Recent research has highlighted the potential of semaglutide, the active ingredient in the weight-loss medication Wegovy, to extend lifespan and improve healthspan — the period during which individuals remain healthy — based on preclinical studies and human data.

A study published in the journal Nature by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, found that semaglutide significantly increased lifespan in aged female mice while also enhancing cognitive and physical functions. The mice, treated daily with semaglutide starting at 20 months old—equivalent to advanced age for the species—lived an average of 92 days longer, representing about a 12% increase in lifespan. In addition to extended longevity, treated mice demonstrated improved memory, coordination, and endurance in behavioral tests compared with a control group receiving placebo injections.

The investigators also observed changes at the cellular level that may explain these benefits. Semaglutide appeared to modulate gene expression in the liver, reducing activity in genes linked to inflammation while increasing those involved in DNA repair and removal of damaged proteins. The drug also raised levels of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD), a molecule vital for cellular energy production and damage repair, which typically declines with age. Increased activity of sirtuin genes—often described as anti-ageing—was also noted, signaling enhanced cellular stress response and maintenance.

To address whether these effects were solely due to weight loss, the researchers conducted a parallel experiment comparing semaglutide-treated mice with mice on a calorie-restricted diet losing similar amounts of weight. The semaglutide group exhibited superior improvements in memory and blood glucose control, suggesting that the drug’s benefits may extend beyond its weight-reduction effects.

Supporting evidence from human clinical trials adds to the interest in semaglutide’s broader health effects. A large 2023 trial involving more than 17,600 overweight or obese individuals with cardiovascular disease found that weekly semaglutide injections reduced the risk of heart attack, stroke, or death from cardiovascular causes by 20% over three to four years. Subsequent analyses indicated that these benefits could not be fully attributed to weight loss alone but may involve reductions in inflammation, blood pressure, blood sugar, and lipids.

Additional studies have shown that semaglutide slows kidney damage and reduces mortality among people with type 2 diabetes and kidney disease. Furthermore, research published in Nature Communications in May demonstrated that semaglutide slowed markers of biological ageing in patients with HIV and excess abdominal fat, suggesting potential anti-ageing effects even under chronic inflammatory conditions.

While these findings are promising, experts caution that clinical evidence showing semaglutide’s ability to extend human lifespan or consistently improve healthspan remains limited. Drugs with similar hopes, such as metformin and nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN), have shown mixed results in animal studies and have yet to demonstrate clear longevity benefits in people.

Semaglutide is currently approved and widely used safely for obesity treatment, but the prospect of its off-label use as an anti-ageing therapy warrants further investigation. As the drug influences fundamental biological processes associated with ageing, scientists emphasize the importance of conducting rigorous human trials to assess its long-term impact on healthy ageing.

For now, medical experts do not recommend that healthy, normal-weight individuals begin taking semaglutide solely for lifespan extension, given the need for more data and the potential for side effects. Nonetheless, growing evidence points to semaglutide’s potential role in not just reducing weight but also promoting healthier ageing, marking a significant area of interest for future research.