More Americans are turning to GLP-1 injections to lose weight

AUSTIN, Texas - When regular diet and exercise strategies don't work, many Americans are turning to GLP-1 injections in an effort to lose weight. 

Dr. Anjali Nemawarkar, an internal medicine physician at St David's North Austin Medical Center, joined FOX 7 Austin's Rebecca Thomas to discuss.

REBECCA: Dr. Anjali Nemawarkar, these GLP-1 medications initially used to help diabetic patients are now FDA approved to treat obesity. Talk about semaglutide and tears appetite. How are they different, and how do they work? 

DR. NEMAWARKAR: So first, obesity is a chronic disease. It's a chronic, severe and progressive disease that unfortunately causes many medical problems. These drugs are relatively, I would say, new in the market for the last few years. They target these receptors called the JLP one and the type one receptors in your gut. They increase the production of these peptides in type one and the GLP-1 and GIP, which increase your insulin production. It slows your gut down, it makes you feel full. These drugs also potentially affect your brain. They affect the appetite centers in your brain. They help you feel full again and increase your satiety. And we see significant results in patients. 

REBECCA: Yeah, I've heard people say that it turns off the food noise. Talk about that. 

DR. NEMAWARKAR: So the food noise is usually associated with your brain. It's the appetite centers in your hypothalamus that give you the the urge to eat. These GLP-1 receptors are present in these brain centers. And when these agonists are given to a patient, they potentially turn that noise off the potentially make you just not hungry enough, and you eat less. 

REBECCA: Now you've probably seen these online ads. They pop up in social media for drugs. They're offered in compounded forms, not under the supervision of a doctor. In most cases, what is the concern with that? 

DR. NEMAWARKAR: So the concern these drugs potentially have a lot of side effects. They do definitely need to be monitored by a physician who is trained to or who is aware of how these drugs are used. They can potentially cause significant things like pancreatitis or some cardioid cancers. But the usual side effect of nausea and vomiting, and sometimes they could increase risk for gallstones are present. And so it is important that somebody who is trained to administer these drugs, to prescribe these drugs should be the ones giving the prescriptions. 

REBECCA: How important is getting enough protein and incorporating strength training, growing those muscles while on these drugs? 

DR. NEMAWARKAR: So these drugs make you lose weight. They cause your appetite is significantly decreased when you're on these medicines. When you lose weight, unfortunately, you tend to lose muscle mass if you are not good with your protein intake, if you in those small amounts of meals that you eat, if you do not eat a protein rich meal, if you eat more carbs, you do get deficient in protein if you do not. And eating protein is just not enough. You have to eat your proteins, and you have to exercise to maintain your muscle mass. Unfortunately, when you don't do that, you lose muscle strength, you lose your muscle mass. People tend to get weaker. They in especially older patients, start having symptoms like falling and muscle weakness. So it is very important that you do that. You keep up with your protein intake and exercise to help maintain your muscle mass. 

REBECCA: All right. Dr. Anjali Nemawarkar with St Davids North Austin Medical Center. Thank you so much for sharing your time and expertise with us tonight.