New, real-world research confirms that the blockbuster weight-loss drugs that millions of Americans have been taking to shed pounds can trigger stomach paralysis in some patients. “Although these drugs do work and should be used for the right reason, we just want to caution everyone that if you do decide to start this, be prepared that you have a 30 percent chance that you may have GI side effects, and then the drug may have to be discontinued,” Dr. Prateek Sharma, a professor of medicine at the University of Kansas School of Medicine who conducted one of the studies, told CNN. His research was one of two reports presented Saturday at the Digestive Disease Week 2024 (DDW) in Washington, D.C. Neither has been published in a peer-reviewed medical journal, so the data is considered preliminary. A third study on the complication is to be presented Monday. Known as GLP-1 agonists, drugs like Wegovy and Zepbound have helped people lose at least 10% of their starting weight. How do these medications work, and why might that sometimes prompt stomach paralysis? GLP-1 agonists curb hunger by slowing the movement of food through the stomach. They also help the body release more insulin and send signals to the brain that curb cravings. But in some people, they may also prompt bouts of vomiting that can require medical attention…  read on >  read on >

Higher rates of blood vessel-damaging conditions like hypertension or diabetes may be driving up rates of cognitive decline and dementia among older American Indians, new research shows. The study found that 54% of American Indians ages 72 to 95 had some form of impairment in their thinking and/or memory skills, while 10% had dementia. The underlying causes: Vascular (blood vessel) damage and Alzheimer’s disease, in equal measure and sometimes overlapping. “These results underscore that cognitive impairment among elder American Indians is highly prevalent, more than previously thought,” said Dr. Amy Kelley, deputy director of the U.S. National Institute on Aging (NIA), which funded the study. “Considering how these new prevalence figures for American Indians are much higher than other groups… it is imperative that we address health disparities to help us find solutions,” she said in an NIA news release. The findings were based on data from nearly 400 participants in the ongoing Strong Heart Study, which has tracked the health of American Indian tribes in three U.S. geographic regions — the Northern Plains, Southern Plains and South — for over 30 years. The data showed that, among 216 participants now aged 72 to 95, about 35% had what’s known as mild cognitive impairment (MCI), often a precursor to dementia. That’s significantly higher than the level of MCI observed in similarly aged whites (12% to…  read on >  read on >

Climate change is likely to make brain conditions like stroke, migraine, Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy and multiple sclerosis even worse, a new review warns. The potential effects of a changing climate is likely to be substantial on a range of neurological conditions, researchers report May 15 in The Lancet Neurology journal. “There is clear evidence for an impact of the climate on some brain conditions, especially stroke and infections of the nervous system,” said lead researcher Sanjay Sisodiya, a professor with the University College London Queen Square Institute of Neurology. For the review, researchers analyzed data from 332 studies published between 1968 and 2023. “The climatic variation that was shown to have an effect on brain diseases included extremes of temperature [both low and high], and greater temperature variation throughout the course of day — especially when these measures were seasonally unusual,” Sisodiya said in a university news release. Strokes increased during high temperature days or heat waves, researchers found. Meanwhile, people with dementia were more susceptible to temperature-related conditions like heat stroke or hypothermia, as well as more vulnerable during weather events like flooding or wildfires. “Reduced awareness of risk is combined with a diminished capacity to seek help or to mitigate potential harm, such as by drinking more in hot weather or by adjusting clothing,” the research team wrote. “Accordingly, greater temperature variation, hotter…  read on >  read on >

Semaglutide — the active ingredient in the blockbuster weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy — can produce long-term weight and heart health benefits, a pair of new studies show. Researchers found that overweight and obese adults lost an average 10% of their body weight and nearly three inches off their waistline after taking semaglutide for four years. Further, more than half of adults taking semaglutide moved down at least one BMI category after two years, compared to 16% of those who received a placebo, results show. And 12% reached a healthy BMI of 25 or less, compared with 1% in the placebo group. Finally, the studies showed that semaglutide contributes to heart health, regardless of how much weight a person lost while on the drug. “This degree of weight loss in such a large and diverse population suggests that it may be possible to impact the public health burden of multiple obesity-related illnesses,” said lead researcher Dr. Donna Ryan, associate executive director for clinical research with the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in New Orleans. Ryan led the first clinical trial, which focused on the long-term weight effects of the drug. A second trial evaluated its heart health benefits. Both studies are based on data gathered from the largest and longest clinical trial of semaglutide, which tracked more than 17,600 overweight or obese adults without diabetes from…  read on >  read on >

People with heart failure are often prescribed what are known as loop diuretic medications to help reduce the fluid buildup that’s a hallmark of the disease. Now, research suggests that taking the blockbuster weight loss drug Wegovy (semaglutide) can help patients reduce their need for diuretics. After a year taking Wegovy, “there was evidence of a significant reduction in average loop diuretic dose, a lower likelihood of diuretic treatment escalation, and a greater likelihood of diuretic treatment de-escalation with semaglutide versus placebo,” said study lead author Dr. Kavita Sharma, associate professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore. Her team described its findings Monday in Lisbon, Portugal, at Heart Failure 2024, a meeting of the European Society of Cardiology. The type of heart failure the Hopkins’ study focused on was “heart failure with preserved ejection fraction” (HFePF).  In this common form of the disease, the “heart pumps normally but is too stiff to fill properly, rendering the heart unable to support the body’s need for oxygen-rich blood,” according to a meeting news release. A total of 1,145 patients with HFePF were enrolled in the international trial.  Patients were obese (body mass index, BMI, at or above 30) and averaged 70 years of age; half were men and half were women.  At the start, 220 patients were not receiving diuretics, 223 were…  read on >  read on >