CNN —If TikTok and Reddit influencers are to be believed, the plant-based compound called berberine can be a replacement for such popular diabetes and weight loss drugs as Ozempic and Wegovy.
Is berberine’s weight loss effect meaningful?
Berberine may enhance the body’s natural production of GLP-1, or glucagon-like peptide 1, a gastrointestinal hormone that’s used in Ozempic and other new weight loss drugs.
However, in terms of its weight loss benefits, they are modest at best,” he said.
“Metformin lowers blood sugar, and berberine lowers blood sugar,” Levitt said.
Persons:
Berberine, “, ”, Caroline Apovian, Justin Ryder, Ryder, Joshua Levitt, Ashurbanipal, ” Levitt, Gaston Ernesto Gonzalez Avila, Levitt
Organizations:
CNN, US Food and Drug Administration, Harvard Medical School, Center, Weight Management, Wellness, Brigham, Women’s Hospital, Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, BMI, National Library of Medicine, FDA, American Chemical Society
Locations:
Boston, Chicago, Ayurveda, Hamden , Connecticut