Until law, GLP-1 drugs were used to treat diabetes, obesity and even the recent evidences suggest that it could as well be used to treat chronic kidney problems. There is yet another research, published in JAMA Psychiatry on February 25, titled Once-Weekly Semaglutide in Adults With Alcohol Use Disorder: A Randomized Clinical Trial that explores if GLP-1 receptor agonist semaglutide reduce alcohol consumption and cravings in adults with alcohol use disorder.

What Do Studies Say?

The research was conducted over a period of 9 weeks, where in the randomized clinical trial, the participants who were administered semaglutide, it led to reductions in some but not all measures of weekly consumptions. It also reduced weekly alcohol and craving related to placebo, and also led to a greater relative reduction in cigarettes per day.

The research also found that weekly injections of semaglutide, which is the active ingredient in weight loss drugs like Wegovy also helped reduce cravings in people with alcohol use disorder.

The lead author Christian Hendershot said that these findings will help in developing new approaches to treat alcoholism. "Two drugs currently approved to reduce alcohol consumption aren't widely used. The popularity of Ozempic and other GLP-1 receptor agonists increases the chances of broad adoption of these treatments for alcohol use disorder," said Hendershot in news release by the University of Southern California's Institute for Addiction Research, where he is the director.

The study is government-funded research and was funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, part of the National Institutes of Health.

How Was The Study Conducted?

The study was small, and took in account for only 48 adults over two months, thus experts say that it is not yet clear how safe these drugs are for people who do not need to lose weight. Though the results do add up with the evidence form animal studies on drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy on how it helps manage cravings, not just for food, but also for tobacco and alcohol. Scientists are also studying these drugs on smokers, people with opioid addiction and cocaine users.

Co-author Dr Klara Klein of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who treats people with obesity and diabetes said, "This is such promising data. And we need more of it. We frequently will hear that once people start these medications that their desire to drink is very reduced, if not completely abolished."

Why Does It Work So Well Against Alcoholism?

The GLP-1 receptor agonists work by mimicking hormones GLP-1 in the gut and brain that regulates appetite and feelings of fullness. This response is what helps one lose weight, and what helps one curb their craving for alcohol. These drugs that mimic the functioning of your brain, which is responsible to tell your body when to stop consuming, are the same hormones that tell your body about other kinds of consumptions, including alcohol. Therefore by consuming the weight loss drugs one can treat alcohol use disorder.

However, the researchers have pointed out on the limited data on the research and have suggested to continue using the three approved drugs by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, namely, Disulfiram, Naltrexone, and Acamprosate to treat alcohol use disorder until large studies confirm these findings.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently released a report that stated drug-resistant infections are causing an estimated 50,800 deaths and 9.7 million infections annually in the United States.

Common bacterial infections are usually treated with antibiotics but some germs develop the ability to resist the medicines designed to fight them. This is a grave threat to public health.

The agency has classified four pathogens as urgent threats, warning that resistance to antibiotics and antifungal medicines is making some infections difficult to treat.

The CDC’s 2026 Antimicrobial Resistance Threats Report, released on October 27, is based on data from 2023. It examines 19 drug-resistant bacterial and fungal threats, categorising them as urgent, serious or concerning based on factors including their effects, spread, preventability and the availability of effective treatments.

“Antimicrobial resistance threatens modern medicine and puts millions of Americans at risk every year,” CDC Director Dr Erica Schwartz said in a statement.

Drug-Resistant Pathogens That Pose The Greatest Risks

The federal health agency has identified the following four pathogens as requiring urgent and aggressive action.

Candida auris

Candida auris, a fungus that can cause severe infections, includes potentially fatal bloodstream infections, particularly in people who are already seriously ill. It is a major concern in hospitals and nursing homes because it can be transmitted through contaminated surfaces and medical equipment like catheters, and some strains resist multiple antifungal medicines.

The CDC recorded 4,523 cases in the United States in 2023. Cases increased by more than 50% between 2022 and 2023, according to the report.

People can carry the fungus on their skin without developing symptoms, allowing it to spread in healthcare environments.

Drug-resistant gonorrhoea

Gonorrhoea is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium Neisseria gonorrhoeae. The infection can be treated with antibiotics, but the bacterium has developed resistance to several medicines.

The CDC estimates that approximately 787,000 drug-resistant gonorrhoea infections occurred in the US in 2023. Untreated gonorrhoea can cause pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility and other reproductive complications.

