Eli Lilly shows GLP-1 weight-loss pill Foundayo can dramatically improve sleep apnea

November 9, 20262 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAmNew clinical trial shows daily GLP-1 pill significantly improves sleep apneaFoundayo, a daily pill, successfully reduced obstructive sleep apnea, according to clinical trial dataEli Lilly will submit Foundayo to the FDA as a sleep apnea treatment before the end of the year. Tada Images/ShutterstockFoundayo, an oral antiobesity pill, significantly improved obstructive sleep apnea, according to new clinical trial data. The results signal the potential uses of the GLP-1 (glucagonlike peptide 1) drug beyond weight loss.Foundayo is the brand name for the drug orforglipron, which is made by Eli Lilly. It was approved for treating obesity by the Food and Drug Administration in April. At the same time, the pharmaceutical company has been probing the drug’s potential to treat other obesity-related conditions, including obstructive sleep apnea. The condition is characterized by pauses in air flow to the lungs during sleep that are longer than 10 seconds; it can cause loud snoring, choking, sleep deprivation, headaches and other symptoms. Globally, as many as 936 million adults are estimated to experience the condition, although most are never formally diagnosed.Because it causes drops in oxygen, obstructive sleep apnea can also increase the risks of heart problems. That suggests treatment with Foundayo may also have cardiovascular health benefits, says Daniel Drucker, an endocrinologist at the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute. Drucker has previously worked as a consultant for Eli Lilly.“Every time we tinker with the GLP-1 backbone, the question of overall safety and cardiovascular safety resurfaces,” he says.On supporting science journalismIf you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.“We know there’s a two-way relationship between sleep and cardiovascular health, and the repeated drops in oxygen that happen with obstructive sleep apnea can strain blood pressure and the heart over time,” said study co-author Vaishnavi Kundel, an associate professor of medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, in a statement. “Foundayo significantly reduced breathing interruptions and drops in oxygen during sleep, while also improving blood pressure and inflammation.”In the new clinical trial results, published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association, after 52 weeks, the drug reduced the severity of sleep apnea by 43.8 percent in participants with clinical obesity who did not use a positive airway pressure (PAP) machine—such devices are commonly employed to treat sleep apnea. The GLP-1 pill reduced severity of sleep apnea symptoms by 27.5 percent in participants with obesity who did use a PAP machine. Both groups also lost around 28 pounds of weight on average over the course of the study.The results add to other evidence suggesting that Eli Lilly’s injectable GLP-1 medications may improve obstructive sleep apnea, too, Drucker says. “If approved, orforglipron may represent a new option for individuals preferring once-daily administration of a GLP-1 medicine for treatment of [obstructive sleep apnea],” he adds.Eli Lilly plans to submit the drug for FDA review for the treatment moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea in adults who are overweight or have obesity by the end of the year, according to a company statement.Subscribe to Support Independent JournalismGreat science journalism requires human expertise, time, effort and creativity. And it costs money. That’s why I and the journalists here at Scientific American hope you’ll join our community.When you subscribe, you are supporting staff and freelance journalists who are passionate about telling science stories that are true, important and compelling. Our editors and reporters are often experts in their fields, which means they understand the nuances of big discoveries and can untangle the breakthroughs from the hype. With a subscription, you are also supporting rigorous fact-checking to ensure the words we publish are precise and accurate. And you’re supporting original illustrations, graphics and photos that bring you closer to an advanced laboratory, an ice sheet in Antarctica or a space mission in orbit. You’re helping us craft other types of high-quality journalism as well: Our newsletters are carefully written, edited and curated by staffers you have or will come to know and love. Our Science Quickly podcast is based on original reporting, collaboration with editors and scientists and exacting production.Subscriptions keep this engine running so we can continue to deliver thoughtful, rigorous and independent science journalism to you. In an era of viral misinformation, this work is crucial. If you value what we do, I hope you’ll consider joining us as a subscriber