Free Republic

If you spend any time looking at diet and lifestyle content on social media, you may well have encountered a variety of weight loss "hacks". One of the more recent trends is a home-made drink called ricezempic, made by soaking uncooked rice and then straining it to drink the leftover starchy water. Sounds delicious, right? Its proponents claim it leads to weight loss by making you feel fuller for longer and suppressing your appetite, working in a similar way to the sought-after drug Ozempic – hence the name. So does this drink actually mimic the weight loss effects of Ozempic?...

Glucagon, a hormone best known for promoting blood sugar production in the liver, also appears to play a key role in maintaining kidney health. When researchers removed receptors for this hormone from mouse kidneys, the animals developed symptoms akin to chronic kidney disease (CKD). Researchers have discovered that cells in the pancreas produce glucagon when blood sugar, or glucose, dips below a certain threshold. This hormone migrates through the bloodstream to receptors on the surface of liver cells, prompting the liver to produce glucose that fuels cells throughout the body. More recent research has shown that the kidneys also bear...