People taking semaglutide for weight loss ate significantly fewer calories over a 60-week period, even after differences in hunger and food cravings between them and a placebo group faded, according to a new study published July 16 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
The trial enrolled 120 adults with overweight or obesity. Participants received either a once-weekly 2.4-milligram dose of semaglutide or a placebo, along with regular lifestyle counseling focused on healthy eating and physical activity. At the start of the study and again at weeks 20, 40, and 60, participants ate standardized meals and were told to eat until they felt comfortably full. Researchers then measured how many calories each person consumed.
Participants taking semaglutide consistently consumed 24% to 30% fewer calories than those receiving a placebo at each follow-up point through week 60, according to Healthline. That sustained reduction came with greater weight loss as well. The semaglutide group lost an average of 15.1% of their initial body weight after 60 weeks, compared with 3.4% among those taking a placebo.
One of the more notable findings involved what happened to hunger and food preoccupation over time. During the first 20 weeks, people using semaglutide reported less hunger, fewer food-related thoughts, and greater appetite control. By weeks 40 and 60, however, those differences between the two groups were no longer statistically significant. Despite that shift, participants taking semaglutide continued to consume significantly fewer calories throughout.
Mir Ali, MD, a bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, California, was not involved in the study but commented on the findings. "These findings are consistent with what I see in my own clinical practice when prescribing semaglutide," he said. "In many cases, the benefits of the medication can persist over time, although some patients may become slightly less sensitive to its effects as their bodies adjust."
GLP-1 medications like semaglutide work by mimicking a natural gut hormone. They also slow stomach emptying, which helps a person feel full longer. These medications have also been associated with quieting food noise and reducing cravings, effects that the new study suggests may taper somewhat over time while the calorie-reduction benefit continues.
The study adds to a growing body of research on how semaglutide, sold under the brand names Ozempic and Wegovy, supports not just initial weight loss but long-term weight maintenance. The findings suggest the drug may work through more than one mechanism, with calorie intake staying lower even as some of the appetite-suppression signals become less pronounced over time.
