Millions of Britons taking GLP-1 medications could see their heart health improve by simply sticking to six healthy habits, experts say.
A new study from the School of Public Health at Harvard University, Boston, looked at years’ worth of data from 100,000 former US military veterans who were prescribed the class of medicines, which are used to treat type 2 diabetes.
They did not specifically identify which brands were used by the study cohort, but the medications were all FDA-approved GLP-1 drugs during the study years of 2011 to 2023.
These included semaglutide and liraglutide, which are now widely prescribed as weight loss jabs, branded as Ozempic and Wegovy, and Saxenda, respectively. And, a positive side effect of losing weight is improved heart health.
The researchers wanted to see if taking GLP-1 drugs combined with healthy lifestyle habits would reduce the risk of experiencing a major cardiovascular event (MACE).
The healthy lifestyle habits the researchers considered were healthy diet, regular exercise, not smoking, restful sleep, minimal alcohol intake, good stress management, social connection and support, and no opioid use disorder.
They discovered that users could slash their risk of a major heart event – identified as heart attack, stroke or heart disease death – by more than 40 per cent by making just six positive changes to their lifestyle.
The study, published in medical journal The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, also found that using a GLP-1 medication and making no lifestyle changes lowered the risk of MACE by 16 per cent, but sticking to all eight healthy habits reduced the risk by 60 per cent.
Around 2.5million people are currently thought to be taking GLP-1 drugs as a weight loss aid in the UK
Study co-author Frank Hu, Fredrick J. Stare Professor of Nutrition and Epidemiology and chair of the Department of Nutrition, said that the findings confirm that lifestyle changes are crucial when it comes to type 2 diabetes management and heart health.
He said: ‘Our findings underscore that, even in the era of highly effective GLP-1 pharmacotherapy, lifestyle habits remain central to diabetes management and cardiovascular risk reduction and can substantially amplify the benefits of modern medications.’
However, there were some limitations noted regarding the study; firstly the results were based on observational data and secondly most of the people in the study were white men.
The arrival of GLP-1 drugs has transformed obesity treatment, offering dramatic weight loss that was largely out of reach with diet and exercise alone.
Concerns have been raised about the risks of the medicines, which can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea, and in rare cases have been linked to pancreatitis, but experts say the benefits far outweigh the risks for most patients.
Around 2.5million people are currently thought to be taking GLP-1 drugs as a weight loss aid in the UK.
GLP-1, short for glucagon-like peptide-1, is a hormone your gut normally makes that helps control blood sugar and appetite after eating. It signals the pancreas to release insulin when blood sugar rises and slows how quickly food leaves the stomach, which helps people feel full sooner.
Modern GLP-1 medications are designed to amplify these effects, leading to better blood sugar control and substantial weight loss for many patients.
Two in three Britons are now classed as overweight or obese, while NHS figures show adults weigh roughly a stone more than they did 30 years ago – a trend estimated to cost the economy £100 billion a year.
Under current NHS rules, only patients with a BMI over 35 and a weight-related health condition – or those with a BMI between 30 and 34.9 referred to specialist services – should receive the drugs.
Obesity has been linked to at least 13 types of cancer and is the second biggest cause of the disease in the UK, according to Cancer Research UK. It has also fuelled a 39 per cent rise in type 2 diabetes among under-40s, with 168,000 young Britons now living with the condition.
