Could weight-loss drugs treat addiction?
Inside Health
BBC
4.4 • 575 Ratings
🗓️ 2 August 2023
⏱️ 30 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Barely a day goes by without more headlines around new weight-loss drugs, from the issue of global shortages, to investigations into suicide risk, and debate over just how long people will need to be on them. But in this episode of Inside Health we’re going to look at something slightly different - and perhaps unexpected.
James Gallagher meets lifelong dieter Cheri who has lost just over three stone on semaglutide but she’s also noticed other effects from her weekly injection; a calmer mind and a complete lack of desire for her much-loved vapes. She wants to know what’s going on – so we seek out some scientists to help us get to the bottom of it. From the evidence gathered so far, are there hints that these drugs could offer potential to treat serious addiction?
And have you ever heard of “bed rotting”?
It doesn’t sound particularly enticing - but James gives it a go in the name of science and we explain all in the programme with the help of two experts.
What health questions do you want us to answer? Email the team at insidehealth@bbc.co.uk
Declared interests: Professor Giles Yeo: "I have a PhD student part-funded by Novo Nordisk. I consult for Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly." Dr Tony Goldstone: "I have previously been a member of Data Safety Monitoring Board for clinical trials of Liraglutide for obesity by Novo Nordisk, and have received an honorarium as a conference speaker from Novo Nordisk."
Presenter: James Gallagher Producer: Gerry Holt Editor: Erika Wright Production Coordinator: Jonathan Harris Studio Producer: Duncan Hannant (Photo: Cheri Ferguson with her Ozempic pen. Credit Cheri Ferguson)
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Hello, I'm Greg Jenna and good news, Your Dead to Me is back for a new series. Here we go. Yes, we'll explore Emperor Nero's notorious reign with Professor Marybeard and Patton Oswald. I would not want my daughter having the remote control, not alone an empire. We'll dissect the decadent life of Philippe Duke-Dor-Leon with Tom Allen. I've often tried to pretend I'm an aristocrat and being very quickly knocked down. |
| 0:23.0 | And there'll be so much more with comedians like Olga Koch, Mike Mosniak and Rihalina. |
| 0:26.9 | I'm excited. |
| 0:27.6 | You're dead to me. |
| 0:28.5 | The comedy podcast that takes history seriously. |
| 0:30.9 | Listen first on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:34.5 | BBC Sounds, music, radio, podcasts. |
| 0:37.9 | Hello there and welcome to the Inside Health podcast. I'm James Gallagher. |
| 0:42.0 | We'll be exploring the idea of bed rotting today. |
| 0:45.6 | Don't worry if you've never heard of it. I hadn't before I tried it either. |
| 0:49.1 | First, we're going to be returning to weight loss injections, though. |
| 0:52.5 | Now, you'll remember earlier in the year, |
| 0:55.1 | we spent a whole episode of Inside Health |
| 0:57.4 | focusing on semi-glutide |
| 0:59.5 | and how the NHS was going to make that drug available to people for two years. |
| 1:04.6 | Well, there have been more developments since, |
| 1:06.8 | so side effects are starting to emerge, |
| 1:09.2 | some of them potentially beneficial, others more concerning. And at the same time, there have been calls for people to be given the drugs basically for life rather than just for two years. So to catch up on all these developments, I'm joined by obesity expert at the University of Cambridge, Professor Giles. Yo, Giles, welcome back. |
| 1:28.4 | Hello, thank you for having me on, as always. |
| 1:30.8 | Giles, what do you make of some of the reports that we've had over the past week or so, |
| 1:34.7 | saying if you end up starting on one of these weight loss drugs, realistically, you might be on it for life? |
| 1:40.7 | I think that is to be expected. Imagine you're taking high blood pressure medication. And if you take your high blood pressure medication and your blood pressure goes down to normal, would you suddenly stop it? You wouldn't. Because if you stopped your high blood pressure medication, your blood pressure will go back up again. So the same is going to be true for these weight loss drugs. The moment you take them and for most people once they lose weight, they got to stay on them |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.