Research & Clinical Trials
Novo Nordisk's Wegovy Linked to Lower Food Noise Scores in SIGNAL and OCTANE Studies
By News Desk ·
Key takeaways
- In the SIGNAL study, 26,213 adults taking semaglutide injection saw adjusted mean food noise scores fall 0.42 points in month one and 0.72 points by month six.
- The OCTANE study found oral semaglutide was associated with about a 25% reduction in average food noise scores over three months, from 2.8 to 2.1.
- At three months, 86.4% of OCTANE participants reported at least one treatment improvement, including better-fitting clothing at 67.5%.
Novo Nordisk presented real-world findings at ObesityWeek 2026 showing that semaglutide injection was associated with a 0.72-point reduction in food noise scores by month six, and oral semaglutide with about a 25% reduction over three months. The results came from the SIGNAL and OCTANE studies, PR Newswire reported on November 14, 2026.
How the SIGNAL and OCTANE Studies Worked
Novo Nordisk is a Denmark-headquartered pharmaceutical company that develops peptide-based therapies for diabetes, obesity and related diseases, with products sold in approximately 170 countries. Both studies were retrospective cohort analyses using de-identified patient data from the Ro telehealth platform and the seven-item RAID-FN questionnaire, which measures persistent, intrusive and unwanted thoughts about food.
SIGNAL followed 26,213 treatment-naïve adults with overweight or obesity who initiated semaglutide injection between May 20, 2025, and June 8, 2026. The adjusted mean baseline score was 2.72, falling by 0.42 points in the first month and by 0.72 points at month six, with the largest reductions in the first three months. OCTANE included 7,669 adults who initiated oral semaglutide between January 5 and February 7, 2026; food noise change at three months was reported by 6,180 patients, with the total score moving from 2.8 to 2.1.
Louis J. Aronne, director of the Comprehensive Weight Control Center at Weill Cornell Medicine and a co-author of the studies, said: "The SIGNAL and OCTANE findings showed that semaglutide injection and oral semaglutide were associated with early reductions in food noise in real-world studies." Michelle Skinner Moore, interim head of clinical development, medical and regulatory affairs and vice president, medical affairs at Novo, said food noise remains an emerging area of research.
Novo Nordisk's Obesity Manufacturing Buildout
According to akta.pro company records, Novo Nordisk opened an upgraded Czech manufacturing plant in June 2026 after investing $168 million to repurpose the facility, which it acquired from Novavax 18 months earlier for $200 million; the site employs 300 workers and is one of seven global manufacturing hubs. The same records show a $29 million investment to expand injection pen manufacturing at its Tianjin, China facility, building on a $556 million sterile preparation expansion revealed in 2024.
Earlier ObesityWeek Data From Novo Nordisk
On the same day, Novo Nordisk's Wegovy pill helped patients lose an average of 6.2% of body weight over three months in real-world data presented at ObesityWeek, Yahoo reported. Novo Nordisk also announced primary results from the phase 3 REDEFINE 9 trial of CagriSema, a GLP-1 and amylin analog, in adults with overweight or obesity, according to PR Newswire.
What Comes Next for the Food Noise Data
ObesityWeek 2026 runs from November 14 to November 17, 2026, in Washington, DC, where both studies were presented.