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Prescription medication — not a dietary supplement
Cagrilintideis a prescription (or investigational) drug, not a supplement. It is included here for reference because people research and discuss it (often used off-label) — not as a recommendation. Take it only under a qualified clinician's supervision and only as prescribed; do not source it from grey-market vendors, where identity, purity, and dosing are unverified. The evidence below reflects its clinical trials.
What the evidence says
Most Cagrilintide studies are mechanism or observational rather than RCTs that measure a clinical effect — keep findings provisional.
Most evidence is from medium-quality meta-analyses and randomised trials published 2021–2025 with a typical study size of 706 participants.
Based on 10 studies · 2 meta-analyses · 6 RCTs · 5,621 total participants
Confidence
HighBy outcome
Cagrilintide has an evidence score of 5/10 — moderate evidence based on 10 indexed studies, including 2 meta-analyses. An investigational once-weekly injectable long-acting amylin analogue developed for weight management. Honest framing: in a 26-week phase-2 dose-finding trial it produced ~6-11% mean weight loss as monotherapy (top dose modestly beating liraglutide 3 mg), and combined with semaglutide ("CagriSema") it drove larger weight loss in early trials. BUT cagrilintide is NOT APPROVED as a standalone drug — the evidence is phase-1/phase-2 only, with no phase-3 efficacy or hard-outcome data for monotherapy. It is a prescription-pathway drug, not a dietary supplement, and grey-market versions are especially risky. Note the CagriSema combination is a separate product on its own development track. Representative study: PMID 38286487.
The commonly studied dose of Cagrilintide is Investigational — NO approved monotherapy dose. Phase-2 trials used once-weekly subcutaneous injection with stepwise escalation up to 4.5 mg maintenance. There is no approved standalone regimen; do not self-dose an unapproved drug.. Individual needs vary — start at the lower end of the range and adjust based on how you respond.
Semaglutide
Mostly mechanism / observationalAn FDA-approved GLP-1 receptor agonist (Ozempic/Rybelsus for type 2 diabetes, Wegovy for chronic weight management) with genuinely strong, large-RCT evidence for glycemic control and substantial weight loss, plus a cardiovascular-outcomes benefit. Honest appraisal: this is a real prescription medicine with real efficacy AND real risks — a boxed warning for thyroid C-cell tumors, pancreatitis and gallbladder risk, very common GI side effects, and growing concern about grey-market/compounded versions. It is included here for reference only, not as a supplement and not auto-recommended.
Last reviewed June 2026 · evidence from 10 studies · how we score
This information is for educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before starting, stopping, or changing any supplement or medication.
Cagrilintide (AM833)
An investigational once-weekly injectable long-acting amylin analogue developed for weight management. Honest framing: in a 26-week phase-2 dose-finding trial it produced ~6-11% mean weight loss as monotherapy (top dose modestly beating liraglutide 3 mg), and combined with semaglutide ("CagriSema") it drove larger weight loss in early trials. BUT cagrilintide is NOT APPROVED as a standalone drug — the evidence is phase-1/phase-2 only, with no phase-3 efficacy or hard-outcome data for monotherapy. It is a prescription-pathway drug, not a dietary supplement, and grey-market versions are especially risky. Note the CagriSema combination is a separate product on its own development track.
An investigational drug with promising phase-2 monotherapy weight-loss RCTs and supportive meta-analyses, but no dedicated phase-3 standalone trial and no long-term or hard-outcome data, keeping confidence moderate.
Cagrilintide (developmental code AM833) is a synthetic, lipidated long-acting analogue of amylin — the pancreatic hormone co-secreted with insulin from beta cells that signals satiety, slows gastric emptying, and reduces food intake.
Native amylin aggregates rapidly into amyloid fibrils and has a very short half-life (the marketed analogue pramlintide needs three injections daily), so cagrilintide was engineered for stability and protraction, giving a half-life of roughly 7-8 days suitable for once-weekly subcutaneous dosing.
It acts as an agonist at amylin and calcitonin receptors, engaging both homeostatic and hedonic appetite circuits in the brain. The human evidence is promising but still early.
The headline monotherapy result is a 26-week, multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo- and active-controlled phase-2 dose-finding trial (Lancet 2021, n=706 on cagrilintide) in people with overweight/obesity without diabetes: mean weight loss ranged ~6.0-10.8% across the 0.3-4.5 mg doses versus 3.0% on placebo, and the 4.5 mg dose modestly outperformed liraglutide 3.0 mg (10.8% vs 9.0%).
