Popular weight loss and diabetic medications with semaglutide could help tobacco smokers quit smoking, a recent study revealed.
The researchers made the interesting finding after examining medical records of more than 200,000 new users of antidiabetes medications, including around 6000 people who started semaglutide drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy.
Apart from semaglutide drugs, other antidiabetic medications studied were insulin, metformin, dipeptidyl-peptidase-4 inhibitors, sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors, sulfonylureas, thiazolidinediones, and other GLP-1RAs.
During the study, researchers investigated whether individuals with tobacco use disorder who were on any of these antidiabetic medications received prescriptions for smoking cessation or were referred to counseling during their medical visits. After a follow-up for a year, researchers noticed a reduction in both medication prescriptions and counseling referrals in those who used semaglutide drugs.
The results published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine indicate that the smoking cessation effect was strongest within 30 days of starting semaglutide. However, the effect continued for about 180 days before it leveled off.
"Semaglutide was associated with lower risks for tobacco use disorder-related health care measures in patients with comorbid type 2 diabetes mellitus and tobacco use disorders compared with other antidiabetes medications, including other GLP-1Ras, primarily within 30 days of prescription," the researchers wrote in the study.
Although the study was observational and did not track factors such as actual tobacco use, cravings, or smoking cessation, the researchers consider their findings significant. They point out that cigarette smoking remains the top cause of preventable disease and death, and making any progress toward effective prevention is a hopeful step forward.
However, the researchers caution that their findings are too preliminary to suggest prescribing semaglutide drugs for smoking cessation, and more research is required to estimate the effects of semaglutide in the treatment of tobacco use disorder.
The study has not evaluated the exact mechanism by which semaglutide helps curb smoking. However, earlier studies suggest that it has to do with the drug's effect on the brain's reward system.
A similar recent study published in the journal Nature Communications has established a link between the use of semaglutide drugs and a reduction in alcohol use disorder. The study shows around 50%-56% reduced risk for both the incidence and recurrence of alcohol use disorder in semaglutide users during a 12-month follow-up.
