- Taking tirzepatide (Mounjaro and Zepbound) long-term may be critical for maintaining weight loss promoted by the drug, a new study finds.
- Both people taking the drug and a control group taking a placebo maintained some weight loss during the study period, but those on the drug kept more off or lost additional weight.
- Researchers say the study underscores the importance of making lifestyle changes in tandem with weight loss drugs.
People who continue to take the weight loss drug tirzepatide experience better results both with losing weight and keeping it off compared to those who take the drug for a limited duration, a
Previous phase three clinical trials showed that tirzepatide, which is sold under the brand names Mounjaro and the recently approved Zepbound, resulted in a 20% or greater weight loss after 72 weeks compared to a control group that was taking a placebo.
This new phase three trial took 670 participants and lasted a total of 88 weeks. All participants received treatment with tirzepatide for 36 weeks. Then, participants were randomly assigned to either an an additional year of treatment or to a placebo injection.
The researchers reported that those who remained on the drug lost an additional 5% of their total weight, adding up to around 25% overall. While the placebo group maintained some weight loss although they gained 14% of their weight back, the researchers at the Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian in New York reported.
The study was sponsored by Eli Lilly and Company, the manufacturer of both Mounjaro and Zepbound.
However, tirzepatide differs from semaglutide in some important ways.
“Tirzepatide is a single molecule that binds to and activates not only the GLP1 receptor but also a second receptor—the glucose-dependent…
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