A recent study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine reveals a growing trend in the prescription of GLP-1 medications to individuals who do not have diabetes, while new prescriptions for diabetic patients have decreased. The authors of the study expressed concerns over potential shortages of these drugs amid rising demand.
GLP-1 medications are designed to mimic hormones that regulate blood sugar levels and suppress appetite. Originally approved for treating type 2 diabetes, the FDA expanded the approval in 2021 for Wegovy, a GLP-1 treatment, to include weight loss.
Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, the leading manufacturers of GLP-1 medications such as Ozempic and Mounjaro, are currently struggling to meet increasing demand for their products.
Researchers from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, along with other institutions, examined the medical records of 45 million Americans who visited healthcare providers between 2011 and 2023. Their findings indicated that the percentage of new GLP-1 users with type 2 diabetes declined from nearly 90% in 2019 to over 70% in 2023. Concurrently, the proportion of new users without diabetes increased from 10% to 25%.
Yee Hui Yeo, co-first author of the study, highlighted that this shift suggests a greater recognition among healthcare providers of the benefits these drugs can offer for obesity treatment, which raises questions about access for diabetes patients. The study was based on data from the healthcare software company TriNetX, which may not fully represent the national landscape.
In recent years, the appetite-suppressing effects of GLP-1 drugs have contributed to their popularity, with users reportedly losing up to 26% of their body weight. The soaring sales of these medications have significantly boosted the valuation of Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, making them two of the world’s most valuable pharmaceutical companies. However, the surge in demand has led to difficulties for some patients in obtaining their prescriptions. Both companies are investing billions to enhance their production capacities.
Morgan Stanley analysts project that the global market for these drugs could reach $105 billion by 2030, expecting that approximately 31.5 million people in the U.S. will adopt these treatments by 2035, representing about 9% of the population.