Semaglutide, Benefits Beyond Weight Loss
As we all know, Semaglutide AKA big brand names Ozempic and Wegovy have taken the market by storm the past couple years. Beyond diabetic control and weight loss, this peptide like medication has benefits beyond what most of us may realize. I wanted to discuss Semaglutide in a little more detail, how to best use it and the many health conditions it can benefit.
Semaglutide is a GLP-1 agonist or glucagon like peptide agonist. So what does this mean? This peptide stimulates natural GLP-1 production in our body including in the brain to decrease appetite and in the stomach to promote a feeling of fullness. In addition, it stimulates the pancreas to help proper insulin regulation. Insulin helps absorb sugars properly into the cells for fuel rather than allowing the cells to “bathe” in the sugar. Semaglutide also prevents glucagon secretion (extra sugar) from the liver in response to eating. I have seen semaglutide work a bit better in helping cravings as Tirzepatide has GIP which actually increases glucagon post meal.
Starting low and only increasing as needed has been my motto from the start. Dr. Tyna Moore emphasizes this greatly and also discusses how low dose semaglutide can provide great benefit while preventing stalling out. Cycling the peptide may also be a good strategy for those hitting a wall with weight loss, then starting back on a lower dose as your receptors become desensitized again. Losing muscle mass has been a concern for those taking semaglutide. However, the medication itself does not directly cause muscle loss; but we will lose muscle if we don’t treat our bodies right during treatment, lose weight too rapidly and/or ramp up dosing too quickly. I have seen that focus on purely weight loss versus a decrease in waist size has caused misconception/misunderstanding in proper fat/weight loss. We must maintain muscle mass for longevity and to help keep/build up your metabolism long term. If you are on these meds please focus on protein, even 30-50 grams per meal. I know it is hard to meet this, I have to add a protein shake to my diet daily to even come close but try your best. Here is some advice for muscle mass maintenance otherwise: weight bearing exercise/weight lifting is a must, keeping up your protein as mentioned, add creatine to your diet, staying well hydrated and honestly, not losing weight too rapidly. There is a healthy way to lose weight, and many want super quick results, but long term this may end up being worse in terms of gaining the weight back (rebound weight gain). That’s why we start low and go slow.
As most of us know, Semaglutide in the brand name forms have been widely successful in treating diabetes and now weight loss. Many studies have been done and hopefully will continue to reveal the multitude of conditions this peptide can treat. First of all this peptide medication can help heal your metabolism over time, but you must work with it for it to have long term effects, as with any medication. Semaglutide can also help with inflammation in the body and help people with chronic pain conditions find relief and potentially even autoimmune issues such as psoriatic arthritis. If you are looking to improve your overall cardiovascular health (cholesterol levels, risk for cardiac events, etc) or improve metabolic health such as elevated glucose levels, even PCOS and endometriosis. Other conditions it can help treat: prevention of major kidney disease, alcohol cessation, tobacco cessation, or any type of addictive mindset at that. The list does not end there!
I am now implementing low dose semaglutide in the right patients as a tool to heal. We can find alternative ways to treat, still experience great benefits, all while NOT dealing with crazy side effects. Some can even consider micro-dosing. Not everyone will be able to maintain at a very low dose, especially if their body is metabolically busted, then yes, starting at regular doses may still be the answer. However, we will still do our best to use the lowest effective dose with increases just as needed while still achieving good results. Flooding our receptors with high doses of this peptide too quickly will never be the answer for long term results.
I hope that these new findings will bring even more success to my patients. Unfortunately, typical medicine isn’t always focused on the holistic factors we need to consider which has made this drug out to seem not so good to some. However, when we at least try do things in the right fashion, long term results are much more likely. None of us know everything, but hopefully we can continue to improve treatment as new information continues to come out of the woodwork.
-AmytheNP
