The Wellness Wire

A study published June 3rd in the BMJ analyzed the health records of 606,434 U.S. veterans and found something that surprised a lot of researchers: people taking GLP-1 drugs like semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) were 14 percent less likely to develop new substance use disorders compared to people on other diabetes medications. That covers alcohol, opioids, cocaine, cannabis, and nicotine. Not one or two. All of them.

For people who already had a substance use disorder, the GLP-1 group also had fewer overdoses, hospitalizations, emergency visits, and drug-related deaths.

This is one of the largest real-world studies ever run on these drugs, and the finding is consistent enough across every substance category that researchers are now calling for clinical trials. Thirty-three registered trials looking at GLP-1s for addiction are already underway.

What this actually means

The mainstream take is already forming: GLP-1 drugs are miracle molecules that fix everything. Obesity, diabetes, addiction. What's not to love?

Here is a different way to read the data.

GLP-1 drugs work on dopamine signaling in the brain. They dampen reward-seeking behavior. That is exactly why they suppress appetite, and it appears to be why they suppress drug cravings too. These are not separate effects. They are the same mechanism applied to different inputs.

Which raises a question the BMJ study does not answer: why are tens of millions of people showing up with dysregulated dopamine systems in the first place?

The same food environment that produces metabolic disease also produces addiction. Ultra-processed foods are specifically engineered to hijack the same reward pathways these drugs are now correcting. The hyperpalatable, hyper-stimulating food supply is not an accident. It is a product design goal. And the result, at scale, looks like what the veterans in this study had: disrupted reward systems that make both overeating and substance use harder to resist.

GLP-1 drugs are real and the findings are real. If someone is struggling with addiction, this is useful data. But framing these drugs as a solution to addiction without asking why addiction rates have exploded alongside ultra-processed food consumption is a convenient omission.

You can treat the downstream symptom. You can also ask why the upstream problem keeps producing the same symptoms at scale.

A note on the data

This is an observational study, not a randomized trial. The researchers compared people on GLP-1 drugs to people on SGLT2 inhibitors, another diabetes medication class. The groups were similar, but they were not randomized. Causation is not established. The finding is significant enough to warrant trials, and those trials are coming. Watch for results over the next two to three years.

Sources:

HHS launches a federal push to get people off antidepressants. On May 4th, RFK Jr. announced a new initiative at the MAHA Institute's mental health summit to formally push back on psychiatric overprescribing. The plan includes Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement for clinicians who help patients safely taper off SSRIs, new federal training modules on prescribing risks, and expert-drafted deprescribing guidelines. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration will also publish updated clinical guidance for providers. The mainstream reaction was predictable: psychiatrists told NPR the proposal is an "oversimplification." What they did not dispute is that antidepressant prescriptions have tripled in the last 30 years, or that most prescriptions are written by primary care doctors with no psychiatric training. The overprescribing is not a conspiracy theory. It shows up in the data.

The FDA is finally closing the "self-affirmed GRAS" loophole. For decades, food companies have been able to declare their own ingredients "generally recognized as safe" without telling the FDA. No submission, no review, no public record. Companies would hire consultants, run internal reviews, and put substances in the food supply based entirely on their own determination. The FDA is now proposing to end that. A proposed rule requiring mandatory GRAS notification for all new substances is currently under White House review and is expected to drop this summer. Food industry groups are already pushing back. The food industry fighting mandatory transparency about what it puts in your food is information worth having.

Collagen supplements actually work, at least for skin and joints. A meta-analysis published June 4th combined results from 113 randomized controlled trials and nearly 8,000 participants -- the largest analysis of collagen supplementation ever run. The finding: collagen consistently improves skin hydration and eases osteoarthritis symptoms, with stronger results at longer durations. It showed little effect on athletic recovery or post-workout soreness, which is worth knowing if that is why you are taking it. This is a clean supplementation story where the evidence actually held up. ScienceDaily | The Conversation

It is not just what is in ultra-processed food. It is how it is made. A Tufts University study published June 3rd in the American Journal of Public Health found that the industrial processing itself is independently linked to heart disease, diabetes, and early death -- separate from the poor nutritional profile of the ingredients. That matters because it means reformulating UPFs with "cleaner" ingredients does not solve the problem. The process that turns raw food into shelf-stable, hyper-palatable products appears to be part of the harm, not just the sugar and refined grains inside them. About 70% of packaged products in the U.S. are classified as ultra-processed. Children get over 60% of their calories from them.

Food dye companies are stalling. The FDA has given the industry until October 2027 to remove Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 1, Blue 2, and Green 3 from food products, and January 2027 for petroleum-based dyes broadly. Nestle, General Mills, Kraft Heinz, and PepsiCo have pledged to comply. But a January 2026 report from US News found companies are moving slowly because removing dyes risks hurting sales. RFK said he has an "understanding" with manufacturers, not an "agreement." Read that distinction carefully. There is no enforcement mechanism for voluntary commitments.

That's it for this week. If someone forwarded this to you, you can subscribe at wellnesswirereport.com. If you found it useful, forward it to someone who still thinks ultra-processed food is just food.

Stay skeptical,

Carson, The Wellness Wire Weekly health intelligence. Read more, trust less. wellnesswirereport.com | @wellnesswirereport

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