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Weight-loss drug found to shrink muscle in mice, human cells

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234 points Eumenes | 5 comments | 20 Nov 24 23:53 UTC | HN request time: 0.843s | source
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tomhoward ◴[21 Nov 24 04:17 UTC] No.42201055[source]▶
I'm not commenting specifically on the heart-muscle aspect of the study, but it shouldn't be a surprise that the weight loss from this drug is significantly attributable to muscle loss; it almost always is when dieting. It's the same with keto/low-carb or any other kind of caloric-restrictive dieting (which Ozempic facilitates).

The modern weight-loss programs I'm seeing now (at least those aimed mostly at middle-aged men) emphasize consuming significant amounts of protein (2g for every 1kg of body weight each day) and engaging in regular resistance training, in order to maintain muscle mass.

The article addresses this:

To keep muscle strong while losing weight, Prado says it is essential to focus on two main things: nutrition and exercise. Proper nutrition means getting enough high-quality protein, essential vitamins and minerals, and other “muscle-building” nutrients. Sometimes, this can include protein supplements to make sure the body has what it needs.

Perhaps there needs to be more formal research into this, and a strong recommendation made to everyone using these drugs that this kind of diet and exercise plan is vital.

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1. jjallen ◴[21 Nov 24 05:00 UTC] No.42201286[source]▶
For the people who lift weights while on this/these drugs, how much lean muscle do they lose?

The point is is that most people lose muscle because they’re not lifting. You will lose muscle if you lose weight no matter the cause, if you are not lifting weights.

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2. phil21 ◴[21 Nov 24 05:31 UTC] No.42201428[source]▶
Not sure how much I lost during, but a substantial amount. I have been working out since about 20lbs from my goal weight and now roughly a year later - and have gained strength (based on the numbers I can lift) from before I lost 100lbs.

I don’t think it would have been possible to not lose substantial muscle mass while rapidly losing 100lbs over 9mo, even with extreme resistance training added to the mix. While DEXA scans are not super accurate, I’ve put on about 17lbs of muscle since my first scan 10mo ago, while maintaining a 12% or less bodyfat ratio.

That said, I’ve been eating extremely healthy both before and after being on the drug which helps a lot. The drug simply gave me the mental space to avoid the binges which were my particular problem. That and it controls portion sizes to European dinner vs. American restaurant sized meals for me.

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3. cyberax ◴[21 Nov 24 05:48 UTC] No.42201496[source]▶
> For the people who lift weights while on this/these drugs, how much lean muscle do they lose?

I was 92kg when I started on liraglutide (I was doing GLP-1 agonists before it was cool!) and 67% of muscle mass (61kg). I'm now at 69kg and 82% of muscle mass (56kg). I'm doing weight and resistance training twice a week, in addition to aerobic training.

One nice thing, while muscles don't become more massive, they for sure become more pronounced and visible with weight loss.

4. Agingcoder ◴[21 Nov 24 07:37 UTC] No.42201996[source]▶
100 lbs that’s significant. What are the implications of rapidly losing weight ? ( I’d expect even your body image changing to not be very easy )
5. scruple ◴[21 Nov 24 09:25 UTC] No.42202518[source]▶
I know 2 competitive athletes (both MMA) who experimented with it. Both came off of it within ~6 weeks because of complications, mostly related to mood (they got very, very temperamental on it). The athletes in my sphere know about it but aren't interested. The 2 who experimented have a non-trivial social media presence and, ultimately, that is what drove them to experiment.