Effect of Glucagon-like Peptide 1 (GLP1) Receptor Agonists on Mental Health in Patients With Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes (T2D): a Mixed Methods Study

This study is investigating the effect of a medication called glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP1) receptor agonists on mental health. GLP1 receptor agonists are a type of medication that are used to treat obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D). Obesity and T2D are very common health conditions, and research has shown that people living with obesity and T2D are more likely to experience mental health disorders. Some recent research has suggested that GLP1 receptor agonists might help with mental health problems such as depression and binge eating disorder, and the investigators want to expand on this in this study. The investigators will be recruiting patients from community diabetes services, and tier 3 weight management services in South East London. Patients will be eligible if they are starting on GLP1 receptor agonists for the management of either T2D or obesity. The study is a mixed methods, longitudinal observations study with two components - a quantitative and a qualitative aspect. Firstly, the investigators will be interviewing patients before and 12-16 weeks after starting the medication, using short questionnaires which asks participants about different mental health symptoms that they may be experiencing. The investigators will use this information to see if there are any objective changes in mental health after taking GLP1 receptor agonists. Secondly, the investigators will be conducting a longer semi-structured interview after the second set of short questionnaires (at 12-16 weeks after starting GLP1 receptor agonist), asking about patient's experiences of taking the medication and how it has affected their mental health and general wellbeing. The investigators will qualitatively analyse this data to determine the subjective effect of GLP1 receptor agonists on mental health and wellbeing.