Individuals who take liraglutide or semaglutide for weight loss reduce their alcohol consumption by almost two-thirds in four months, new research being presented at this year's European Congress on Obesity (ECO 2025) has found.
Alcohol use disorder is a relapsing condition that accounts for 2.6 million deaths a year – 4.7% of all deaths globally.
Treatments such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), therapies that aim to strengthen motivation to stop or reduce drinking and medication can be very successful in the short-term, however, 70% of patients relapse within the first year.
Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) analogues, drugs developed to treat obesity, have reduced alcohol intake in animal studies, but reports are only starting to emerge about their effect on alcohol intake in humans.
To find out more, Professor Carel le Roux, of University College Dublin, and colleagues in Ireland and Saudi Arabia prospectively collected data on the alcohol intake of patients who were being treated for obesity at a clinic in Dublin.
The real-world study involved 262 adults with a BMI ≥27 kg/m² (79% female, average age 46 years, average weight 98kg/15 stone 6lb) who were prescribed the GLP-1 analogues liraglutide or semaglutide for weight loss.
The patients were categorised into non-drinkers (n=31, 11.8%) rare drinkers (<10 units/week, n=52 19.8%) and regular drinkers (>10 units/week, n=179, 68.4%) based on their self-reported alcohol intake before they started taking the weight-loss drugs.
188 of the 262 patients were followed-up for an average 4 of months. None of them had increased their alcohol intake.
Average alcohol intake decreased from 11.3 units/week to 4.3 units/week after 4 months of treatment with the GLP-1 analogues – a reduction of almost two-thirds.
Among the regular drinkers, intake decreased from 23.2 units/week to 7.8 units/week. This reduction of 68% is comparable to that achieved by nalmefene, a drug used to treat alcohol use disorder in Europe, notes Professor le Roux.
He adds: "The exact mechanism of how GLP-1 analogues reduce alcohol intake is still being investigated but it is thought to involve curbing cravings for alcohol that arise in subcortical areas of the brain that are not under conscious control. Thus, patients report the effects are 'effortless'."
The study's limitations include the relatively small number of patients, the use of self-reported alcohol intake and the absence of a control group. Its strengths include the use of data collected prospectively in a real-world setting.
Professor Le Roux concludes: "GLP-1 analogues have been shown treat obesity and reduce the risk of multiple obesity-related complications. Now, the beneficial effects beyond obesity, such as on alcohol intake, are being actively studied, with some promising results."
