The news: 26.5% of US adults with type 2 diabetes used a GLP-1 injectable drug last year, per CDC data published Thursday.

Digging into the data: The use of GLP-1s was split about evenly between men and women, but middle-aged people and Hispanic patients were more likely to take them.

• 27.2% of women and 25.9% of men with type 2 diabetes took the meds in 2024.
• Among age groups, 33.3% of patients ages 50 to 64 and 29.7% of those ages 35 to 49 used a GLP-1 compared with 25.3% of adults 18 to 34 and 20.8% of patients 65 and older.
• Almost one-third (30.1%) of Hispanic patients used GLP-1 injectables compared with 26.2% white, 26.5% Black, and 12.1% Asian patients.

Why it matters: GLP-1 growth is often attributed to weight loss demand, but type 2 diabetes prescribing still dominates.

• Leading GLP-1 drugmaker Novo Nordisk—which markets injectables Ozempic and Victoza for diabetes and Wegovy and Saxenda for weight loss—rang up around $18 billion in diabetes injectable sales and more than $8 billion in weight management in 2024.
• Eli Lilly—which markets injectables Mounjaro for diabetes and Zepbound for weight loss—tallied $11.5 billion in diabetes sales and $4.9 billion for weight management.
• An estimated 5% to 10% of Americans use GLP-1 drugs for obesity. However, almost 90% of US adults with diabetes are classified as overweight or obese, per the American Diabetes Association.

Our take: Diabetes doesn’t capture headlines like weight loss does, but it’s the condition driving sales for Novo and Lilly. Marketers should develop campaigns that connect the two, highlighting diabetes awareness and brand campaigns as well as the preventive health benefits GLP-1s offer.

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