As demand for weight-loss injections sold under brand names such as Ozempic and Wegovy continues to soar, a study has uncovered neurological and behavioral health benefits amid risks for pancreatitis and kidney disease.

If successful, the result could be lower Medicare Part D prices for drugs used to create a variety of conditions, such as cancer, asthma, type 2 diabetes and weight loss - Ozempic, Rybelsus and Wegovy. Austedo and Austedo XR, used to treat Huntington’s disease.

Losing excess weight would in turn improve health. For example, lower levels of sleep apnoea – when breathing stops and starts while slumbering – is thought to be down to losing weight around the tongue and throat, which can block the airways.

In all, researchers found that people taking GLP-1 medications had lower risks for 42 health outcomes, including liver failure, lung failure, cardiac arrest, aspiration pneumonia and shock.