The growing resistance leaves healthcare providers with fewer reliable treatment options, making surveillance and the development of new antibiotics important.

Also read: 'It’s The Best-Studied Vaccine In Human History': Former CDC Adviser Busts Common Myths About COVID Vaccines

Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE)

CRE are a group of bacteria, including some strains of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella, that resist carbapenems, a powerful class of antibiotics often reserved for difficult-to-treat infections.

These bacteria can cause infections in the bloodstream, lungs and urinary tract. They pose a particular risk to hospital patients, especially those with weakened immune systems, catheters or ventilators.

In 2023, CRE caused an estimated 14,878 infections among hospitalised patients and 1,252 deaths in the US. Drug resistance can leave doctors with few effective treatment options.

Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter

Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter is another group of bacteria that can cause serious infections, particularly among critically ill patients in healthcare settings. These include pneumonia, bloodstream infections and infections associated with wounds.

Resistance to carbapenems makes these infections difficult to treat and can increase the risk of complications and death.

Antimicrobial Resistance Is A Growing Concern

The CDC is also monitoring six more kinds of germs. One is drug-resistant ringworm, a fungal skin infection that is becoming harder to treat with standard fungal medications. The health body says misusing over-the-counter antifungal creams and using steroid-antifungal cream combinations may contribute to resistance.

Antimicrobial resistance occurs when bacteria, fungi and other pathogens develop the ability to survive medicines designed to kill them or stop their growth. This can happen through genetic changes and the spread of resistance mechanisms between microbes. The unnecessary or inappropriate use of antimicrobial medicines can accelerate the process.

The consequences extend beyond infections themselves. Drug resistance can prolong hospital stays, increase healthcare costs and make procedures like surgery, cancer treatment and organ transplantation riskier because these depend on effective medicines to treat infections.

Infections commonly associated with healthcare settings accounted for more than 42,000 deaths and nearly $12 billion in US healthcare costs in 2023, according to the report.

The CDC also reported progress in some areas. Clostridioides difficile, a bacterium associated with severe diarrhoea and often linked to antibiotic use, was downgraded from an urgent to a serious threat. The agency attributed the change partly to improvements in infection prevention and antibiotic stewardship.

However, the CDC cautioned that its methods and data sources changed substantially since its previous report. The latest estimates therefore cannot be directly compared with older figures to determine how much the overall burden has increased.

How To Prevent Antibiotic Resistance?

The CDC recommends using antibiotics only when prescribed by a healthcare professional and taking them exactly as directed. Antibiotics do not treat viral infections like the common cold or flu.

Hand hygiene, vaccinations, infection-control measures in healthcare environments including appropriate prescribing practices can also help limit the spread of resistant pathogens.

Joshua, 27, was diagnosed with autism at two and a half. He was nonverbal and experienced severe anxiety, while getting a full night's sleep remained a struggle for years.

An experimental drug called L1-79, touted as ‘Ozempic Of Autism' has reportedly brought significant improvements in his condition, according to the Daily Mail, raising interest in its potential to address core features of autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

How Did The Drug L1-79 Help Joshua?

Developed by Yamo Pharmaceuticals, L1-79 is an oral drug designed to target core symptoms of autism.

Joshua’s psychiatrist of eight years, Dr. Eric Bartky, an autism specialist involved in the US FDA trial of L1-79, asked his parents Linda and Jim Turteltaub to consider trying the drug.

The decision involved uncertainty. Taking part in the trial required Joshua to stop all his other medications, and the potential side effects of the new treatment were not fully known. Despite these concerns, his parents decided in 2015 to give it a try.

“We just wanted something to address the issues, to try and get him better so that he can at least communicate with us,” Linda said.

According to the report, Joshua showed his first notable improvement within a week of beginning treatment.

Also read: Autism Care Begins Early: Why the First 1,000 Days Matter Most, Says AIIMS Expert

How Does L1-79 Work?

Yamo Pharmaceuticals describes L1-79 as a selective inhibitor of tyrosine hydroxylase, an enzyme involved in the production of dopamine and norepinephrine.

The drug is intended to lower the production of these chemical messengers in an effort to regulate pathways that may contribute to sensory overload and social withdrawal in people with autism.

Dr. Bartky said the drug differs from existing approaches because it aims to address core features of autism, including social interaction and communication.

“What makes L1-79 different is that L1-79 treats the core symptoms of autism, things like socialization and communications, things that go along with that like eye contact, reciprocal conversation, nonverbal communication, such as reading social nuance. These are things that are extremely important for a person's emotional growth and functioning in society.”

