Does retatrutide work?
In trials, yes for weight: adults with obesity lost a mean of 25.0% of body weight on the 12 mg dose, versus 3.9% on placebo.
Short answer
In trials, yes for weight: adults with obesity lost a mean of 25.0% of body weight on the 12 mg dose, versus 3.9% on placebo.[1]
The TRIUMPH-1 trial was funded by the drug's developer, Eli Lilly.[1]
Beyond weight
In the TRIUMPH-1 knee osteoarthritis subgroup, pain scores changed by -3.2 to -3.6 points across the retatrutide groups against -1.9 on placebo (hybrid estimand).[1]
In adults with type 2 diabetes managed by diet and exercise alone, HbA1c fell 1.94 percentage points on 12 mg against 0.81 on placebo.[2]
The earlier 48-week phase 2 obesity trial found a 24.2% weight change on 12 mg against 2.1% on placebo.[3]
Limits
A network meta-analysis found retatrutide had the highest adverse-event risk among the weight-loss drugs it compared.[4]
Common questions
How does retatrutide work?
Retatrutide acts on three receptors at once: GIP, GLP-1 and glucagon.[1]
More questions on Retatrutide
More on Retatrutide
Sources
- 1Retatrutide, a Triple Hormone Receptor Agonist, for Treatment of Obesity.The New England journal of medicine · 2026PMID 42814954Accessed 2 Oct 2026
- 2Efficacy and safety of retatrutide, a GIP, GLP-1, and glucagon receptor agonist, in people with type 2 diabetes and inadequate glycaemic control with diet and exercise (TRANSCEND-T2D-1): a double-blind, randomised, phase 3 trial.Lancet (London, England) · 2026PMID 42250575Accessed 2 Oct 2026
- 3Triple-Hormone-Receptor Agonist Retatrutide for Obesity - A Phase 2 Trial.The New England journal of medicine · 2023PMID 37366315Accessed 2 Oct 2026
- 4Efficacy and Safety of GLP-1 Receptor Agonists, Dual Agonists, and Retatrutide for Weight Loss in Adults With Overweight or Obesity: A Bayesian NMA.Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.) · 2025PMID 40685589Accessed 2 Oct 2026
Found an error? Report a correction.