Comment by polishdude20
2 months ago
It seems the article isn't just saying it's heart muscle that's being lost but regular muscle in general. Even more so than in a low calorie diet.
2 months ago
It seems the article isn't just saying it's heart muscle that's being lost but regular muscle in general. Even more so than in a low calorie diet.
From the commentary,
>Studies suggest muscle loss with these medications (as indicated by decreases in fat-free mass [FFM]) ranges from 25% to 39% of the total weight lost over 36–72 weeks. This substantial muscle loss can be largely attributed to the magnitude of weight loss, rather than by an independent effect of GLP-1 receptor agonists, although this hypothesis must be tested. By comparison, non-pharmacological caloric restriction studies with smaller magnitudes of weight loss result in 10–30% FFM losses.
Comparing weight loss of different magnitudes is kind of comparing apples to oranges. Of course, it's not really possible to get persistent, large magnitude weight loss any other way than by using these drugs, so I understand why the comparison was made.
There's a linked article saying that 40% of the weight loss is muscle.
Outside of cardiac muscle, which is a bit worrisome, 40% of weight loss being from muscles is incredibly typical for any diet that sheds pounds.
There are very complex dietary regimes that can be followed to minimize this, but most studies have shown that they don't save any time compared to losing weight and then working to get the muscle back afterwards.
> Dyck’s study comes on the heels of a commentary published in the November issue of The Lancet by an international team of researchers from the U of A, McMaster and Louisiana State University who examined emerging research showing that up to 40 per cent of the weight lost by people using weight-loss drugs is actually muscle.
This is, again 100% typical of what happens with caloric restriction.
Literally the next line after the 40% quote:
> Carla Prado, a nutrition researcher in the Faculty of Agricultural, Life & Environmental Sciences and lead author on the commentary, explains this rate of muscle decline is significantly higher than what is typically observed with calorie-reduced diets or normal aging and could lead to a host of long-term health issues — including decreased immunity, increased risk of infections and poor wound healing.
Do you have a source that 40% muscle loss is typical for a caloric restriction diet without GLP1 agonists?
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> There are very complex dietary regimes that can be followed to minimize this
The dietary regime isn't complex -- just consume a LOT of protein. Something like 1-2 g/kg/d. And non-dietary: do strength training.
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