They are not Ozempic or Wegovy for thinness, they clarify

BILBAO (EFE).— Canadian Daniel Drucker, one of the “fathers” of medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy, says he is concerned about linking good health with thinness as the ultimate goal.

“Health means much more than just how much weight you weigh,” he warns.

This connection and obsession with aesthetics can be "very dangerous," especially among young people, the researcher warns in an interview, in which he points out that it is especially among this group that we must be very forceful in promoting holistic concepts of health, not just thinness.

Drucker, from Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, traveled to Bilbao to receive the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Biology and Biomedicine category today, Thursday, along with Joel Habener (Harvard University), Jens Juul Holst (University of Copenhagen), and Svetlana Mojsov (Rockefeller University in New York).

They were all behind the fundamental biological discoveries that made possible the development of a new generation of effective drugs against type 2 diabetes and obesity.

The joint work of the four award winners has specifically revealed the biological function of the hormone known as GLP-1, produced in the small intestine after food intake and which plays a key role in both maintaining glucose levels and regulating appetite.

Drucker has been researching this field for decades. “When I started, I was very young, about 28 years old. I've been studying this hormone for 40 years, and we continue to learn new things every day,” says the scientist, who nevertheless admits that he never imagined such success.

“None of us,” he says, referring to his fellow award winners, “could have predicted the impact. It really has been a fantastic story.”

The Frontiers of Knowledge Awards jury cites a pharmacological revolution to justify its decision, and Daniel Drucker supports this assertion. When he started, he says, there were no more than four or five drugs that could cause 5% weight loss, but today, with new drugs, there is unprecedented weight loss, which also helps reduce heart attacks and kidney disease, complications of obesity and diabetes.

Drucker acknowledges that he's not just celebrating the success of GLP-1, but also worries about what could go wrong, "which is why we have to be very cautious about misrepresenting health in the form of a thin person as our ultimate goal."

He claims to be a very conservative doctor and bases his decisions on the benefits of the drug, but only those that have been demonstrated in large clinical trials. He explains that there is no data to support those who, for example, say they have a wedding in two months and want to lose seven kilos. "As a conservative scientist, I prioritize using the drug where benefits have been demonstrated for serious diseases."

Their discoveries and those of the other awardees are not exclusive to diabetes and obesity, as they have opened up a new field of research exploring their potential for treating other diseases. For example, the use of GLP-1 analogues is being evaluated for the treatment of neurological disorders and addiction.

One of the challenges now is getting these drugs to developing countries. "If we want to improve global health, we have to think differently, as we did with HIV or hepatitis."

"There are many people who have calculated and said that if they are introduced in the South and parts of Africa, they could save more than a million lives a year," so the World Health Organization, foundations, and governments must sit down at the table and think beyond the established norm.

Drucker, also a 2024 Princess of Asturias Award Winner for Technical and Scientific Research, claims to be optimistic, as he always is, but admits that this isn't a simple conversation, although it is necessary.

In Bilbao, as in Oviedo, researcher Svetlana Mojsov, who was not included in other awards for the same discoveries, will take the stage to collect the award.

Asked whether this redresses an injustice, Drucker believes that the award committees are very different. “If you look at the history of GLP-1, some awards in the past didn't recognize Professor Mojsov, and some currently do, but not other people.”

“I think there has been a lot of recognition over the past three years for many people who have made very important contributions (…). I'm delighted to see Mojsov's recognition and that of many other colleagues.”

GLP-1 Neurological Disorders

It is being evaluated whether it could be effective in reducing inflammation in the brain and thus combating Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

Under study

On the one hand, it has been proven that medications based on the hormone GLP-1 have a potent anti-inflammatory effect, and it is believed that for this reason they would be effective in reducing inflammation in the brain and thus combating Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

Clinical trials

Five clinical trials have been conducted for Parkinson's disease, three of which were successful and two which were not, so it is still too early to know for certain the usefulness of this hormone for this disorder. Two large trials are underway for Alzheimer's, with more than 3,000 participants.

The results, Daniel Drucker emphasizes, could be available in six months. "Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope for positive benefits."