Weight loss drug Ozempic and type 2 diabetes jabs could be used to tackle binge drinking

Weight loss and type 2 diabetes jabs could benefit people with alcohol abuse problems, according to a new study.

Researchers found the common drugs led to a 50 per cent lower rate of alcohol intoxication in people taking them compared to people not prescribed them.

Their study, published in the journal Addiction, also found that off-label use of the drugs could also help people addicted to opioids.

The researchers looked at glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) drugs, which they said include brand name Mounjaro, and/or glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RA), which they said included the drug Ozempic.

Health experts have suggested these drugs may curb addictions because they work on appetite but also parts of the brain which help maintain addictive behaviour.

The study comes following numerous trials claiming health benefits linked to weight loss and type 2 diabetes drugs, including improved cardiac outcomes and longer life expectancy.

This week health secretary Wes Streeting said weight-loss jabs could be given to those who are unemployed due to obesity problems as the government announced £279m investment into the UK’s life sciences sector to trial weight-loss jabs, and assess the impact on worklessness.

The latest study, led by Loyola University Chicago in the US, experts looked at 503,747 people with a history of opioid use disorder, of which 8,103 had a prescription for a GLP-1 RA or GIP.

The study found that people with the disorder who had a GLP-1 RA or GIP prescription had a 40 per cent lower rate of opioid overdose compared with those who did not have a prescription.

The study also looked at 817,309 people with a history of alcohol use disorder, of which 5,621 had a prescription for a GLP-1 RA or GIP.

It found that people with alcohol use disorder who had a GLP-1 RA or GIP prescription had a 50 per cent lower rate of alcohol intoxication compared with those who did not have a prescription.

The authors said their results showed that the drugs “should be investigated as a novel pharmacotherapy treatment option” for people with alcohol and opioid addiction.