GLP One Less for the Road

Scott LaFee
Tue, 25 Nov 2025 21:00:00 -0800
Lifestyle

Apart from their widely celebrated effect at weight loss and diabetes management, GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy might also reduce alcohol use.

In a pilot study published in Scientific Reports, researchers found that GLP-1 agonists (which mimic the effects of GLP-1 compounds) slowed the speed at which alcohol enters the bloodstream, which also slowed effects on the brain.

"People who drink know there's a difference between nursing a glass of wine and downing a shot of whiskey," said Alex DiFeliceantonio, interim codirector of Virginia Tech's Fralin Biomedical Research Institute's Center for Health Behaviors Research.
Updated: Wed Nov 26, 2025

Apart from their widely celebrated effect at weight loss and diabetes management, GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy might also reduce alcohol use.

In a pilot study published in Scientific Reports, researchers found that GLP-1 agonists (which mimic the effects of GLP-1 compounds) slowed the speed at which alcohol enters the bloodstream, which also slowed effects on the brain.

"People who drink know there's a difference between nursing a glass of wine and downing a shot of whiskey," said Alex DiFeliceantonio, interim codirector of Virginia Tech's Fralin Biomedical Research Institute's Center for Health Behaviors Research.

A standard serving of either beverage contains 0.6 ounces of alcohol, but the shot delivers a quicker increase in blood-alcohol content. It feels different because of the way the body handles alcohol over time.

"Faster-acting drugs have a higher abuse potential," said DiFeliceantonio. "They have a different impact on the brain. So if GLP-1 drugs slow alcohol entering the bloodstream, they could reduce the effects of alcohol and help people drink less."

Body of Knowledge

A newborn's head can account for one-quarter of their total length but only one-eighth by time of adulthood.

Get Me That, Stat!

Nearly half of adults aged 65 and older in the U.S. are living with prediabetes, a condition that predisposes them to developing Type 2 diabetes and puts them at higher risk for cardiovascular complications.

Counts

1 in 5: Ratio of U.S. young adults (ages 19-30) who use cannabis, alcohol or both to help them fall asleep (Source: University of Michigan 2025 Monitoring the Future Panel Survey)

Stories for the Waiting Room

Beginning in January 2026, a low-cost generic insulin pen will debut in California. The packs of five pens will sell for $55 through the state's CalRx program, launched in 2020. Currently, insulin costs vary significantly, based on insurance. Without insurance or special program support, a single vial of insulin can cost more than $300, and a monthly supply can exceed $1,000.

Doc Talk

Milwaukee goiter: Medical slang for a protruding belly (not limited to Wisconsin)

Mania of the Week

Autodysomomania: An uncontrollable obsession with bad odors or people with them

Never Say 'Diet'

The Major League Eating speed-eating record for whole turkeys is 9.35 pounds in 10 minutes, held by Joey Chestnut, who gobblered it down.

Best Medicine

The prize for aging is atrophy.

Observation

"As you get older, three things happen. The first is your memory goes, and I can't remember the other two." — English actor Sir Norman Wisdom (1915-2010). And yes, that was his real name.

Medical History

This week in 1974, Dr. Christiaan Barnard performed the world's first "twin heart" operation when he implanted a second human heart alongside the old one in 58-year-old Ivan Taylor at Groote Schuur Hospital in South Africa.

During the five-hour procedure, Barnard removed only the diseased portion of the patient's heart: one-third of the left ventricle. Barnard then joined the left atrium to the atrium of a second heart (from a deceased 10-year-old girl). The operation was less radical than total heart replacement and was carried out without needing a heart-lung machine. With both hearts beating, the second heart acted as a booster for the first.

Taylor died four months later from unrelated causes.

Med School

Q: What moves food down the esophagus?

A) Gravity

B) Motility

C) Segmentation

D) Peristalsis

A: D) Peristalsis, which is the involuntary movement of longitudinal and circular muscles, primarily in the digestive tract but occasionally in other hollow tubes of the body. It takes the form of progressive wavelike contractions.

Curtain Calls

Pankration was a form of sport invented by the ancient Greeks, a combination of wrestling and boxing in which almost everything short of biting and gouging was permitted. Arrhichion of Phigalia was a longtime, repeat champion. In a bout at the 564 B.C. Olympics, Arrhichion found himself with a stronger opponent on his back, arms wrapped around his neck.

Arrhichion put on a few moves, prompting his opponent to signal his surrender. But rather than just stop, Arrhichion attempted to shuck off his opponent swiftly and violently. The opponent did not release his chokehold around Arrhichion's neck, which consequently snapped.

Because his opponent had already surrendered, Arrhichion was declared the bout's winner — posthumously.