Article Summary
GLP-1s offer significant benefits in managing type 2 diabetes and weight loss, but they differ in their administration schedules, efficacy, and additional benefits. Choosing the optimal therapy requires thoroughly evaluating patient-specific factors, including treatment goals, lifestyle, and comorbid conditions.
Conversations around the kitchen table these days can be very eclectic. You may hear about wild weather events, new technologies making us dream of what is possible, and the latest family adventures. But one topic seems to be popular for more than 15 million Americans: the new wave of weight management drugs called Glucagon-like peptide-1, or GLP-1s in short.
Weight Management and GLP-1s
We live in a nation where nearly 1 in 5 adults in each state suffer from obesity, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Minorities like American Indian, Hispanic, and Black adults show higher rates if compared with their peers.
GLP-1s have revolutionized the fight against diabetes since their market entry in the mid-2000s. These peptide hormones were developed initially as a type 2 diabetes treatment that works with the pancreas to enhance insulin release in response to meals. However, researchers observed during clinical trials and from post-release reports that patients using GLP-1s also showed weight loss. They work by reducing the appetite and feelings of hunger, slowing the release of food from the stomach, and increasing fullness after eating.
Fast-forward a couple of decades, and now we have multiple GLP-1 medications and one dual GLP1/GIP medication with unique profiles in the market that can help optimize patient outcomes.
Empower Pharmacy manufactures compounded Semaglutide / Cyanocobalamin Injection and Tirzepatide / Niacinamide Injection under strict quality-control protocols to keep these medications available and affordable for millions of patients.
Fun Fact:
Did you know the first GLP-1 gene identified was found in deep-sea-dwelling Atlantic anglerfish in 1982? Scientists eventually identified similar genes in rodents and humans.
Source: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Kidney Diseases.
Comparing Compounded
Semaglutide / Cyanocobalamin &
Compounded Tirzepatide / Niacinamide
GLP-1 receptor agonists have revolutionized the management of type 2 diabetes, offering patients improved glycemic control and substantial weight loss. Semaglutide and tirzepatide are prominent among these agents. Understanding their differences, efficacy, and unique profiles is crucial for optimizing patient outcomes.
Semaglutide / Cyanocobalamin
Semaglutide is a popular and efficacious once-weekly GLP-1 receptor agonist notable for its robust efficacy. Its modified version of the human GLP-1 structure extends its half-life and is generally considered safe in adults and elderly patients with kidney or liver disorders (Mahapatra et al., 2021).
Clinical research like the STEP trial demonstrates that semaglutide shows an average weight reduction of approximately 15 percent in obese folks without type 2 diabetes (Ruseva et al., 2024).
Cyanocobalamin is a vitamin of the B-complex family, commonly known as cobalamins (corrinoids). It is a synthetic or man-made form of vitamin B12 that is available as both a prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medication. Cyanocobalamin is a vital compound for cell division and growth, hematopoiesis, and nucleoprotein and myelin synthesis. This vitamin also has an important role in protein synthesis, neural metabolism, DNA and RNA production, as well as fat and carbohydrate metabolism.
Tirzepatide / Niacinamide
Tirzepatide brings a novel dual GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonist, advancing beyond traditional GLP-1 therapy. This unique mechanism of action enhances its efficacy in glucose control and weight management, even showing superior glucose and weight reduction levels to other GLP-1s, including semaglutide. (Nauck et al., 2022).
This GLP-1 receptor agonist also shows promise in recent studies to improve cardiovascular health (Sardar et al., 2024). On the flip side, healthcare professionals need to monitor for potential side effects such as gastrointestinal disturbances, which are common with GLP-1 receptor agonists, and the risk of pancreatitis (Frias et al., 2021).
Niacinamide – Niacin (nicotinic corrosive or 3-pyridinecarboxylic corrosive) is also vitamin B3, a B-complex vitamin.
In summary, these GLP-1s managing type 2 diabetes and weight loss, they differ in their administration schedules, efficacy, and additional benefits. Semaglutide and tirzepatide, with their longer dosing intervals and superior weight loss outcomes, offer compelling advantages for patients needing intensive management. Choosing the optimal therapy requires thoroughly evaluating patient-specific factors, including treatment goals, lifestyle, and comorbid conditions.
At Empower, we are a nationwide trusted 503A compounding pharmacy that works with the FDA when there is a medication shortage. We answer the call with rigorous quality assurance processes, that involve testing raw materials and final products to meet stringent purity and potency standards.
Our highly trained pharmacists and technicians operate in a state-of-the-art facility designed to maintain a sterile environment and ensure that our procedures align with the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) standards.
- Frías JP, Davies MJ, Rosenstock J, Pérez Manghi FC, Fernández Landó L, Bergman BK, Liu B, Cui X, Brown K; SURPASS-2 Investigators. Tirzepatide versus Semaglutide Once Weekly in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes. N Engl J Med. 2021 Aug 5;385(6):503-515. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2107519. Epub 2021 Jun 25. PMID: 34170647.
- Mahapatra MK, Karuppasamy M, Sahoo BM. Semaglutide, a glucagon like peptide-1 receptor agonist with cardiovascular benefits for management of type 2 diabetes. Rev Endocr Metab Disord. 2022 Jun;23(3):521-539. doi: 10.1007/s11154-021-09699-1. Epub 2022 Jan 7. PMID: 34993760; PMCID: PMC8736331.
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- Ruseva A, Michalak W, Zhao Z, Fabricatore A, Hartaigh BÓ, Umashanker D. Semaglutide 2.4 mg clinical outcomes in patients with obesity or overweight in a real-world setting: A 6-month retrospective study in the United States (SCOPE). Obes Sci Pract. 2024 Feb 8;10(1):e737. doi: 10.1002/osp4.737. PMID: 38332756; PMCID: PMC10851954.
- Sardar MB, Nadeem ZA, Babar M. Tirzepatide: A novel cardiovascular protective agent in type 2 diabetes mellitus and obesity. Curr Probl Cardiol. 2024 May;49(5):102489. doi: 10.1016/j.cpcardiol.2024.102489. Epub 2024 Feb 28. PMID: 38417475.
