Diabetic Status, Advanced Age, and Hispanic Ethnicity Predict Poorer Weight Loss in Patients with Obesity on Semaglutide.
Semaglutide keeps making waves in obesity research. A new real-world study out of New York City just took a hard look at who gets the best weight loss results from weekly semaglutide injections. Researchers tracked 163 patients with obesity over a full year. Their goal: sort out which factors move the needle with this research peptide — and which ones don’t.
Endocr Pract
by Cornet NC, Buckholz AP, Yeung M et al.
“Diabetic Status, Advanced Age, and Hispanic Ethnicity Predict Poorer Weight Loss in Patients with Obesity on Semaglutide. Cornet NC(1), Buckholz AP(2), Yeung M(3), Kumar S(2), Rogers L(2), Magahis PT(4), Sharaiha RZ(2), Krisko TI(2), Fortune BE(5), Newberry CA(2). Author information: (1)NewYork Presbyterian-Columbia University Irvine Medical Center, Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases, New York, NY. 630 West 168(th) St, P&S3, New York, NY 10032. Electronic address: ncornet94@gmail.com. (2)NewYork Presbyterian-Weill Cornell Medical Center, Division of Gastroenterology, New York, NY. (3)NewYork Presbyterian-Weill Cornell Medical Center, Division of Endocrinology, New York, NY. 1283 York Avenue, New York, NY 10065. (4)Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY. 1300 York Avenue, New York, NY 10065. (5)Montefiore Medical Center, Division of Gastroenterology, Bronx, NY. 111 East 210(th) Street, Bronx, NY 10467. OBJECTIVE: Define demographic and clinical predictors of weight loss outcomes in patients with obesity prescribed semaglutide in real-world practice. METHODS: We identified 163 patients with elevated BMI (>25 kg/m2) taking weekly semaglutide for at least 12 months seen at a gastroenterology-based, multidisciplinary obesity clinic in New York City. The primary outcome was percent total weight loss (%TWL) after 12 months on weekly injectable semaglutide. Secondary outcomes included % of patients achieving > 5% TWL and clinical factors affecting treatment course including gastrointestinal side effects (GI SE), dosing achieved, and number of provider visits. RESULTS: In total, 163/294 (55.4%) patients prescribed semaglutide during the study period continued it for at least 12 months. Mean weight loss achieved at this timepoint was 8.1 kg +/- 18.5 kg (8.1% +/- 8.3% TWL). Patient-identified Hispanic ethnicity (95% CI -6.82, -0.55, p=0.02), history of type 2 diabetes (95% CI 0.74, 5.76, p=0.01), and age > 60 years (95% CI -14.76, -2.41, p=0.007) were associated with reduced weight loss on univariable analysis. Development of GI SE (95% CI 1.86, 3.36, p=0.57) and provider visit number were not associated with weight loss outcomes (95% CI 0.15, 0.28, p=0.56). Patient-identified Hispanic ethnicity was independently associated with failure to achieve 5% TWL on multi-variable regression (OR 0.32, 95% CI 0.14-0.74). CONCLUSION: This study suggests weight loss with weekly semaglutide was influenced by specific factors including diabetes status, older age, and Hispanic ethnicity in our real-world clinic, though further research is needed to define prognosticators of weight loss across populations. Copyright © 2026. Published by Elsevier Inc.”
Here’s the headline: not everyone gets the same results from semaglutide. The average weight loss after 12 months on the peptide was 8.1 kg (about 8% total body weight). But certain groups saw less progress:
Patients over 60 years old lost less weight on average
Hispanic participants saw lower weight loss compared to other groups
Type 2 diabetes also predicted smaller changes on the scale
On the flip side, some things didn’t matter as much as you might think:
GI side effects and the number of provider visits weren’t linked to weight loss results
Statistically, Hispanic ethnicity stood out. Even after adjusting for other factors, it was associated with a lower chance of hitting the 5% total weight loss mark.
So what does this mean for researchers? Personal factors matter with semaglutide weight loss outcomes. Age, ethnicity, and diabetes status all play a role. The peptide itself works, but the response isn’t one-size-fits-all. That’s a call for more targeted studies — and a reminder to dig deeper on patient backgrounds in future projects.
If you’re planning to source or study semaglutide, check our vendor directory for options. The takeaway: there’s more to discover about how different populations respond to this powerful research peptide.
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