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As many as 12% of American adults were taking GLP-1s for weight loss in fall 2025—and that was before the pill formulation became available this year. The medication is upending how people perceive and treat obesity, and that's having ripple effects across the economy. With that in mind, this week we'll take a deep dive into the broader universe of products that aim to boost body function. Read on to learn more about supplements, peptides, and semaglutides—the substance in Ozempic and Wegovy.
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—Dina Fine Maron, 1440 Health & Medicine Section Editor |
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Supplements, explained
Dietary supplements, which are used by roughly 75% of Americans, are products that are marketed as adding nutrients to your diet or boosting health. This industry, worth more than $60B annually, includes vitamins, minerals, probiotics, and herbal mixes.
Doctors may recommend supplements for specific populations with documented deficiencies in key nutrients, such as iron, calcium, or B12, but their usefulness for the general population is contested. Though some supplement claims are backed by solid research, others have outpaced the science.
Legally, dietary supplements are under the umbrella of food, so they aren't regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration before they get to market. Unlike items classified as drugs, there are no inspectors checking whether these products are adulterated, misbranded, or perform their advertised functions before they're sold online or in stores. If consumers buy supplements and become ill or have manufacturing concerns, they can file complaints with the FDA, and the agency can then take actions—including pulling any problematic products off the market.
Several consumer groups independently purchase and test supplements and publish their findings about specific products and brands, including the nonprofit Consumer Reports, the nonprofit US Pharmacopeia (which provides the USP certifications on vitamins), and the private company ConsumerLab.
Explore everything else we've found on Supplements.
Also, check out ...
> Search different herbal therapies, including evidence and drug interactions. (Read)
> Not everyone needs a daily multivitamin. (Watch)
> Yes, you can take too many vitamins and they can make you sick. (Read)
> Collagen supplements have become a multibillion-dollar industry. (Read) |
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Peptides 101
Peptides are defined as short chains of amino acids—the building blocks of proteins. They act as hormones, neurotransmitters, and signaling molecules in the human body, circulating in the blood and binding to receptors on targeted organs and tissues. They may also be synthetically produced or extracted from animal sources.
Insulin, endorphins, and semaglutide are all peptides. Commercially produced peptides like GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide-1) are considered drugs and require US Food and Drug Administration approval before use or marketing. As of early 2026, dozens of approved peptides were on the US market, treating conditions as varied as cancer, diabetes, and thyroid disorders.
In recent years, peptides have attracted interest for purported uses such as antiaging, skin care, and building strength. They can be rubbed on, injected, or swallowed. Those products are largely made by compounding pharmacies—facilities that produce small-batch drugs—using peptide components, and have typically not been reviewed by the FDA for their safety or efficacy. They're often technically sold for "research use only." Many of them are marketed largely on the basis of animal studies and lack rigorous human safety data, including BPC-157 (used to accelerate healing of musculoskeletal injuries) and TB-500 (used for muscle growth and healing).
Explore everything else we've found on Peptides.
Also, check out ...
> See the first dog ever treated with insulin—a peptide. (Read)
> China's producing many peptides or peptide components sold in the US. (Listen)
> Peptide TB-500, promoted for regenerative healing, is not FDA-approved. (Watch)
> A comprehensive review of BPC-157 studies identified no human safety data. (Read)
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Thanks, Gila Monster Spit |
Semaglutides
Originally designed to treat diabetes, semaglutide has garnered significant attention in recent years for its use in weight loss treatments. The drug mimics a hormone naturally produced in the gut after meals and can trigger a number of similar responses that effectively trick the body into thinking it is full.
The drug is sold under the trade names Ozempic (injection) and Rybelsus (oral) for diabetes, and Wegovy (injection) for weight loss. As of early 2026, a Wegovy pill was also available for weight loss.
Semaglutide is in a class of drugs called GLP-1 agonists, which mimic the hormone GLP-1. Humans produce GLP-1 when they eat, and the hormone causes the body to produce insulin—hence its use to treat diabetes. However, GLP-1 also activates receptors in the nervous system, the stomach, and the gut. Each receptor triggers a different response, including slowing the passage of food through the digestive system and prompting the brain to send signals of fullness.
Explore everything else we've found on Semaglutides.
Also, check out ...
> Medicare does not pay for GLP-1 for obesity. (Read)
> GLP-1 drugs were derived from Gila monster saliva. (Listen)
> After stopping GLP-1, users regained two-thirds of the weight. (Read)
> A 201-level look at how GLP-1 drugs lead to appetite reduction. (Read)
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Medical Developments Spotlight |
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We love spending time learning about the latest medical breakthroughs and spotlighting research that piques our interest, may influence future research directions, or inform healthcare conversations. Here's what we found this week.
> Daily consumption of avocado and mango linked to improved heart health
Journal of the American Heart Association | Study authors. Eating one avocado and one cup of mango daily for eight weeks was linked to improved markers of heart health among people with prediabetes. The work compared people on that diet to a control group that instead ate calorically similar low-fat foods. (Read)
> Bird-watching may boost brain power
NBC News | Lindsey Leake. A Canadian study of 58 adult bird-watchers found that the brains of expert birders were structurally different from those of novices—experts showed increased density in brain regions associated with perception and attention. These findings held true for older watchers as well as younger ones, but the work can't answer whether these differences are the result of birding or whether people with these neurological characteristics are more skilled birders. (Read)
> Bacteria genetically engineered to eat tumor cells—and die
IFLScience | Laura Simmons. Scientists in the lab have genetically engineered soil-dwelling bacteria that can consume tumor cells and live in zero-oxygen environments to tolerate oxygen, enabling them to survive inside tumors where there's no oxygen and at the outer edges of tumors where they would encounter some oxygen. They separately engineered the bacteria to include quorum-sensing machinery from another bacterium, so the oxygen intolerance trait could theoretically be restored once the engineered bacteria have finished eating tumor cells. That's an important kill switch to stop the lab-created bacteria from spreading to other parts of the body. (Read) |
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In partnership with Particle |
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The Hidden Aging Factor Hurting Men |
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"These new therapies are reshaping not only how obesity is treated, but how it’s understood—as a chronic illness with roots in biology, not a simple failure of willpower. And that may have as much impact as any drug." |
Science Magazine writes about GLP-1 |
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