A very popular modern weight-management strategy focuses on ways to raise levels of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). GLP-1 is a hormone made in the intestines that plays an important role in weight management and appetite reduction, and helps maintain blood sugar and control weight.*
Clinicians and patients alike are interested in lower-risk ways to support healthy GLP-1 levels on a daily basis with food, supplements, and lifestyle changes.*1
In this blog post, we will cover the best ways to manage weight using lifestyle and supplemental approaches.* First, we will describe GLP-1 and explore DaVinci® Laboratories’ most popular metabolic health and GLP-1 supplements and their roles in promoting GLP-1 levels.* Then we will discuss the GLP-1 mechanisms you weren’t aware of for weight management approaches commonly used in integrative and functional health practices.*
Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is a hormone secreted in the intestines, pancreatic cells, and neurons.2 When you’re eating and start to feel full, you can in part thank GLP-1—one of its main jobs is to stop you from eating too much. It's involved in glucose-triggered insulin secretion, reduced gastric emptying, and helping suppress food intake.3
GLP-1 also has cardio- and neuro-protective properties, supports a healthy inflammatory response, and is involved in learning and memory.3 GLP-1 agonists such as semaglutide are now widely used in patients with type 2 diabetes and in people seeking to lose weight.
However, certain patients may be looking for lifestyle strategies to support a healthy weight and optimize metabolism that don't rely on GLP-1 agonists.
In integrative and functional medicine practices, clinicians address excess body fat with a systems-based approach. This approach recognizes that many different root causes may contribute to metabolic challenges and high body mass index.
A diet and lifestyle approach to weight loss may include:
There are many supplements that can be used to help maintain a person’s GLP-1 levels.* If your patients are concerned about unwanted side effects of semaglutide like nausea or malnutrition, then supplements that support endogenous GLP-1 may be a good fit.*
People who are obese do not release as much GLP-1 after eating compared to leaner people, so dietary supplements for GLP-1 support can help keep levels up.*4
Doctor-formulated supplements from DaVinci® Laboratories can support GLP-1 levels as well as other aspects of weight management:*
Research supports berberine’s ability to support healthy GLP-1 levels and maintain blood sugar in the normal range.* Berberine metabolites trigger GLP-1 release by protecting intestinal cells that produce GLP-1 and supporting mitochondrial health.*5
Berberine works especially well when combined with grape seed extract, which boosts production of GLP-1 even when the diet isn’t ideal.*6 By increasing GLP-1, berberine combined with grape seed extract helps you feel full and satisfied after meals.*
Curcumin’s role in weight management and metabolic health involves its ability to support healthy blood sugar and insulin metabolism.* It raises levels of GLP-1 and promotes healthy fat absorption.*7
It also alters the gut microbiota in a way that’s favorable to weight management.*8
GlucoSynergy™ contains Cinnulin PF®, a water-soluble cinnamon extract that supports healthy glucose management, helps maintains GLP-1 levels, and contributes to blood flow.*9 GlucoSynergy™ also contains Gymnema sylvestre, which helps maintain healthy blood glucose levels.*
Bitter melon extract promotes glucose transport and use by the cells as well as balancing liver glucose release.* Bitter melon is also thought to exert its effects on blood sugar and insulin in part by helping with GLP-1 production.*10 Banaba is another phytonutrient that can help maintain healthy blood sugar and support glucose transport in cells.*
Alpha-lipoic acid at an impressive 100 mg per capsule helps to normalize blood sugar and promotes insulin sensitivity.*11 It can help inhibit glycation and regenerates important antioxidants like vitamins E, C, and glutathione.*
Fiber feeds the gut microbiota and triggers the production of SCFAs, which are linked to numerous health effects and increased production of GLP-1.* Fiber can also curb cravings and hunger.*
Clearly Fiber contains Fibersol®, a branded prebiotic fiber that at 5g per serving can help support blood sugar levels within the normal range.*12 Ten grams of Fibersol® stimulated production of GLP-1 and affected perceptions of hunger and appetite.*12
Thermoset® ingredients like green tea, Theobroma cacao whole fruit extract, and corosolic acid like that found in Banaba all support healthy levels of GLP-1.*13-15
Thermoset® also contains Hoodia gordonii, which acts on nerve cells in the brain that sense glucose levels, making the body feel full.*16 Chromium polynicotinate is included to support healthy blood sugar levels and help manage hunger.*
Metabolic Multi is a multivitamin-mineral that promotes the body’s release of GLP-1, featuring berberine, GreenSelect® Green Tea Phytosome, curcumin, cinnamon, and resveratrol.*15 The ingredients in Metabolic Multi support a healthy weight in other ways beyond GLP-1.*
