Medication to Support Life Changing Outcomes

Background

Let’s face it, losing weight and sustaining your healthier, lower weight once you get there isn’t easy. Nor is it simply a matter of willpower. Biology matters, too. Healthy lifestyle changes and medication can positively impact that biology and work together to help you achieve and sustain better weight loss, enhance your quality of life, and expand your healthspan and lifespan.

As a result, we tend to take a “both and” approach to medical weight management. On the one hand, we lead with scientifically based lifestyle changes that drive weight loss and prevent and reverse major disease. On the other hand, we often complement those efforts with medications to deliver even greater life changing results.

When recommending medication, we may prescribe “single agent therapy” with one medication. Often, however, we’ll recommend “combination therapy” (treatment with more than one medication). Why? Because studies show that treatment with a combination of medications is more effective than treatment with one. That goes back to biology: combatting excess weight across a multitude of complex feedback loops is far more effective than treating one.

Weight Loss Medication at JumpstartMD

Below you’ll find a list of medications that your JumpstartMD clinician may prescribe interested and eligible members on their health, weight loss, and wellness journey.

  • Semaglutide (Ozempic® or Wegovy®), Tirzepatide (Mounjaro® or Zepbound®), Dulaglutide (Trulicity®), Exenatide (Byetta®): weekly dosing
  • Liraglutide (Saxenda® or Victoza®): daily dosing
    • GLP-1 and GLP-1 / GIP medications are injectable medications that work well for weight loss by curbing cravings and promoting fullness, while also improving blood sugar control and insulin sensitivity, lowering inflammation, preventing or reversing diabetes, and reducing heart attack and stroke risk
    • Tirzepatide (Zepbound®) published data showed nearly 21% weight loss, on average, at 72 weeks on maximal dosing.
    • Semaglutide (Wegovy®) showed 15% to 17% weight loss, on average, at 64 weeks on maximal dosing
    • GLP-1 and GLP-1 / GIP medications are the most effective weight management medications available at this time

  • In addition to helping to promote weight loss through improved blood sugar control, Metformin can help prevent and reverse type II diabetes or prediabetes
  • Animal data suggests metformin may also promote longevity and diminish cancer risk and cognitive decline as we age

  • Canagliflozin (Invokana®), Dapagliflozin (Farxiga®), Empagliflozin (Jardiance®), Ertugliflozin (Steglatro®)
    • SGLT2 inhibitors promote weight loss by excreting carbohydrate through urine
    • SGLT2 inhibitors also help to improve insulin sensitivity and control blood sugar, lower blood pressure and reduce risk of heart attack and stroke, protect kidneys, and decrease heart failure complications

  • These 3 “sympathomimetics” work within the hunger center of the brain to help people be comfortable at a lower caloric intake and say no to (refined) carbohydrate
  • They vary in strength and duration of action and your clinician can help you determine which, if any, might be best suited for you

  • Topiramate also works within the hunger center of the brain to diminish hunger and cravings and drive weight loss
  • Qsymia® is a non-generic weight loss medication that combines phentermine with topiramate • While topiramate works reasonably well for weight loss on its own, your clinician may combine it with phentermine or other medications based on individual needs

  • Buproprion is an anti-depressant and smoking cessation medication that helps curb hunger and cravings to promote weight loss (unlike many anti-depressants that promote weight gain) • The weight loss medication, Contrave®, is composed of buproprion and naltrexone, while we’re more likely to prescribe buproprion and naltrexone instead of Contrave® to better tailor individualized dosing and control costs

  • Naltrexone is used to treat cravings for alcohol and opioid medication and can be helpful to diminish cravings and hunger for food and alcohol, too

  • To improve physique, augment muscle mass, promote weight loss, and prevent weight gain, complement your weight loss efforts and medication regimen with native hormone optimization • Anabolic (muscle mass building) hormones such as testosterone, DHEA, and sermorelin (a human growth hormone releasing hormone) can augment muscle mass, strength, and exercise recovery while shrinking your fat mass. Given some data suggests treatment with GLP-1 medication may reduce muscle mass, routine replacement of anabolic hormones for members prescribed GLP- 1 medication can serve as another therapeutic pillar within a broader “GLP-1 Lifestyle”
  • Estradiol (estrogen) and progesterone help prevent weight gain and redistribution of fat around the abdomen and buttock associated with peri-menopausal and menopausal hormonal changes • Thyroid optimization can promote weight loss and the ability to burn fat

***Asterisked medications are non-generic and still on patent. As such, those medications are typically cost-prohibitive at full retail pricing unless they’re covered by your insurance. Some exceptions may exist where lower cost versions can be prescribed through a compounding pharmacy. Your Clinician can inquire through our prior authorization group whether you might be eligible for insurance coverage, while also discussing lower cost “compounded” options with you as needed***

JumpstartMD Health Webinar Series on FDA Approved Weight Loss Medication Usage

For further information on weight loss medication, see Dr. Bourke’s health webinar on the JumpstartMD App