Can taking Wegovy help you age better?

Mobility is the ability to move around comfortably and freely. As you get older your mobility decreases; approximately one third of adults aged over 65 find it difficult to walk.

Knee osteoarthritis (OA) can cause limited mobility, and it’s the most common source of knee pain in people over 50. One of the primary factors contributing to knee OA is obesity. Being overweight adds extra pressure on your knee joints, which can wear down your cartilage. This causes pain, making it hard to move around comfortably.

If you are overweight, your doctor will recommend losing weight and exercising. Wegovy can help you lose weight, which helps remove the pressure on the knees. This was assessed using the WOMAC scale (a questionnaire that measures the pain and stiffness in people with knee OA), where patients using semaglutide had a 41.7 point reduction in pain compared to 27.5 for the placebo group. Another study on the impact of semaglutide on OA found that it can help prevent the condition’s onset.

However it’s still important to do strength training exercises and eat a lot of protein to help maintain your muscle mass when losing weight. This is because you’re at a higher risk of developing sarcopenia when you’re older (a condition characterised by muscle loss).

When you’re older, you might find you need to nap more and sleep longer, which is normal. But sometimes, medical conditions like diabetes can be the reason for fatigue.

When you’re diabetic, high blood sugar levels can lower your energy levels, making you feel more tired than usual. Glucose is the main source of energy for your body, but with diabetes, your body can’t efficiently absorb it. This poor absorption leads to low energy levels. Other symptoms of diabetes, like dehydration, can further contribute to fatigue.

Wegovy, originally made as a diabetes medication, increases insulin sensitivity. This helps your body use insulin better, so it can move glucose into your cells and lower your blood sugar. It also helps control your appetite and manages the way food is broken down, making energy production more efficient. These combined effects — insulin regulation, improved food breakdown and appetite control — help stabilise your energy levels throughout the day.

However, these positive changes to your energy levels might not be immediate. Initially, you might feel more tired, which is a common side effect of semaglutide. But once your body adjusts to the medicine, the positive effects should follow.