Weight loss jabs can help people beat drug and smoking addictions.
Weight loss jabs can help people with addictions
A study has found that liraglutide - which has been prescribed on the NHS to tackle obesity - is as effective as a fortnight in rehab for people hooked on painkillers.
The injections can prevent drug cravings in the same way that they thwart the desire to eat.
Tests on 20 people recovering from opioid addictions found patients who took the jabs once a day rated cravings 40 per cent lower than those in rehab, with some patients experiencing no cravings whatsoever.
Professor Sue Grigson, from Penn State University in the US, said: "We thought if the Ozempic-type drugs help people to feel less hungry, they could help people feel less motivated to take drugs.
"People in the trial had significantly less craving and they were more likely to experience zero cravings."