Nobody knows more about how many people struggle with their weight than a GP; most of the patients I see have been trying to lose weight for years, sometimes shifting some of the excess but rarely keeping it off. Throughout my career, options for treatment have been limited. So, overall, I’m delighted we finally have medication options – the GLP-1drugs – that can help to deliver really meaningful weight loss, and I’m inundated with patients who want to try them. But as a GP, I can’t (yet) prescribe them on the NHS. What’s more, they’re not a magic bullet and there are precautions to take.
What are GLP-1s?