anymore. it s very, very strange. very strange. reporter: ferguson is one of many patients taking ozempic who also lost in tr in addictive behaviors. patients most commonly report an effect on alcohol use. it may be because the drugs in a class known as glp 1s have an effect in the gut but also in the brain. it s something being studied at the national institutes of health. researchers just published a paper showing the active ingredient in ozempic reduced what they called binge-like alcohol drinking in rodents. we believe that at least one of the mechanisms is how this drug reduce alcohol drinking is by reducing the rewarded effects applicable such as doses related to a neurotransmitter in our brain which is dopamine. so this medication is likely to make alcohol less rewarding. reporter: it s not just alcohol and nicotine. patients have even told the
interest in alcohol or vaping. so scientists are researching whether this is a true effect. we dug into what might be going on. check it out. reporter: these days sherry ferguson swapped her vape pen for an ozempic pen. i thought i m not enjoying vaping. i may as well just put this into the bin at work. and i ll see how long i can go without it. and that was 54 days ago. reporter: she started using ozempic 11 weeks ago to combat weight gained during the pandemic. she says it was increasing her risk of diabetes. a smoker for much of her life, she switched to vaping last july. after starting ozempic, she says something changed. it s like someone just come along and switched a light on and you can see the room for what it is and all of these vapes and cigarettes that you had over the years, it just they don t look attractive
atlantic it had effects on the behaviors like nail biting and online shopping. there is a lot of overlap on the mechanism that regulate addictive behaviors in general. so, it s possible that medications like this by acting on the specific mechanism in the brain, they may help people with a variety of addictive behaviors. reporter: clinical trials in humans are needed to prove. that one is under way looking at the effect on alcohol and tobacco use. sherry ferguson says ozempic helped her lose 38 pounds, even better, she says, is how it s made her feel. the weight that it takes off your mind is far greater than any pounds that can come off of your body. now we reached out to the maker of ozempic and the sister drug and eli lilly which makes a similar medicine, they re not currently testing the drugs in
acting on the specific mechanism in the brain, they may help people with a variety of addictive behaviors. reporter: clinical trials in humans are needed to prove that. one set is under way at the university of north carolina. looking at semaglutide s effect on alcohol and tobacco use. sherry ferguson says ozempic helped her lose 38 pounds, even better is how it s made her feel. the weight it takes off your mind is way greater than any pounds that come off your body. i reached out to the maker of the drugs and they are not currently running clinical trials. this traditionally has not been a market that pharma has been that interested. back to you. meg terrell, thanks so much. our politics lead brings us back to philadelphia where history will be made this fall in the city s mayoral election. either the first woman or the first asian american will take
vaping, so i may as well just put this into the battery bin at work and i ll see how long i can go without it. and that was 54 days ago. reporter: ferguson started using ozempic 11 weeks ago to combat weight gained during the pandemic that she says was increasing her risk of diabetes. a smoker for much of her life, ferguson switched to vaping last july. but after starting ozempic she says something changed. it s like someone s just come along and switched a light on and you can see the room for what it is. and all of these vapes and cigarettes you ve had over the years, it just they don t look attractive anymore. it s very, very strange. very strange. reporter: ferguson is one of many patients taking drugs like ozempic for weight loss who say they ve also lost interest in some addictive behaviors. doctors told cnn that patients most commonly report an effect on alcohol use. it may be because these drugs in a class known as glp-1s have an