Study Reveals Potential Reduction in Mortality Rate in Obese Individuals with Diabetes

• Obesity is linked to health issues like diabetes, high blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease.
• GLP-1 agonists, originally used for diabetes, have gained attention for their role in weight loss.
• Semaglutide, a diabetes drug, has shown promising results in weight loss in people without diabetes.
• The SELECT trial, funded by semaglutide makers, involved 17,604 obese or overweight participants with cardiovascular disease but no diabetes.
• Participants were randomly assigned to receive weekly injections of semaglutide or a placebo and followed up for three years.
• During follow-up, 833 people (4.7%) died. Compared to the placebo group, participants who received semaglutide had lower death rates from all causes.
• A 19% reduction in cardiovascular mortality, heart attacks, and strokes was observed in the semaglutide group.
• Questions remain about the early reduction in deaths and the unexpected reduction in COVID-19 deaths.
• Large randomized trials like SELECT can minimize such discrepancies.
• The study suggests that GLP-1 agonists may benefit overweight and obese individuals without diabetes, potentially impacting medical practice.