pathways in the brain, altering how the brain responds to alcohol. These changes may explain why individuals taking the drug experience fewer cravings and consume less alcohol.
Some scientists believe that semaglutide reduces the rewarding effects of alcohol by altering dopamine signaling in the brain.
If true, this could provide a biological explanation for why participants in the study showed a reduced desire to drink. However, more research is needed to confirm these mechanisms.
Further research is needed
Although the results of the study suggest a promising future for semaglutide in treating alcohol use disorder, there are still many unanswered questions. Experts must investigate whether the effects observed in this small study hold up in larger and longer trials.
Another important area of research is determining the ideal dose and treatment duration for alcohol use disorder. Currently, semaglutide is prescribed for diabetes and weight loss at specific doses, but those amounts may not be optimal for reducing alcohol consumption.
Understanding how the medication works in different populations will be essential for its future use in addiction treatment.
Treatment of alcohol use disorder
“These data suggest the potential of semaglutide and similar drugs to fill an unmet need for the treatment of alcohol use disorder,” said Dr. Klein.
“Larger and longer studies in broader populations are needed to fully understand the safety and efficacy in people with alcohol use disorder, but these initial findings are promising.”
If future research confirms these results, semaglutide could offer a new way to address alcohol use disorder. Given its existing approval for other conditions, it may be easier to integrate into treatment plans than developing an entirely new drug.
For now, scientists remain cautiously optimistic. As more clinical trials are conducted, researchers hope to provide definitive answers about semaglutide’s role in alcohol reduction. If the findings hold, this medication could mark a major shift in how alcohol use disorder is treated.
The study is published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
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