Meet the Medications Changing the Future of Cardiovascular Health
By Emma McNail on January 26, 2026
SPONSORED BY DIGNITY HEALTH
GLP-1s may not be a total cure-all, but when used over time, they can be a significant contributor to weight loss and better cardiovascular health. The biggest hurdle for healthcare providers is the accessibility of these potentially life-changing medications. To make long-term adherence possible, insurance coverage needs to become more uniform.
The good news, says Dr. Toofaninejad, is that guidelines are shifting to recommend these medications without requiring patients to “try and fail” lifestyle changes first. “Due to strong evidence, major bodies like the American College of Cardiology now recommend GLP-1s as a first-line treatment for cardiovascular risk reduction in appropriate patients, often alongside or even before other interventions.”
As a result, she says, anti-obesity medications are likely to become a staple of preventive cardiology, transforming the management of obese patients by directly mitigating major adverse cardiovascular events. This means healthier hearts and healthier lifestyles.
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Where We Go from Here
By now most of us have heard of GLP-1 prescription medications, even if you only know them by a brand name like Wegovy or Mounjaro. GLP-1 drugs (glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists) are medications that treat type 2 diabetes and obesity by lowering blood sugar levels and managing metabolism in affected patients.
For cardiologists, GLP-1s are promising for a different reason. Treating diabetes and obesity with GLP-1s is not only having a significant impact on weight-loss and blood sugar, it’s having an extraordinary effect on cardiovascular health, too.
“There is very strong evidence that GLP-1 receptor agonists provide significant direct heart benefits, reducing heart attacks, strokes, and death, even beyond weight loss,” says Dr. Azadeh Toofaninejad, a cardiologist with Dignity Health. “As a result, more and more providers are focusing on treating obesity as a primary driver of cardiovascular disease with this effective group of medications.”
The link between obesity and other comorbidities like type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease isn’t news. Cardiologists have long known that obesity, including abdominal obesity (i.e. waist circumference), contribute directly to cardiovascular risk factors, including hypertension, hyperlipidemia, type 2 diabetes, and sleep apnea. Obesity itself can cause cardiac conditions like coronary artery disease, diastolic heart failure, arrhythmias like atrial fibrillation, and stroke.
Until GLP-1 drugs, the treatment of obesity has faced obstacles, says Dr. Toofaninejad. “Addressing obesity without causing shame or misconceptions for patients while maneuvering between medication cost and adherence can be very challenging. It may require multiple discussions involving other health professionals and providers.”
The promise of GLP-1 medications is a chance at overcoming these challenges.
GLP-1s are part of a larger class of medications known as Anti-Obesity Medications (AOMs). Previous AOMs either targeted fat absorption in the digestive tract or synthetically reduced appetite by interacting with brain chemistry. GLP-1s are unique because they work by mimicking the natural GLP-1 hormone to stimulate insulin production, thereby keeping blood sugar within a normal range, as well as providing the sensation of fullness after a meal.
According to recent research, this has direct heart health benefits. Notably, one clinical trial from 2023, and a subsequent analysis in 2025, have shown that GLP-1s provide significant cardiovascular benefits that are not fully explained by the amount of weight lost. During the trial, participants with preexisting heart disease and obesity experienced a 20 percent reduction in major adverse cardiovascular events, such as heart attack, stroke, and cardiovascular death. Incredibly, these reductions all happened within three months before significant weight loss could have occurred.
This Anti-Obesity Medication Can Help Your Heart Directly
The allure of a single medication having such an impact on heart health is tantalizing. But before you ditch your new year’s exercise routine, know that GLP-1s don’t make lifestyle factors in weight loss obsolete.
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The big takeaway is that cardiologists like Dr. Toofaninejad believe better cardiovascular health is now possible with GLP-1 medications. Broadly speaking, these drugs are ideal for patients with type 2 diabetes and established cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) or patients with high ASCVD risk.
Obesity plays a significant role in establishing this risk. Patients with obesity (defined by a body mass index greater than 30) are at greater ASCVD risk, as are those with existing heart failure—especially with recent hospitalizations. Obesity-related conditions like high blood pressure and high cholesterol also increase a patient’s risk, even if those patients do not have diabetes. All these conditions make a patient a candidate for GLP-1 medications.
Dr. Toofaninejad cautions that there are some patients for whom GLP-1s are not recommended. “Despite GLP-1s’ significant cardiovascular benefit, they are contraindicated in a patient with:
Are GLP-1s Right for Me?
A personal or family history of medullary thyroid cancer
Family history of Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome type 2A
Known severe hypersensitivity to the drug
Severe gastrointestinal issues like gastroparesis or pancreatitis
Furthermore, not all GLP-1 drugs have the same heart benefit. “While many GLP-1s are cardioprotective, not all have the same level of evidence or official FDA indications for reducing major adverse cardiovascular events.”
With this in mind, patients with obesity should discuss how best to approach better heart health with their primary care physician.
GLP-1s, Lifestyle and the Future of AOMs
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https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK551568/
https://diet.mayoclinic.org/us/blog/2023/considering-glp-1-medications-what-they-are-and-why-lifestyle-change-is-key-to-sustained-weight-loss/
https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2307563
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There are several theories why these medications work independently of weight loss, Dr. Toofaninejad says. “Researchers believe these drugs directly impact the cardiovascular system by reducing inflammation, improving vascular function and blood pressure, stabilizing atherosclerotic plaques (that can clog arteries) and preventing heart attack, improving heart failure symptoms and overall improving cardiac energy metabolism.”
She notes that these medications also improved metabolic health through better blood sugar control while lowering LDL (bad) cholesterol and triglycerides, reducing systemic inflammation and ultimately, decreasing hospitalization and death in heart failure patients. Taken together, this makes the rise of GLP-1s one of the most significant heart health developments in recent memory.
Researchers believe these drugs directly impact the cardiovascular system by reducing inflammation, improving vascular function and blood pressure, stabilizing atherosclerotic plaques (that can clog arteries) and preventing heart attack, improving heart failure symptoms and overall improving cardiac energy metabolism.”
- Dr. Azadeh Toofaninejad, a cardiologist at Dignity Health
“There is a misconception that GLP-1s are a magic bullet for fixing heart disease,” Dr. Toofaninejad explains. “The reality is that these drugs are not a substitute for essential lifestyle changes or other heart-related medications like statins or blood pressure medications. They are most effective as part of a comprehensive, long-term cardiovascular risk management plan that includes diet and exercise.”
Think of GLP-1s and lifestyle as a dynamic weight-loss partnership. Combining GLP-1s with healthy habits—a healthy diet, regular exercise, consistent restful sleep—offers far greater risk reduction than either approach alone.
The reality is that these drugs are not a substitute for essential lifestyle changes or other heart-related medications like statins or blood pressure medications. They are most effective as part of a comprehensive, long-term cardiovascular risk management plan that includes diet and exercise.”
- Dr. Azadeh Toofaninejad, a cardiologist at Dignity Health
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