Exploring Weight Loss Medication Discourse: Mixed Methods Analysis of US-Based Facebook Posts

Background: Despite the documented clinical efficacy of weight loss medications, few large-scale mixed methods studies have captured the experiences of individuals taking these medications. Objective: This study aims to examine dominant themes and public narratives about the perceived benefits, challenges, identity-based experiences, and the broader sociocultural framing of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist use on Facebook. Methods: We used CrowdTangle to collect 2500 US-based Facebook posts from January 1, 2022, to May 31, 2024. Bidirectional encoder representations from transformers topic modeling was used to identify latent topics, followed by a qualitative thematic analysis. Results: An analysis of 2500 Facebook posts revealed distinct thematic patterns across five unique subcategories: (1) healthy weight management, (2) weight loss medications, (3) discussion specific to semaglutide, (4) discussions specific to Ozempic, and (5) public figures and media. Thirteen overarching themes emerged through this thematic analysis, with the most common themes including weight management programs (n=702), neutral content related to weight loss medication use (n=466), harms of weight loss medication use (n=373), benefits of weight loss medication use (n=329), and access to these medications (n=188). Conclusions: Social media provides critical insights into individual experiences with pharmacotherapy and weight management. Enhanced public education may optimize the safe use of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists for weight loss.