Healthcare Insights
GLP-1 Experience Study - Moments that Matter
GLP-1s are creating a much broader support challenge than weight management alone. As people move through their treatment journey, they are continually interpreting changes in their appetite, food noise, weight, side effects, confidence and wider health, while considering what those changes mean for what they do next.
Our GLP-1 Experience Study shows why support must evolve with the individual, from redefining progress to navigating maintenance, stopping and restarting.
The study was based on primary market research with 300 current and former GLP-1 users across the UK, US and Germany and analyses of 100K+ public social posts and discussions, alongside targeted search behaviour, giving us:
Three complementary perspectives
- What people tell us directly
- What they spontaneously share online
- What they actively go looking for when they have a question or need
We structured the research around:
Five decision moments
We looked at how these moments vary according to:
Our findings point to:
Five support opportunities
How healthcare companies can provide more anticipatory and adaptive support
Start with the whole person
Market, age, gender, wider health, motivations and personal goals all provide important context to understand starting needs.
For example, 80% of Gen Z expect to continue until reaching their goal weight, compared with 46% of Gen X. Yet only 24% of Gen Z consult an HCP first, versus 63% of Gen X. Market matters too: US GLP-1 users are more clinically anchored, while in Germany people are more likely to rely initially on their own judgement.
Respond to changing signals
Once someone starts treatment, how they respond can provide a valuable basis for tailoring support.
Hyper responders
Who experience rapid or substantial improvements, may need help sustaining their progress.
Moderate responders
Who see steady but less pronounced improvements, may benefit from support to embed the routines that keep them on track.
Plateaued responders
Whose initial progress has slowed or stopped, may need guidance on adapting their approach.
Limited responders
Who experience little or no meaningful improvement, may need help reassessing whether the treatment is right for them.
Support must continue to evolve as a person's response, confidence and personal circumstances change.
Broaden the meaning of progress
Weight remains an important and highly visible measure of success, but it is not the only way people judge whether treatment is working. Changes in appetite and food noise, greater mobility, better sleep, improved confidence and wider health can all shape someone's experience of progress.
Guide the next decision
Identify change early
Medtech and connected platforms have an important role in identifying change early. A shift in a signal could indicate that someone is plateauing, struggling or beginning to disengage. That signal could trigger relevant support before uncertainty develops into a decision.
Close the gaps between clinical touchpoints
The grey areas create an important role for pharma. Companies can make the journey easier to navigate while remaining very clear about which decisions require guidance from a healthcare professional.
Bring maintenance earlier in the conversation
Reaching goal weight does not resolve the treatment decision. It creates a new one.
People are not simply choosing between staying on treatment forever and stopping completely. They are considering lower doses, wider intervals, tapering and other ways to preserve control with less treatment. Cost, access, concerns about long-term use and the desire to manage without medication also influence their thinking.
Maintenance needs to become part of the conversation well before someone reaches their goal. And people need realistic expectations about what it may involve.
Make everyday support easier
GLP-1 treatment also involves a considerable amount of everyday work.
People may be managing nutrition, side effects, sleep, activity and new routines, while adapting to changes in appetite, social situations, identity and their relationship with food.
This creates a significant role for consumer health companies. Practical support could make these everyday aspects of treatment easier and help people sustain routines.
A connected support ecosystem
Creating a more connected support ecosystem
No single company sees or supports the whole journey.
- Pharma can help close guidance gaps and enable better clinical conversations. Medtech and connected platforms can help identify meaningful changes earlier.
- Consumer health companies can make the everyday work of treatment more manageable.
- Healthcare professionals remain central to clinical decisions and personalised care.
The opportunity is to connect these different roles around the individual, creating support that is both anticipatory and adaptive.
To request the webinar presentation or arrange a tailored presentation exploring the findings and audience groups most relevant to your organisation, please get in touch with the buzzback healthcare team.
Watch the Webinar: GLP-1 Experience Study – Moments that Matter
