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Beyond GLP-1s: How Food-as-Medicine Can Improve Outcomes and Bend the Cost Curve
Food-as-Medicine • Obesity & Diabetes Care
GLP-1 medications deliver meaningful weight and glycemic benefits — but at steep and rising cost.New modeling (JAMA Health Forum) and payer guidance (ICER) show why pairing these drugs withmedically tailored nutrition can sustain results, improve adherence, and control spend.
Quick take for physicians: GLP-1s work — but their costs are explosive and adherence is fragile. Data suggest layering medically tailored meals (MTMs) during initiation and maintenance can help sustain weight loss and glycemic benefits, reduce dose escalation, and improve payer ROI.
Study Overview
JAMA Health Forum modeling projects enormous spend on GLP-1s if used broadly for obesity and diabetes. ICER’s 2024 guidance urges adjunct lifestyle & nutrition interventions to sustain outcomes and improve cost-effectiveness.
Key Findings
Weight & A1c: MTMs improve early adherence and glycemic durability.
Costs: Bundling MTMs may reduce long-term GLP-1 spend by slowing dose escalation and dropout.
Payers: Coverage models are emerging for nutrition + meds.
Clinical Implementation Playbook
Screen: BMI Ñ30 or T2D; identify poor diet quality or food insecurity.
Prescribe: MTMs for at least 12 weeks when starting GLP-1.
Coordinate: RD touchpoints every 2–4 weeks to reinforce meal plan and track satiety.
Track: Weight, A1c, dose titration, adherence.
FAQs
Who is the ideal patient?
GLP-1 users early in treatment or struggling with adherence/side effects.
What meal “dose” works?
~10–14 tailored meals/week for 12–16 weeks.
How to measure impact?
Weight change, A1c, refill adherence, dose escalation, payer ROI.
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Read moreBeyond GLP-1s: How Food-as-Medicine Can Improve Outcomes and Bend the Cost Curve
GLP-1s deliver strong outcomes, but high costs; pairing with MTMs can sustain results, improve adherence, and control spend.
Read more