A phase-1b trial (Lancet 2021) co-administered ascending cagrilintide doses with semaglutide 2.4 mg and reported ~15-17% weight loss at 20 weeks with an acceptable safety profile — the proof of concept for the CagriSema combination.
A phase-2 trial in type 2 diabetes (Lancet 2023) compared CagriSema, semaglutide, and cagrilintide alone over 32 weeks; CagriSema gave the largest weight loss (~15.6%), while cagrilintide alone gave ~8.1%.
Meta-analyses pool these early trials and consistently find CagriSema beats semaglutide on weight loss, with cagrilintide monotherapy roughly comparable to semaglutide/liraglutide but with less vomiting.
The CagriSema combination has since advanced to large phase-3 trials (REDEFINE program, NEJM 2025): REDEFINE-1 (n=3,417, no diabetes) reported ~20.4% weight loss at 68 weeks vs 3.0% on placebo and included a small cagrilintide-monotherapy arm, and REDEFINE-2 (n=1,206, type 2 diabetes) reported ~13.7% vs 3.4%.
The honest caveats remain substantial.
All cagrilintide-MONOTHERAPY efficacy data are phase-1/phase-2 (the phase-3 REDEFINE arms test the combination, with only small embedded monotherapy arms): there is NO dedicated phase-3 efficacy trial of cagrilintide as a standalone drug and no cardiovascular, renal, or mortality outcome data for it alone.
Cagrilintide is INVESTIGATIONAL and approved nowhere as a monotherapy — it is not a dietary supplement and not an approved medicine.
Adverse effects are class-typical amylin/GLP-1-style gastrointestinal events (nausea, constipation, diarrhoea) plus injection-site reactions; a dedicated thorough-QT study found no clinically relevant QTc prolongation.
The CagriSema combination is being developed separately and is on its own (largely phase-3) track, so its results should not be read as evidence for cagrilintide monotherapy.
Crucially, despite no standalone approval, unregulated 'cagrilintide' is being sold grey-market online; using an unapproved investigational peptide with no clinical oversight, no identity/purity guarantee, and no safety monitoring is especially dangerous.
Because it is a prescription-pathway investigational drug rather than a supplement to recommend, it is sandboxed out of goal-based and stack recommendations here.
Cagrilintide is a long-acting analogue of the pancreatic hormone amylin, engineered for stability against amyloid aggregation and a ~7-8 day half-life. It agonises amylin and calcitonin receptors, the same axis exploited by the short-acting analogue pramlintide — but once-weekly rather than thrice-daily.
Amylin signalling induces satiety via both homeostatic and hedonic appetite circuits in the brain, slows gastric emptying, and reduces food intake. This is the mechanistic basis for cagrilintide's weight-loss effect and is complementary to (not the same as) the GLP-1 pathway hit by semaglutide.
Because amylin and GLP-1 reduce appetite through separate-but-related mechanisms, combining cagrilintide with semaglutide (the CagriSema combination) appears to have an additive effect on appetite and weight loss in early trials. This rationale underpins a separate combination-product development program, distinct from cagrilintide monotherapy.
How Cagrilintide works — from molecular targets to health outcomes. Click an edge to see supporting research.This visualization is in beta — pathways are being refined and expanded.
Tap node to isolate • Pinch to zoom • Tap edge for research
Investigational — NO approved monotherapy dose. Phase-2 trials used once-weekly subcutaneous injection with stepwise escalation up to 4.5 mg maintenance. There is no approved standalone regimen; do not self-dose an unapproved drug.
Can be taken without food
| Form | Type |
|---|---|
| 💊Once-weekly subcutaneous injection (investigational only) | Recommended |
Subcutaneous once-weekly is the only studied route. No approved standalone formulation exists; unregulated grey-market 'cagrilintide' vials are not the clinical-trial product and carry no identity, purity or sterility guarantee.
Minimum: 20 weeks
Optimal: 26 weeks
Cycling: Not required
Note: Once-weekly subcutaneous injection with gradual dose escalation in trials. Not a daily supplement and not an approved standalone product — there is no consumer dosing schedule.
Dose-response data unavailable. The current published research for Cagrilintide does not provide sufficient dose-specific outcome data to generate reliable dose-response curves.
Refer to the Dosage & Timing section above for recommended dose ranges based on available evidence.
