The brain may be about to have its Ozempic moment
andsoitis
103 points
152 comments
August 11, 2026
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Discussion Highlights (20 comments)
Rzor
https://archive.is/WoHuY
whyleyc
https://archive.is/WoHuY
awestroke
Title implies people will flock to a pill that makes them shed gray matter
Liftyee
Sleep is Lindy... obesity and constant wakefulness are not. The sad fact is that people will be pressured into taking this. E: Lindy was probably the wrong term. But still, it's like Chesterton's fence. We are far from fully understanding human biology... and deleting sleep will lead to unknown effects. All power to those who try, I guess.
nemomarx
I feel like I'd want the opposite of this - something that mimics the cleaning process of sleep that you could use in the afternoon for a nap or etc.
hoppp
It sounds to me like something that's quite dangerious. Maybe it helps people with narcolepsy but maybe it will be another thing people abuse like amphetamines?
OutOfHere
Previous post: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49206165
egypturnash
Consider: Beggars in Spain. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68333.Beggars_in_Spain
croisillon
The brain may be about to have its Algernon moment FTFY
petercooper
Not to take away from the broader point, but modafinil is lumped in with methylphenidate as a stimulant that "increase[s] the activity of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and norepinephrine" . Modafinil does also stimulate the orexin system and is part of why it's so effective for wakefulness and not as a stimulant in the medium/long-term.
Gooblebrai
What has anything in this article to do with Ozempic? Is mentioned in the title once and never again. Engagement bait?
margorczynski
Isn't the problem with lack of sleep (and what causes death with enough deprivation) oxydation that happens in the gut and spreads to the organs? If I'm not mistaken there was an experiment using fruit flies where they fed them antioxidants and that made them not die from lack of sleep.
midtake
The article is about modulating orexins in the brain. Orexin receptor agonism was thought to be a mechanism of modafinil/armodafinil but this isn't mentioned anywhere in the article. Modafinil is mentioned as a mere stimulant. It sort of makes me want to dismiss the article as manufactured hype for a new class of modafinil successors.
barapa
Every conceivable thing 'may be about to' happen.
Melatonic
I think the real question with Ozempic is.....why are so many people's bodies not producing enough natural GLP-1 in the first place? Ozempic is for sure a miracle for some who really need it but for many I think they would be better off by solving that problem at the source (likely gut bacteria based and consuming a better mix of prebiotic fibers). Increase your natural levels of GLP-1
Fraterkes
As an aside, are there any habitual modafinil takers here? I had a period in college where I took it very rarely when I had to cram. Worked pretty well.
d2kx
Modafinil has been a lifesaver for me for over a decade, but always great to have more options for medium ADHD.
semiquaver
> Orexins are made by a small number of neurons in the hypothalamus, a brain region tucked behind the eyes. I didn’t know that “neurons” themselves could make peptides, or anything really. Is this accurate terminology or a shorthand?
daquisu
Related: - Ozempic For Sleep https://www.isaak.net/sleepless/ (November 2024) It is the same author from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41742432 He recently founded https://capable.com , also related
MarkusQ
For a minute I thought they'd found a cure for fatheads.