If you are on weight loss injections, what do you make of this article?

[IwishIwasacaterpillar]

If you have come off them, have you gained weight very quickly?

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/jan/07/weight-loss-jabs-regain-two-years-health-study

I've been taking WLI for a year and have lost 4 stones. My loss has been slow and steady and I have used this time to really look at my diet.
My BMI has reduced from 45 to 34......I still have a way to go but its a marathon not a sprint.
I am hopeful that the changes I have made will be embedded by the time I stop the medication.

I know many people taking WLI who have lost a lot of weight quickly by eating tiny amounts but who haven't made any lifestyle changes.....I fear they will regain the weight unless they make changes to their diet.
WLI are an amazing tool to help people regain control and lose the weight ....but its not the magic solution many think it is.
Diet and lifestyle changes are vital.

I think everyone agrees that's the conclusion! It's definitely a lifelong med. The issue now is the cost and whether Big Pharma is prepared to lower it knowing that it will most likely dent their profit margins because the more people on WLI/tablets, the more people will come off other meds for other conditions.

i micro dosed MJ last year and got to my goal weight very slowly and stabilised with good habits, but as soon as I came off it I was uncontrollably ravenous - the insane hunger was all I could think about. Don't think I ate especially unhealthily but going back to 3 meals meant I put on more than I lost in the first place. Gutted as I don't want to go back on due to mega hair loss and my eyesight deteriorating

I think you're crediting people with more sense than they deserve! There are frequent posts on here telling people they can't expect to stay on it long term, it's not reasonable or realistic etc.

Agree with the rest of your post though.

Well if that what it takes for some addicts, then yes, medication should be offered it for life!

There are plenty of former alcoholics, drug users and food addicts that do it without medication though and fight through the days and eventually retrain their brain. I suppose it depends on how much you want to stop!

Why do you think people are defensive when you allege that something stressful and debilitating that it has been really empowering for people to discuss and share experiences of doesn't really exist because you don't experience it?!

I simply mooted if that's what people mean by food noise rather than actually thinking about crisps and carbs 24/7

No you didn't, you said it has been overhyped and said you didn't believe people experience it in the way they say they do because you don't experience it that way.

I’m exactly the same and I have also gained weight really fast after other weight loss methods.

Another point I’d like to make is that - surely there is much more data being recorded from people taking WLI’s as it’s the “new” thing and they’re still monitoring it closely.

Who is recording the weight gain of people doing classic calorie counting or slimming world? And how?

When people stop taking WLI’s there’s a date set in stone when they stopped taking it. This can’t be said with other weight loss methods can it? As it’s not taking a drug and then stopping - it’s usually a gradual slipping back into old ways - so what are they even comparing it to?

I don’t really understand how classic dieting can even be compared to WLI’s.

This is why its imperative that weightloss is treated psychologically as well as physically.

I agree with this.

Firsrly, observations I've made of people who appear to be naturally slim or able to maintain either weightloss or a healthy weight to begin with - they don't overeat and they don't routinely reward or console themselves with food. The food they feel they 'deserve' is food that is nourishing for their bodies and they are mindful of what they consume.

(But I also have to say that, whenever these people post on seeking weightloss advice or "How are you naturally slim?" type threads, they are always shot down with, "Life is too short to not eat cake" and "I love a big bowl of pasta - I suppose that's why I'm a fatty!" type comments. Or people who 'need' chocolate every day. And mocking people who eat a 'massive salad' is a favourite of people on here yet people who eat massive salads generally aren't obese either)

People whose relationship with food is less healthy should receive psychological support to address this if they can't manage it themselves for whatever reason.

If they don't, then old habits will resurface. They're going to however they lose the weight.

People (especially on MN because that's the only place I've read it!) like to say, "Diets don't work." But they do. Of course they do. If you change your eating habits for the better, you will lose weight. If you maintain those good eating habits, you won't regain the weight.

I have no skin in the game regarding WLI. I don't need them, I don't hate them and the people I know who are on them aren't close enough to me for me to know their eating habits (they've just shared it on SM or mentioned in passing that they're on them at work but I don't share meals with them) but it's obvious no one gets to a point where they are prescribed them through eating 'healthily'.

If this were true, we wouldn't see almost everyone who lost weight without medication regaining the weight, which is not the case

Weightloss isn't magic.

If someone is significantly overweight/obese due to poor eating habits and they then return to those same poor eating habits following whatever weightloss strategy they use, it's obvious they're going to put the weight back on.

Maintaining weightloss is possible and I know plenty of people who've done it but it worked because they didn't "go on a diet" as much as they changed their attitude towards food, eating and their diet. Permanently.

But some people want to go back to eating cake, chocolate every day and 'huge bowls' of pasta because that is what they consider to be a normal diet.

How very condescending of you. I am perfectly capable of reading and understanding the evidence. Unconscious bias maybe...?

Are you on them OP? What do you make of the article?

Of course lots will regain when they stop, like any diet. But I know plenty of people who have lost weight on them, stopped taking them, and maintained, but I suppose that doesn't make as interesting an article.

