Nearly 32% of Zepbound users lost at least a quarter of their body weight, compared with about 16% of Wegovy users. In both groups, weight loss was about 6% lower in men than in women, AP said. Both groups saw health improvements in blood pressure, blood sugar and blood fat levels, too.

The obesity drug helped people trim about two inches more off their waists than Wegovy in the first head-to-head study of the rival medicines.

A study of two blockbuster weight-loss drugs showed that users of Eli Lilly’s Zepbound lost just over 2 inches more off their waist compared with Novo Nordisk’s rival Wegovy. At 72 weeks, participants using Zepbound saw an average weight-loss reduction of 20.