In a 26-week phase-2 dose-finding trial, cagrilintide produced ~6.0-10.8% mean weight loss across doses vs 3.0% placebo, with the 4.5 mg dose modestly beating liraglutide 3 mg. Promising, but phase-2 only — no phase-3 monotherapy confirmation or durability data.
Combined with semaglutide 2.4 mg (CagriSema), early trials reported ~15-17% weight loss, and the phase-3 REDEFINE program showed ~20.4% (no diabetes) and ~13.7% (type 2 diabetes) at 68 weeks vs placebo. Note: CagriSema is a separate combination product on its own development track, not evidence for cagrilintide monotherapy.
In the type 2 diabetes phase-2 trial, cagrilintide alone lowered HbA1c ~0.9 percentage points over 32 weeks (less than semaglutide or CagriSema). Glycemic parameters improved across groups in the combination phase-1b trial.
Nausea, constipation and diarrhoea were the most common adverse events (GI events 41-63% across cagrilintide doses vs 32% placebo in the monotherapy trial), mostly mild-to-moderate. Notably, vomiting was lower with cagrilintide than with semaglutide/liraglutide in pooled analyses.
Administration-site reactions were among the most frequent adverse events for the once-weekly subcutaneous self-injection in the monotherapy trial.
Cagrilintide is not approved anywhere as a standalone drug; monotherapy evidence is phase-1/phase-2 only with no hard-outcome data. The CagriSema combination is a separate product. Grey-market 'cagrilintide' sold online is unregulated and especially risky.
There is no approved standalone use; obtaining or using grey-market 'cagrilintide' means taking an unapproved investigational drug with no clinical oversight, dosing standard, or product-quality guarantee. Strongly discouraged.
Hypoglycemia risk if combined with glucose-lowering agents; only relevant under trial-level medical supervision with secretagogue adjustment.
Amylin/incretin-class caution applies; unsupervised use is particularly unwise without long-term safety data.
Contraindicated — not studied; weight-loss pharmacotherapy is avoided in pregnancy.
Amylin-class agonism slows gastric emptying, which can reduce the rate/extent of absorption of co-administered oral drugs — relevant for time-critical or narrow-therapeutic-index oral medicines.
Combining a glucose-lowering agent with insulin or sulfonylureas can increase hypoglycemia risk; dose adjustment of the secretagogue may be required in supervised use.
Tip: Dose-related; mitigated by a lower starting dose and slow escalation. Most cases mild-to-moderate. Notably lower vomiting than with semaglutide/liraglutide in pooled data.
Tip: Class-typical GI effects; generally transient and dose-related.
Tip: Rotate injection sites; usually mild and self-limiting.
Tip: Rapid weight loss is associated with gallbladder events; report severe abdominal pain. Long-term incidence not characterised without phase-3 data.
Tip: Marked appetite suppression; as with weight-loss pharmacotherapy generally, some of the weight lost may be lean mass — adequate protein and resistance exercise are advised in supervised settings.
Timing is flexible for Cagrilintide — consistent daily use matters more than the time of day. Trials dosed once weekly subcutaneously with gradual dose escalation over ~6 weeks to limit gastrointestinal effects; the ~7-8 day half-life supports once-weekly administration.
Cagrilintide should be used with caution — talk to a healthcare provider before taking it. The most commonly reported side effects are nausea, constipation / diarrhoea, injection-site reactions. Use caution if any of these apply to you: Not a dietary supplement and not an approved standalone drug — investigational; do not self-source grey-market vials; History of pancreatitis (amylin/incretin-class caution); Pregnancy and breastfeeding.
Tirzepatide
Mostly mechanism / observationalAn FDA-approved prescription medication (Mounjaro for type 2 diabetes, Zepbound for obesity and obstructive sleep apnea), not a dietary supplement. Honest appraisal: in head-to-head phase-3 trials it is the most effective approved weight-loss drug to date — up to ~21% body-weight loss over 72 weeks and superior to semaglutide — but it is a real medicine with real risks: a boxed warning for thyroid C-cell tumors, common GI side effects, and pancreatitis/gallbladder signals. Do not source or use it outside a prescription.
Cagrilintide is being studied combined with semaglutide (CagriSema) under trial supervision, where GI adverse events are additive. Combining amylin and GLP-1 agonists outside a supervised setting compounds gastrointestinal toxicity and is not appropriate for self-administration.