Diabetes drug helps people lose weight twice as quickly

♦ An experimental diabetes drug that suppresses appetite could prove to be a powerful weapon against obesity, making overweight people lose weight twice as quickly as other medication, research suggests.

Obese patients taking part in a study lost 11lb in four months after receiving weekly injections of Semaglutide.

The drug is being developed by Novo Nordiskas, a Danish company, as a potential treatment for diabetes. Researchers found it reduced food cravings, causing people to choose to eat smaller meals and turning them away from high-fat foods.

Professor John Blundell, the lead scientist, from the University of Leeds, said: “What was striking was the potency of the drug’s action. We saw results in 12 weeks which may take as long as six months with other anti-obesity medication.”

The findings are reported in the journal Diabetes, Obesity And Metabolism.