So just like any other diet then if you return to over eating.

Most people on ordinary diets regain what they lost or more.

The difference is , that in the majority of cases they wont even have reached their target weight or even get near it. They will lose a stone or two before hunger or cravings beats them, they fall off the wagon, and they regain and lost the same couple of stone over and over.

On the injections they will reach target weight. I imagine many of them will try to stay on it for maintainnce as long as they can.

Like any other diet then.

Surely it’s the same as any diet - once you stop if you return to your old habits you will gain the weight again? This happened to me when I lost weight using diet shakes!
I used MJ last year and felt fantastic in it (I lost a few stone) I had to stop just before Christmas due to the cost rise as it’s just not something I can afford sadly. I’m thinking of taking weygovy but going to try intermittent fasting for the month of January and see how I get on (so far so good but it’s early days yet!)
My mum lost a lot of weight when she was in her 40s on slimming world. 30 years on she has maintained her weight but still sticking to the plan mon-Fri and then eating what she wants at the weekend.

I mentioned in my post above that I found out I had a faulty gene variant a few years ago, one of the effects of this is that it massively reduces the release of serotonin via the gut - brain axis after eating. Serotonin (feel good hormone) I suspect is important for reducing cortisol levels (stress hormone) amongst other things. I have a completely overwhelming / gnawing hunger that is much worse when I am stressed (I also have high cortisol levels); eating (comfort eating) does help, as it prolongs the release of serotonin (even though I don’t release much serotonin).

This gene variant that I have is probably one of a multitude within this functional pathway, so I imagine that the majority of people who are morbidly obese probably have a faulty gene variant in this region. Sadly, clinical medicine (eg standard hospital consultants) knows nothing about this gene variant… it is just known about in terms of one disease (if you have two copies of the faulty gene), but only in the field of bio-medical research have they started looking into the wider impact of eg having just one faulty copy of the gene, and I think research has been primarily in animal studies. It will probably be decades away before there is a greater understanding of/ willingness to treat the causes of obesity.

Because they are hungry?
I could eat a 4 course meal and still feel hungry. Because my brain is getting the "you are full" hormone signals.
It is very difficult to ignore hunger just as it is very difficult to ignore thirst .

The evidence shows that people regain the weight when they stop the medication. The evidence says nothing about people's behaviour or habits whilst they are ON the medication. Some people including you are extrapolating that weight regain = no habits or behaviour change whilst on the medication. Can you understand why one doesn't equal the other?

Your mum has done very well. She obviously didn’t enjoy being big and has made every effort not to return there.

The injections are a great and quick kick-start to live a healthy life, it’s just up to the person to take full advantage of this starting point.

When I have lost weight traditionally literally all I’ve thought about is what I’ll be able to eat once I’m at my target.

I’ve always convinced myself once the weight is off I’ll be able to be moderate. I can’t!

That’s why you need to change your lifestyle, record calories and work out how many calories you should be eating a day and sticking to those. They aren’t a cure for obesity they are just a tool.

Since obesity is a disease it makes complete sense to me that unless additional tools/therapy etc have been used alongside the medication then of course the weight will go back on.

Not sure if the BBC article on this has been linked to in the thread yet. I still haven't read the BMJ article, but thought this paragraph interesting

Only eight of the studies assessed treatment with the newer GLP-1 drugs, such as Wegovy and Mounjaro, and the maximum follow-up period in these studies was a year after medication stopped, so the figures are an estimate.

Wonder if the researchers intend to do follow up reviews as more studies relating solely to the newer GLP-1s come in.

I eat loads of 'simple (bad)' carbs. I have them for every meal. I don't get food noise and uncontrollable hunger. I'm a size 8.

I think it's safe to say that foods affect people in different ways. Cutting carbs might work for some but not for everyone. I imagine loads of people currently using WLI have already tried to cut carbs and not found it sustainable or effective.

WLI have been used for years to safely treat diabetes. What sudden avalanche of side effects are you expecting to come to light?

Yes 2 stone back on of the 4 stone lost. It wasn't overnight gain and no amount of being active has prevented it.

I am having a blood test tomorrow to see if diabetes type is still in remission after being asked to take a break for 3 months off the medication. I genuinely think it has a working life of 4 months and relies on the person becoming obsessed with losing weight as probably all diets/weight loss plans do.

It's a lot of money to pay out for no results after the initial burst of weight loss, and in my case I cannot say it has helped my health massively. I would love to say differently but feel it irresponsible.

I’ve lost 3 stone since June 2025 on MJ. However I’ve also joined a Gym (something I would not have done when obese) and changed my diet.

so many of the replies clearly don’t understand obesity.

i eat a healthy diet and exercise daily but if I stopped taking WLI the food noise and raging appetite would return and that combined with PCOS and peri means I know I’d like it back on

I’ve been expecting to stay on them for life so not at all surprised.

Ive lost 5 stone and am so much healthier in every way and want to stay that way.

just hoping a cheaper version comes out at some point.