The response to treatment has varied among Dr. Bartky's patients, reflecting the wide range of symptoms associated with ASD.

What Is The Status Of L1-79 Clinical Trials?

Read More: Stem Cell Therapy For Autism: What India’s New Advisory Means For Patients

There is currently no single medication that treats all the core features of autism spectrum disorder. Several medications are prescribed to manage particular behavioral patterns and associated conditions.

L1-79 is being investigated as a potential treatment that could address autism's underlying neurological features. The Daily Mail reported that 116 patients had participated in L1-79's three clinical trials.

The drug has received Fast Track designation from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This program is intended to facilitate the development and review of treatments for serious conditions that address unmet medical needs.

Although the designation does not shorten the clinical trial process, it can make a drug eligible for priority review. Under this pathway, the FDA aims to complete its review within six months, compared with the standard 10-month timeline.

Are There Any Safety Concerns?

Dr. Bartky also pointed to what he described as L1-79's safety profile.

Some existing medications can cause serious side effects, including dyskinesia, which involves involuntary movements that can sometimes be permanent; metabolic syndrome, a group of conditions associated with increased risks of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes; and hypertension. Dr. Bartky said L1-79 had “not had one single serious side effect.”

Are you among those who ditch plastic straws in favor of paper ones? A new South Korean study suggests that switching to paper may not be as environmentally beneficial as it seems.

Commissioned by South Korea's Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment, the study found that paper straws had 6.33 times the carcinogenic impact of conventional plastic straws. They also had 2.04 times the impact on environmental acidification, which can make soil and water more acidic and potentially harm plants, animals and ecosystems.

What Did The Study Find?

Researchers compared the environmental impacts of conventional plastic straws made from polypropylene (PP), paper straws, biodegradable plastic straws and non-biodegradable bio-based polyethylene (bio-PE) straws.

The assessment, conducted from May last year to April this year, examined four types of straws across 16 environmental impact categories.

Traditional plastic straws had a lower environmental footprint in 10 of the 16 categories, including climate change, air pollution and human toxicity. Paper straws performed worse in categories including carcinogenic impact and environmental acidification.

Meanwhile, bio-PE straws had the highest environmental impact in 10 categories, including ozone depletion, environmental acidification and smog formation.

The findings highlight how the environmental footprint of everyday products can vary depending on the materials used to make them and how they are manufactured and disposed of.

Also read: Can Panty Liners Pose A Cancer Risk? What Science Says

How Was The Environmental Impact Assessed?

Researchers assessed each type of straw across its entire life cycle, from raw material production and manufacturing to disposal.

The analysis assumed that nearly 74% of discarded straws would be incinerated, while the remaining 26% would end up in landfills, The Korean Herald reported.

The results showed that conventional plastic straws performed better than the alternatives in several environmental categories. However, this does not mean they are the most environmentally friendly option in every respect.

Why Are Paper Straws Difficult To Recycle?

Despite being promoted as recyclable alternatives to plastic, paper straws can be difficult to recycle in practice.

Their small size makes them harder for recycling facilities to separate, while coatings and adhesives used in their manufacture can complicate the recycling process.

Paper straws have become commonplace in bars and fast-food outlets as the hospitality industry has moved away from plastic amid consumer concerns about plastic pollution. Although paper generally breaks down more readily than conventional plastic, its overall environmental impact depends on several factors, including production and disposal.

Paper Straws May Contain More 'Forever Chemicals'

Read More: 485 'Inactive' Chemicals In US Pesticide Products Linked To Breast Cancer

A previous study by researchers at the University of Antwerp in Belgium found that paper straws contained per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly known as forever chemicals, more frequently than plastic straws.

These chemicals can persist in the environment for decades, contaminate water supplies and are associated with several health concerns. However, detecting PFAS in a product does not, by itself, establish the level of exposure or the risk to human health from using it.

Trump Administration Moves To Phase Out Paper Straws

In March 2025, the Trump administration launched an effort to phase out paper straws in federal government operations, releasing a White House report titled National Strategy to End the Use of Paper Straws.

The report argued that paper straws were more expensive, less effective and potentially more harmful than conventional plastic alternatives.

President Donald Trump described paper straws as a “pulpy, soggy mess” and raised concerns about the presence of PFAS, chemicals associated with cancer and other health problems, The Daily Mail reported.