Move over Ozempic, there is a new kid in town from Eli Lilly, called Mounjaro. Both of these type 2 diabetes drugs have recently become popular for weight loss, an off-label use. An analysis of health records showed that Mounjaro was more effective at weight loss than Ozempic.
The active ingredient in Ozempic is semaglutide, while Mounjaro uses tirzepatide. Reuters reported that an analysis found that during the first year of treatment 42.3% of those taking Mounjaro lost at least 15% of their body weight while only 19.3% of those taking Ozempic saw similar results.
The statistics don’t stop there. Those taking Mounjaro had a 76% better chance of losing at least 5% of their weight and a 50% better chance of losing at least 10%. They are also three times more likely to lose at least 15%.
These numbers came from an analysis of health records and pharmacy data from 9,193 patients on Mounjaro and a similar number taking Ozempic. This was not a head-to-head randomized controlled trial. Half of the patients had type 2 diabetes and most weighed around 242 pounds. The analysis was published on medRxiv, but has not yet been peer reviewed.
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After taking Mounjaro for three months, patients lost an average of 2.3% more body weight than those on Ozempic. The data for six months also showed a higher weight loss percentage at 4.3%. In one year the number rose to an average of 7.2% more weight loss.
Unfortunately, both of these drugs can cause side effects that include extreme nausea. The data might be impacted by the fact that both of these drugs are supposed to be used for type 2 diabetes and not weight loss. A spokesperson for Eli Lilly even made a point to stress the company does not encourage off-label use.
Novo Nordisk, the company that manufactures Ozempic, issued a statement about these findings. "The doses of semaglutide evaluated in this analysis have not been investigated for chronic weight management, and there are no head-to-head trials that have (been) reported which evaluate Wegovy and tirzepatide," the company explained. "This preprint reports new research that has not been certified by peer review and should not be used to guide clinical practice.”
Wegovy is approved by the FDA for weight loss.
There is a trial currently studying and comparing the weight loss abilities of Mounjaro and Ozempic in patients without type 2 diabetes. Its findings will come out in 2025. For now, the data appears to indicate that Mounjaro leads to more weight loss.
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