While the acronym doesn’t quite yet trip off the tongue, the term GLP-1 has become a shorthand for the class of weight loss drugs that have finally begun to address the obesity epidemic. But that’s an oversimplification.
GLP-1, short for glucagon-like peptide-1, is actually a natural hormone in the body that’s released after eating. It helps stimulate insulin production and signals to your brain that you are full.
With weight loss medications like Ozempic (semaglutide) and Mounjaro (tirzepatide), high doses of GLP-1 agonists (and another hormone, GIP, in the case of Mounjaro) are injected into the bloodstream. These drugs artificially lower blood sugar and slow digestion. In short, they mimic some of the body’s own satiety protocols, most of which occur naturally in the digestive tract.
### Understanding the Metabolic Matrix
“The GI tract is a major endocrine organ,” says Sean Adams, professor and scientific director at the Center for Alimentary and Metabolic Science at the University of California, Davis.
“Many of the cells secrete hormones which are relevant to food intake regulation, energy expenditure, gastric emptying, and gastric motility. Nutrients and metabolites can trigger these cells to produce native GLP-1, peptide YY (PYY), Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP), and Cholecystokinin.”
While these hormones rise after a meal, the hormone ghrelin falls.
“A meal has the opposite effect with ghrelin,” says Adams. “It’s actually reduced following a meal. Most people believe it’s a hunger-regulating hormone. I don’t believe it. I think it’s more of a glucose regulatory hormone. PYY and GLP-1 go back and interact with ghrelin. In short, these hormones regulate each other.”
### The Role of DPP4
And there’s one final player to know in the metabolic matrix: DPP4.
“GLP-1 can be degraded pretty rapidly by an enzyme called DPP4,” explains Dr. Adams. “DPP4 tears up these enzymes pretty rapidly in the blood. Understanding this is what prompted the generation of these drugs like semaglutide.”
### Could Functional Foods Offer Similar Benefits?
Could deeper exploration of how these hormones and enzymes interact uncover foods that have the same effect as obesity medications?
Studies have already shown that protein, fiber, fermented foods, bitter green vegetables such as arugula and kale, and polyphenols found in green tea, cocoa, and red grapes affect hunger.
So, are satiating snacks and shakes on the horizon?
“Weight loss drugs are very different from the natural hormones,” says Adams. “The concentration of the drug remains in the blood for days and days after an injection. That’s why they work so well. It’s about a thousandfold higher than what’s in the blood naturally. So, when we are trying to activate GLP-1 release through functional foods, is that going to be enough to have any effect relative to the drug? I don’t know. Maybe.”
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