GLP-1 medications are changing our understanding of addiction. In this episode, Mohini speaks with Dr. Steven Klein about the growing evidence that GLP-1s may help treat addiction by reducing cravings and interrupting addictive behaviors. Drawing on both research and clinical experience, Dr. Klein explores the connection between obesity, substance use disorders, and the brain’s reward system.

A pilot program is testing GLP-1 medications, known for treating diabetes and obesity, to help combat substance use disorders.

A pilot program is testing the surprising benefits of weight-loss drugs for substance.

In today’s episode, host Mandee Hamann sits down with Dr. Steven Klein (Caron Treatment Center), a physician-scientist specializing in addiction medicine and brain health, for a vital conversation every parent needs to hear.

Some doctors are prescribing weight-loss drugs such as Zepbound and Ozempic to help reduce cravings for illicit drugs and alcohol. But research on the benefits is limited.

GLP-1 medications have grown popular in recent years for weight loss, but one doctor has found another use: combating alcohol and drug addiction. Dr. Steven Klein, a physician specializing in addiction, is spearheading a new type of treatment program for more than 130 patients in Pennsylvania and South Florida who struggle with alcohol or drug addiction.

Jessica Massarone couldn’t concentrate in primary school: She was too preoccupied with her parents’ struggles with drug addiction. Sometimes, she’d find her mother passed out on the floor. “I was constantly worried about what I was going to come home to,” she said.

In recent months, doctors at Caron Treatment Centers, an elite nonprofit rehab facility, have begun prescribing semaglutide to patients not to address obesity or diabetes but to help treat the addictions that brought them here in the first place.

In late 2016, Steven Klein realized that he’d lost control over his drinking and stimulant use. He became sober that December, with help from 12-step meetings. But he also struggled with overeating, which he views as another addiction. Stress from the pandemic caused him to gain more than 40 pounds during his medical residency. In 2022, he decided to try Mounjaro, part of a new class of medications like Ozempic and Wegovy that are proving effective in treating obesity and diabetes.