Obesity

In a world where slimness is often equated with health, a new Danish study has flipped the narrative: being slightly overweight, or even mildly obese, may not be as deadly as once thought. In fact, in some ways it could be safer than being thin.

We've known for some time that obesity affects the brain, but now scientists have found that it's where you carry it that matters most. Deep visceral fat around organs has the biggest impact on brain aging, affecting a suite of cognitive functions.

Switching off a single enzyme in immune cells protected mice from obesity, type 2 diabetes, and fatty liver disease in a new study, offering a potential new treatment target for metabolic disorders.

Scientists have found out exactly how an exercise-triggered molecule suppresses hunger signals in the brain, leading to weight loss. It could be harnessed as a therapeutic, providing the same benefit without the work it takes to produce it naturally.

When scientists study obesity, it's often focused on genetics, physical activity and poor eating habits. However, new findings show that stress, hardship, isolation and social inequality create the biological environment that underpins the epidemic.

Plant-based microbeads made from everyday ingredients like green tea and seaweed have helped mice shed weight by trapping fats in the gut. Researchers see these microbeads as a potential “structured, drug-free therapy” to treat obesity.

Scientists have identified a protein that acts as a kind of traffic cop for fat inside cells, revealing a mechanism that could help explain how the body regulates energy storage. The discovery provides a new avenue for tackling obesity and diabetes

Researchers have successfully tweaked a specialized compound from brown seaweed to unlock its powerful anti-obesity potential. Instead of appetite suppression and fat burning, this molecule reshapes the gut microbiome to fight weight gain naturally.

It looks like we'll see oral GLP-1 drugs on the market by 2026, with Eli Lilly reporting impressive results from a large, robust 72-week trial that saw obese patients lose an average of 27.3 lb, or 12.4% of their body weight, with a once-daily pill.

The US Food and Drug Administration has instructed all GLP-1 drug-makers to update warning labels to include the risk of serious kidney injury that can result from dehydration. This comes after cases of acute kidney injury have required hemodialysis.

The first human-tested weight-loss drug that burns calories through creatine-based heat generation, without reducing appetite, has successfully completed its Phase I trial. In the trial, participants lost an average of 3% fat mass in two weeks.

For decades now, obesity has been defined by a number on a scale or where you land on the body mass index measure. But a groundbreaking study has found that it’s far more complex, finding 11 distinct biological types, each with their own health risks.

A new drug from pharma company Amgen shows promise as a powerful treatment for obesity. With just a once-monthly shot of 'MariTide,' participants in the study lost as much as 16% of their body weight over the course of a year.

Over the weekend, Novo Nordisk dropped a pile of scientific data on three new experimental weight-loss drugs, including an oral one, showing what appears to be a strategic "something for everyone" plan of attack from the pharmaceutical giant.

A novel weight loss drug in the same class as semaglutide has successfully met its targets in the largest clinical trial yet, with nearly 90% of participants losing at least 5% of their body weight. The results strengthen its case for FDA approval.