I’ve been watching the news on the GLP-1 weight loss injections with frustration and sadness with the latest headlines reading they are the key to longevity. Drugs like this should be available for those in extreme cases who have already tried a lot of different approaches, but surely we should always start with lifestyle approaches because it’s safer, there are no side effects and it’s more sustainable?

GLP-1 meds are being hailed as the new wonder weight loss jabs. Ozempic is probably the most well known to the public in this class of drugs. These medications mimic the action of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), a hormone produced in the gut that regulates blood sugar and appetite. Digestion is slowed down and appetite decreases, insulin sensitivity is increased so users do indeed lose weight.

The side effects are well known: in the short term nausea, diarrhoea, constipation and vomiting. Ongoing a patient might experience fatigue, dehydration, muscle and bone density loss. More worrying is the potential for gall stones, kidney damage and pancreatitis plus the potential to cause certain cancers (seen in animal studies). These are the more serious side effects which aren’t spoken about as much as the aesthetical ones such as ‘ozempic face’ the effect of losing so much weight too quickly.

There is also evidence that if you stop the medication, the weight is often regained. Unless of course the root causes of being overweight have been addressed or the patient has also undertaken some dietary and lifestyle measures.

On the flip side I was delighted to see the New Scientist issue which honed in on inflammation. Mainstream medicine is waking up to the link between chronic inflammation and disease. We’re looking forward to welcoming medical undergraduates from Bristol University to start their 6 week attachment with us investigating lifestyle and personalised medicine. We will be teaching the medical students about metabolic syndrome and how nutrition and highly processed foods can impact on our health and wellbeing.

There is evidence emerging that reducing inflammation can impact longevity and surely a model that offers advice on nutrition, nature connection, mindfulness and building a strong relationships should be at the heart of every consultation within medicine?