Ozempic Ingredient Semaglutide Shows Heart Health Benefits

Semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy, widely recognized for its role in weight loss, is now being hailed as a potential breakthrough for heart health. A major global study has revealed that semaglutide’s cardiovascular benefits extend beyond weight loss, offering new hope to patients at risk of heart attacks and strokes.

Researchers have found that the drug reduces cardiovascular risks even for patients who lose minimal weight while using it. The study, which is the largest and longest of its kind to date, was conducted across 41 countries and included 17,604 participants aged 45 and older who were either overweight or obese. Participants were given either the highest dose of 2.4mg of semaglutide weekly or a placebo.

Heart Benefits Beyond Weight Loss

The findings indicate that while a reduction in waist circumference – a marker for belly fat – accounted for about a third of semaglutide’s observed cardiovascular benefits, its impact on heart health is not entirely dependent on weight loss. Professor John Deanfield, a cardiology expert at University College London and the study’s lead author, emphasized the significance of this discovery.

"Abdominal fat is more dangerous for our cardiovascular health than overall weight", said Professor Deanfield. "Therefore, it is not surprising to see a link between reduction in waist size and cardiovascular benefit. However, this still leaves two-thirds of the heart benefits of semaglutide unexplained. These findings reframe what we think this medication is doing."

He added, "It is labelled as a weight loss jab, but its benefits for the heart are not directly related to the amount of weight lost. In fact, it is a drug that directly affects heart disease and other diseases of ageing."

Expanding the Scope of Treatment

The study’s results suggest that semaglutide could have broader applications for patients beyond those with severe obesity. Researchers observed similar heart health improvements in participants with a body mass index (BMI) of 27 – the average BMI for adults in the UK – as in those classified with the highest BMIs.

Professor Deanfield noted, "You don’t have to lose a lot of weight, and you don’t need a high BMI to gain cardiovascular benefit. If your aim is to reduce cardiovascular disease, restricting its use to a limited time only and for those with the highest BMIs doesn’t make sense. At the same time, the benefits need to be weighed against potential side effects."

Expert Opinions on the Findings

The study’s implications have been described as "profound" by Professor Tim Chico, a cardiovascular medicine expert at the University of Sheffield who was not involved in the research. He stated, "It suggests the benefits of the drug are not only caused by causing weight loss. The average man or woman in the UK has a BMI over 27, so most people with heart disease are likely to benefit from adding semaglutide to their existing drugs, which already usually include aspirin, statins, blood pressure-lowering drugs, and other blood thinners."

Professor Azeem Majeed, an expert in primary care and public health at Imperial College London, highlighted the potential for semaglutide as a preventive treatment: "The findings reinforce the use of semaglutide as a disease-modifying therapy for high-risk patients and not just as a weight-loss tool. In future, this may potentially lead to broadening the use of semaglutide beyond strict BMI cutoffs and encouraging its earlier use in cardiovascular disease prevention."

A Promising Future for Semaglutide

Semaglutide injections have been available in the US since 2017 and in the UK since 2019 to help manage type 2 diabetes. They were later approved for weight loss under the brand Wegovy, with users reportedly losing an average of up to 33 pounds over 68 weeks by using the drug. The medication works by suppressing appetite and tricking the brain into feeling full.

With these groundbreaking findings, semaglutide may prove to be more than just a weight loss solution. Its role in improving cardiovascular health has the potential to reshape the way it is used in clinical practice, benefiting a wider range of patients and potentially saving lives.

However, while the study’s results are promising, experts stress the need for ongoing research to fully understand the mechanisms behind semaglutide’s heart health benefits and to ensure its safety for broader use. As Professor Deanfield concluded, "Investigations of side effects become especially important given the broad range of people this medicine and others like it could help."

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