Semaglutide and substance abuse

Q: Semaglutide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist, can be used as an adjuvant treatment for substance abuse disorder.

A) True

B) False

Answer: A

Although reports are mostly anecdotal and evidence is weak, Semaglutide, a glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist, has shown some benefit in reducing craving for psychoactive substances, including tobacco and ETOH. Also, it has shown to be associated with a lower rate of developing cannabis use disorder, particularly in patients who are obese and have type 2 diabetes, and are already on this medication.

#toxicology

#pharmacology

#endocrine

References:

1. Wang W, Volkow ND, Berger NA, et al. Association of semaglutide with reduced incidence and relapse of cannabis use disorder in real-world populations: a retrospective cohort study. Mol Psychiatry 2024; 29:2587.

2. Hendershot CS, Bremmer MP, Paladino MB, Kostantinis G, Gilmore TA, Sullivan NR, Tow AC, Dermody SS, Prince MA, Jordan R, McKee SA, Fletcher PJ, Claus ED, Klein KR. Once-Weekly Semaglutide in Adults With Alcohol Use Disorder: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Psychiatry. 2025 Apr 1;82(4):395-405. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2024.4789. PMID: 39937469; PMCID: PMC11822619.

3. Wang W, Volkow ND, Berger NA, Davis PB, Kaelber DC, Xu R. Association of Semaglutide With Tobacco Use Disorder in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes : Target Trial Emulation Using Real-World Data. Ann Intern Med. 2024 Aug;177(8):1016-1027. doi: 10.7326/M23-2718. Epub 2024 Jul 30. PMID: 39074369; PMCID: PMC12721465.