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- Retatrutide Vs. Alcohol
Happy Monday!
If there’s one variable I always suggest people remove from their lives, it’s alcohol.
If you just remove the consumption of alcohol from your life, things magically start to improve without any extra effort on your part.
Why?
Because alcohol is a cell toxin and poison - physically and metaphysically.
Ironically enough, GLP-1 peptides seem to reduce interest and cravings for alcohol dramatically.
And today, I’m sharing with you my insights on a groundbreaking new study that puts this concept to the test.
If you thought GLP-1 peptides like semaglutide, tirzepatide, and retatrutide were just about shredding body fat, buckle up—because we’re about to see just how powerful these compounds can be for the brain, addiction, and specifically alcohol cravings!
GLP-1s and Alcohol
You’ve probably seen the headlines—GLP-1 agonists like semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro) have taken the health world by storm for their almost miraculous ability to accelerate fat loss, suppress appetite, and enhance metabolic health.
But what’s only recently begun to get serious scientific attention is how these same compounds might help people overcome cravings, specifically cravings for alcohol.
Here’s why that matters:
Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD)—commonly called alcoholism—is a massive public health issue affecting millions.
Traditional treatment options have limited effectiveness, leaving many individuals without good solutions.
But recent anecdotal reports started surfacing online that people using GLP-1s for weight loss suddenly noticed a profound reduction in their desire to drink alcohol.
Why would a medication for diabetes and obesity affect alcohol cravings?
It turns out that GLP-1 receptors are densely packed not only in your pancreas and gut but also in key brain regions involved in addiction, reward, and craving.
The same neural circuits that make food addictive are involved in making alcohol addictive.
And GLP-1 peptides directly modulate these reward pathways.
This raises an intriguing possibility—could GLP-1s also be potent therapeutics for addiction?
A Breakthrough Preclinical Study
Just days ago, a preprint from researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill revealed some remarkable results.
You can read it here: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.04.17.649402v1.full.pdf
I guess something finally worthwhile came out of that miserable institution.
Sorry for the jab for all you Tarheel fans, but I’m still one egg short of a dozen because of some of the hits I delivered and took back in the day on the gridiron against them.
Not to mention one of my brothers played football for NC State and another currently plays for the Pack, so needless to say…I’m not a UNC fan!
Williams Family DNA and Tarheels Don’t Go Together
One thing my family agrees on…UNC stinks! 🤣
Nonetheless, I’ll give credit where credit is due!
Their work systematically tested the effects of three GLP-1-related drugs—semaglutide, tirzepatide, and retatrutide—on the subjective “reward” cues associated with alcohol in rats.
Why is this important?
Well, the “subjective effects” of alcohol—the buzz, the euphoric feeling—are precisely what reinforce addiction and encourage repeated drinking.
If you can disrupt or dull these subjective effects, you can reduce cravings, motivation to drink, and eventually, alcohol consumption itself.
What Did They Actually Find?
The researchers trained rats to recognize the subjective feeling of alcohol intoxication using a method called operant drug discrimination.
Basically, they taught the rats to push a specific lever after feeling alcohol’s effects, distinguishing clearly from a lever pushed when sober.
Then they introduced semaglutide, tirzepatide, and retatrutide.
Here’s the scoop on each peptide:
1. Semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy):
Both acute and repeated semaglutide treatments dramatically reduced the rats’ ability to recognize alcohol’s subjective effects.
Remarkably, the rats receiving semaglutide could barely differentiate alcohol from water—a strong sign the pleasurable or reinforcing sensations were suppressed.
Interestingly, male rats were more sensitive to semaglutide’s effects than females, possibly due to hormonal differences affecting GLP-1 signaling.
Crucially, the effects persisted over a 15-day repeated-dose schedule, indicating no rapid tolerance build-up—good news for long-term use.
2. Tirzepatide (Mounjaro):
Tirzepatide is a dual GLP-1 and GIP agonist, considered even more powerful metabolically than semaglutide.
Just like semaglutide, tirzepatide significantly reduced alcohol’s subjective cues in rats.
At moderate doses, it cut the subjective reward without negatively affecting their general motor function—suggesting specific action against alcohol’s brain effects, not just sedation or impairment.
3. Retatrutide:
This is the newest kid on the block, a powerful triple agonist hitting GLP-1, GIP, and glucagon receptors simultaneously. It’s currently skyrocketing in popularity for massive fat-loss potential, but this study just put it on the map for addiction.
Retatrutide strongly attenuated alcohol’s subjective reinforcing cues at moderate doses, showing a powerful, precise effect on addiction-related brain pathways.
Notably, it didn’t suppress general motor activity or cause nonspecific sedation—highlighting that its action targets the addiction pathways specifically.
Why These Results Matter for the Future of Addiction Treatment
We know addiction—whether alcohol, food, or even harder substances—centers around reward and motivation circuitry in the brain.
Alcohol stimulates dopamine release in brain areas like the nucleus accumbens and insular cortex, fueling cravings, binge behavior, and dependency.
GLP-1 agonists blunt this dopamine-driven reward cycle.
They make alcohol (and possibly other substances) less appealing by dulling the neurological payoff that drives repeated use.
As exciting as these results are, they’re not just about rodents.
Already, online forums and social media are filled with testimonials of people on semaglutide and tirzepatide spontaneously cutting back alcohol intake—not even as a conscious choice, but simply because their craving disappears.
Now, scientific evidence supports these anecdotal stories.
By modulating the brain’s reward system, GLP-1 agonists provide a powerful tool that may revolutionize the way we approach not just weight management but substance abuse treatment in general.
Retatrutide: The Next-Level Game Changer
Among the three, retatrutide’s results are especially exciting.
Already anticipated to be a blockbuster obesity drug, retatrutide now emerges as a powerful potential therapeutic for addiction, particularly alcohol.
Retatrutide’s unique triple-targeted mechanism amplifies its ability to modulate brain reward systems while simultaneously enhancing metabolism and fat loss.
Imagine tackling addiction and obesity—two interconnected, devastating issues—with a single, powerful medication.
Retatrutide’s broad metabolic benefits, combined with its newly identified effects on addiction, suggest its future clinical potential extends far beyond weight loss alone.
The Future Is Bright (And Lean, And Sober)
This new research highlights what I’ve been advocating for years— peptides have the potential to optimize your whole body—your metabolism, your cognition, and your brain chemistry.
We’re entering an exciting new era where peptides originally developed for diabetes and obesity may completely rewrite how we approach devastating conditions like alcoholism and substance abuse.
The bottom line: GLP-1 agonists, and particularly retatrutide, could be one of the biggest breakthroughs in addiction treatment we’ve seen in decades.
Their potential goes way beyond simple fat loss—they could genuinely transform mental health and addiction recovery.
Best
Hunter Williams
And remember, Retatrutide is sold as GLP-3 on the website.
Add code HUNTERW at checkout for an additional 15% (35% total discount).
NOTE: The products in the store are already discounted 20% off retail prices, so the cart will only apply a 15% discount at checkout when you use the code.
You can still use a credit card, you just have to go through Sezzle.
Here is a video explaining exactly how to use your credit card through Sezzle.