Virginia Tech Public Affairs reported that semaglutide and its analogues, used to treat diabetes and obesity, delay the absorption of alcohol into the bloodstream, reducing the subjective sensations associated with intoxication and decreasing the desire to drink alcohol in users.
"If semaglutide and its analogues can slow the absorption of ethanol into the blood, this could potentially be used to combat alcohol overindulgence. Our experiments have shown that semaglutide does indeed slow the absorption of alcohol into the human body, and it does this in a way that differs from current drugs such as naltrexone and acamprosate," said Associate Professor Alex De Felicitone.
The researchers noted that trials conducted in 2024 and 2025 showed that semaglutide-based weight-loss drugs, such as Ozempic, significantly reduced alcohol cravings and lowered average consumption in people with severe forms of alcoholism, sparking significant interest in studying the effect of these drugs on human alcohol cravings and the development of alcoholism.
The study involved 20 overweight volunteers living in Roanoke, Virginia, all of whom were regular drinkers, but were not addicts. The researchers asked the participants to monitor changes in their alcohol intake over several weeks and to visit what the researchers called a "lab bar" for control tests.
Participants were given doses of hard alcoholic beverages, taking into account their body mass and other parameters, and then their blood and breath ethanol concentrations were measured. The results showed that semaglutide slowed alcohol absorption during the first 20–30 minutes after each dose and significantly reduced the subjective intensityfeelings associated with intoxication.
The researchers noted that this effect is radically different from currently approved anti-alcoholism medications, which block the effect of alcohol on the brain without preventing it from reaching the bloodstream, making semaglutide and its analogues an exciting topic for future study.
