Wednesday, September 9, 2026 | Edition 194 | Item #1

Or at least they will if we give them a steady diet of GLP-1s, according to researchers from the University of California at Berkeley. Their new study, reported last week in Nature, provides intriguing evidence that semaglutide, the active ingredient in drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy, may have effects on aging that extend beyond weight loss and blood-sugar control. 

The researchers gave daily semaglutide doses to healthy female mice beginning at 20 months of age, roughly comparable to late middle age in humans. The treated mice lived substantially longer than untreated mice: median lifespan increased from approximately 742 days to 834 days, an increase of about 12%.

The researchers also observed improvements in several measures associated with healthy aging. Semaglutide-treated mice showed better physical performance, cognitive function and blood-glucose control, while displaying lower levels of inflammation, cellular senescence and other age-related changes. Some of these effects resembled those produced by calorie restriction, although semaglutide appeared to provide additional benefits in certain measures, including cognition and glucose regulation.

The findings are exciting because they raise the possibility that GLP-1 drugs could influence fundamental biological processes involved in aging. That’s good if you want a lot more female mice around or are excited about the possibility of future testing of that proposition on humans.

Shameless Self-Promotion

What will the mice do with all that extra time? Travel the world no doubt. At least that is what the Travelling Nanas — two 80-somethings from Texas — have done. From the Trans-Siberian Railway, where they were rousted by the KGB, to Easter Island, the Traveling Nanas have toured the globe and entertained their audience in books, on social media, and now on GrandPeople! Check out their delightful story here.