For example, Alluvia Purple Tea with GHG®, which is high in colorful plant substances called anthocyanins, improves body composition and reduces fat absorption.*17 It also significantly reduces body mass index, waist circumference, and body weight.* GreenSelect® Green Tea Phytosome also joins in to promote a healthy body composition.*
Vitamin B12 supports healthy glucose metabolism and fat burning, helps maintain glycemic control, and supports fullness after eating.* It also helps reduce occasional nausea from GLP-1 agonists.*18
B vitamins like folate and methylcobalamin support energy production and metabolism.*
Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) triggers the production of peptide YY (PYY), a gastrointestinal hormone that supports a healthy appetite and balanced energy production.*
Unlike pharmaceutical GLP-1 strategies, Tonalin® CLA helps decrease fat while increasing lean muscle mass.* It helps support significant reduction in fat stores in the abdominal area.*
Cranberry and the ingredients in Phyto Benefits both help inherently raise your levels of Akkermansia muciniphila, a beneficial bacteria in the gut.*
A. muciniphila supports a healthy gut barrier, blood sugar, insulin sensitivity, weight management, and a healthy inflammatory response, actions that contribute to metabolic health.*
Eating a diet of whole foods with fiber, lean protein, and healthy fats can influence the secretion of GLP-1. These healthier food choices can diminish appetite, cravings, and improve blood sugar regulation.
For example, researchers have found that a low carbohydrate diet can improve glucose metabolism and mental outlook, and the mechanism of action involves both the gut microbiota and GLP-1.20 Diets high in fiber also promote GLP-1 secretion because they encourage the growth of beneficial bacteria involved in the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFA).21
When these SCFA-promoting producers exist in greater diversity and abundance, there is a corresponding improvement in supporting healthy hemoglobin A1c levels, partly due to increased GLP-1 production.
Research has found that healthy exercise increases GLP-1 levels in humans.22 Exercise may also help improve the body’s response to GLP-1 rather than promote GLP-1 secretion.22
Research suggests that exercise together with semaglutides works better than either practice alone to maintain a healthy weight. One study of 166 people found that the combination of exercise and semaglutide use improved metabolic health, managed abdominal fat, and supported a healthy inflammatory response more so than exercise or the semaglutide use alone.*23
The gut microbiota has long been known to play a role in weight management and supporting healthy glucose metabolism and research is now pointing to the microbiota as an endocrine organ.24
As mentioned earlier in this article, beneficial bacteria that promote the production of SCFAs support healthy hemoglobin A1c levels, in part due to increased GLP-1 production.*21 In addition, the probiotic Bifidobacterium lactis maintains glucose metabolism in people exposed to a high-fat diet.* It significantly stimulates GLP-1 secretion and expression.*
The prebiotic inulin also influences the production of GLP-1.*24 Using prebiotics and probiotics is therefore a reasonable strategy to promote a patient’s GLP-1 levels.*
Environmental exposure can impact the body’s GLP-1 response. In people exposed to organophosphate and carbamate, the GLP-1 response is reduced.26 Another common environmental pollutant, p,p'-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (p,p'-DDE), can lead to obesity.27
The connection between environmental exposures and metabolic disturbances is well-known. In a rodent study, the dietary fiber pectin supported a healthy weight and glucose metabolism in the animals exposed to the pollutant.*27 The beneficial effects were due in part to supporting healthy levels of GLP-1.*
Remember that during a weight management program, pollutants and unhealthy substances often are released from fat tissue. Ensuring the health of the liver, kidney, gastrointestinal tract, and gut microbiota can help ease these substances out of the body.*
GLP-1 supplements for weight management are here to stay. Patients will ask about it, and integrative and functional practitioners are increasingly considering it as part of a comprehensive weight loss program. Whether used as adjunctive or stand-alone practices, there are many ways to help raise a patient’s inherent GLP-1 levels.*
The tried-and-true approaches for addressing metabolic imbalances still hold strong: diet and nutrition, supporting healthy insulin sensitivity, increased activity, quality sleep, gut health, and hormonal balance, among others.*
But in this new era of GLP-1-centered weight management strategies, integrative and functional clinicians may refine diet and lifestyle changes for enhanced GLP-1 activation, while discovering that they have been supporting GLP-1 levels all along.
References
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.