Popular GLP-1 medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy are best known for helping people lose weight and manage diabetes. New research from Rutgers University suggests these drugs may also be linked to changes in behaviors associated with violence.
The study, published in Criminology, investigated whether GLP-1 receptor agonists influence violent criminal behavior in adults. Researchers focused on whether the medications might alter the effects of two factors that are strongly connected to violence: impulsivity and alcohol consumption.
GLP-1 Drugs and Violent Behavior
To explore the question, researchers analyzed data from a 2025 survey involving 7,521 adults across the United States. Their main analysis concentrated on 821 people who had used a GLP-1 medication at some point.
The team compared current users with former users and examined how medication use affected the relationship between violent behavior, impulsivity, and alcohol use. Violent behavior was assessed using a validated self-report measure that included actions such as fighting, assault, and robbery.
“The strongest finding in the study was that the well-established link between impulsivity and violent behavior was substantially weaker among current GLP-1 users compared to former users,” said Daniel Semenza, the lead author of the study as well as the director of research at the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center at the Rutgers School of Public Health and an associate professor with the Rutgers School of Public Health.
“As GLP-1 drugs become increasingly widespread, it is important to understand all of their potential behavioral effects, including those relevant to public safety,” Semenza said.
Impulsivity and Alcohol Effects Were Weaker
Across the full sample, higher levels of impulsivity and greater alcohol use were both strongly linked to violent behavior. However, those connections were significantly less pronounced among people who were currently taking GLP-1 medications.
According to the researchers, the relationship between impulsivity and violent behavior was about 62% weaker among current users than among former users. The connection between alcohol use and violent behavior was about 52% weaker among current users, although those results were not as consistent across additional sensitivity analyses.
“Our findings are consistent with these medications working like cognitive behavioral therapy, weakening the path from impulse to action rather than eliminating impulsivity itself,” said Christopher Thomas, an assistant professor at Rutgers University-Camden and the coauthor of the study.
More Research Is Needed
The researchers cautioned that the study cannot prove that GLP-1 medications directly reduce violent behavior. Because the research was observational and cross-sectional, it can only identify associations rather than cause-and-effect relationships.
The team said future longitudinal and experimental studies will be needed to determine whether GLP-1 medications truly lower violence risk and to better understand the biological and behavioral mechanisms that may be involved.