GLP-1 agonists take about 6.5 kg off antipsychotic weight gain

The edition in brief

A meta-analysis of eight randomised trials (535 adults on antipsychotics) found GLP-1 receptor agonists reduced body weight by about 6.5 kg, BMI by 2.3 kg/m² and HbA1c by 0.3%, with more nausea, vomiting and constipation but no rise in serious adverse events; semaglutide produced the most weight loss, and psychiatric adverse events were too sparse to pool. A JAMA Psychiatry meta-analysis of 23 trials of psychological interventions aimed at auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia-spectrum disorders found a small benefit on severity (SMD −0.18, NNT 16, low certainty), largest for avatar therapy. A US prescription-data study found the share of people dispensed a benzodiazepine fell from 7.5% to 5.5% between 2013 and 2024, though prescriptions from advanced practice providers doubled. A difference-in-differences analysis linked US state legalisation of online sports betting with small increases in antidepressant and anti-anxiety prescribing and outpatient diagnoses. The FDA recorded a supplement to a generic clozapine application — an administrative action, not a safety finding.