Stop weight-loss drugs and weight returns. Support slowed it here.

Randomised controlled trial (RCT). 39 people. 4 months after stopping GLP-1 medication (study ran 3/2024-8/2025).

A trial. Chance decided who did what.

Who: US adults (Dallas and El Paso obesity clinics + StudyFinder) who had lost >10% of body weight on a GLP-1 drug and had stopped it less than 30 days before; mean age 49.9, 82.1% women, mean BMI 31.4, mean weight lost on the drug 18.1%; drugs: semaglutide 48.7%, cagrilintide+semaglutide 35.9%, tirzepatide 10.3%

• Usual care+10.8%weight regained
• Diet coaching app+3.6%weight regained
• Healthy ready meals+3.6%weight regained

More to know, from our read of the paper:

• Small pilot: 39 randomized (14/12/13), 34 completed a final weigh-in; target of 60 not reached; not powered for definitive efficacy (authors). Results need larger, longer trials
• Short: 4 months only; says nothing about long-term regain
• Weight was not the primary outcome (adherence and satisfaction were, and showed no clear differences); weight was a pre-registered secondary outcome, called 'exploratory' in the abstract
• Groups were unbalanced at baseline: the control group was 100% women, lighter (76.5 kg vs 91.4/87.9) and had lost more on the drug (21.2% vs 17.7%/15.6%). Adjusting for weight lost on GLP-1 and baseline weight shrank the differences a little but they stayed significant (app -5.83 pts, meals -6.29 pts, Table S1 per text)
• Usual care was not standardised (left to each provider). Interventions were free to participants (study-paid); real-world cost ~$372/month for meals, ~$17-70/month for apps (Introduction)

This small pilot trial randomized 39 US adults who had just stopped a GLP-1 drug (after losing about 18% of their weight on it) to usual care, a diet coaching app or 10 healthy ready-made meals a week, for 4 months. Usual care regained about 10.8% of body weight; the app and meals groups regained about 3.6%. Weight was measured on home smart scales. It is small, short and the groups started a bit different, so larger, longer trials are needed.

We read the abstract and the full text of this paper and checked every number on this page against it (16 facts, checked on 2026-10-29). The study design is named above. Cohort and other observational studies are described as linked, not proven. Found an error? Email theis@onestudyaday.com.