Have you ever thought about which drug works better for weight loss: Contrave or Saxenda? The difference is considerable.
To decide what medication is right for you, let’s compare Contrave vs Saxenda: active ingredient, how it affects your body, medication regimen, adverse reactions, and contraindications.
It’s important to keep in mind that both drugs are available by prescription; thus, only a doctor will be able to prescribe you the proper medication after the examination.
The drugs are approved for obesity treatment for people with a body mass index (BMI) higher than average. Contrave is an anorexiant, a medication that suppresses appetite, while Saxenda is exenatide and improves your metabolism.
Besides common areas of use, both medications also may cause similar adverse reactions:
- Giddiness;
- Headache;
- Trouble sleeping;
- Nausea;
- Vomiting;
- Сonstipation.
Contrave contains two active ingredients – naltrexone and bupropion; Saxenda’s active ingredient is liraglutide. The first drug is available as a tablet, while the second one is an injectable medicine. It takes a different amount for your body to eliminate the drugs: 21 hours and 13 hours correspondingly.
Can You Take Contrave and Saxenda Together?
There is no information that taking Saxenda and Contrave together leads to adverse effects, as there are no contraindications to it. Besides being used for weight loss, they are also prescribed for diabetes prevention, which is common among obese people.
However, you should remember that despite having similar effects and some adverse reactions, they may intensify your body’s responses. Both drugs may promote fast weight loss or cause unpleasant side effects like insomnia. That is why you should take them together only after consulting your doctor.
Which is Better: Contrave or Saxenda? Efficacy of Anti-Obesity Medications
If you are wondering which is better: Contrave or Saxenda, you should pay attention to individual specific features of your organism. You should also consider possible comorbidities and mental health.
Saxenda will be suitable for people with obesity and metabolic disturbance. The research study proved its effectiveness: at the first stage, patients lost 5% or more of their initial body weight; at the second stage, these figures reached 10%.
Contrave research showed that people with diabetes lost between 4% and 5% of their initial body weight. However, the drug contains antidepressant bupropion and may lead to adverse reactions in people who have a history of mental disorders or addictions.
Whatever the data is, only a doctor can prescribe you the right drug for obesity treatment after reviewing your medical history.
Summing Up
Although Saxenda and Contrave work in different ways, both of them contribute to losing weight. The main difference is how they affect obesity-related diseases (hypertension, diabetes, gastrointestinal problems, metabolic disorders). That is why the medication can be prescribed by a doctor only after a general diagnosis. Considering every specific feature of your body will let an expert find the best drug for obesity treatment and improving your health.
