Blue plastic basket filled with Ozempic dispensers. Photo by Chemist4U CC 2.0

GLP‑1 drugs may fight addiction across every major substance, according to a study of 600,000 people

In the group already struggling with addiction, there were 50% fewer deaths due to substance use among those taking GLP-1 drugs compared with those who were not. We also found 39% fewer overdoses, 26% fewer drug-related hospitalizations and 25% fewer suicide attempts. Over three years, this translated to roughly 12 fewer serious events in total per 1,000 people using GLP-1 drugs – including two fewer deaths.

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Woman fitness exercise plank

No gym or regular routine? Here’s how to stay fit over the holiday break

The festive season can throw our exercise routines out the window.

You might be staying somewhere different, with no access to a gym.

Maybe your yoga studio is closed or social sport is on a break.

Or you might just be too flat out with social events to find the time.

For some people, a break from pushing their bodies will be exactly what they need.

But others will want to keep up the fitness and strength they’ve been working on throughout the year – and some will crave the mental release.

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Overweight obese young women

Making GLP-1 weight loss drugs cheaper isn’t enough to address America’s obesity problem – here’s why

Most patients with obesity and related health problems will likely need to use these medications indefinitely. According to emerging research, people who stop taking them typically regain the weight they lost. Realistically, very few people who take GLP-1 drugs can maintain their weight loss with lifestyle changes alone.

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Running fitness exercise

Five lifestyle changes that might help you live longer and slow down ageing

Society is fascinated with health, fitness and longevity. This obsession has spawned a multi-million pound industry centred around pushing the latest cutting-edge science, lifestyle modifications and products that claim to prevent ageing and live as long as possible.

But the secret to a long life doesn’t have to be so complicated. There are many simple things everyone can do to slow down time and feel younger.

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Illustration of a bowl of rice with a spoon to the side.

Single-food ‘mono diets’: are they effective, pointless, or just plain dangerous?

With summer in full swing, many people will be tempted by supposedly miraculous dieting tricks to lose those excess kilos that prevent them from enjoying the perfect physique. Among them are so-called “mono diets”: restrictive regimes that consist of exclusively eating one type of food for a period of time, with the aim of quickly losing weight and “detoxing”.

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