Short answer: Only one drug is FDA approved specifically for belly fat: tesamorelin (Egrifta), and only for adults with HIV and lipodystrophy. It cut deep belly fat by 14% to 18% in 26-week trials, and the fat came back after stopping. GLP-1 drugs reduce belly fat as part of overall weight loss. AOD-9604 has no published human fat-loss result.
| Compound | Best evidence | What it shows |
|---|---|---|
| Tesamorelin (Egrifta) | FDA-approved for this | Approved only for excess abdominal fat in adults with HIV and lipodystrophy. Visceral fat fell 18% and 14% in two 26-week label trials versus +2% and -2% on placebo. |
| Tirzepatide (Zepbound) | Approved for a different use | Approved for weight management. In a SURMOUNT-1 scan substudy, estimated visceral fat fell 40.1% versus 7.3% on placebo at 72 weeks. |
| Semaglutide (Wegovy) | Approved for a different use | Approved for weight management. Lowers belly fat as part of overall weight loss; not approved for belly fat on its own. |
| AOD-9604 | Small or early human studies | A fragment of growth hormone. The human report we found covers safety only and gives no fat-loss result. |
| CJC-1295 and ipamorelin | Small or early human studies | Small studies show they raise growth hormone. We found no published human trial measuring belly fat. |
"Animal or lab studies only" means no published human trial for this goal that we could find. Results in rats or cells often do not carry over to people. Compounds that are not FDA-approved have no tested label for dose, purity or safety.
Visceral fat sits deep in the belly, around the organs. Subcutaneous fat sits just under the skin. Studies measure visceral fat with CT or DXA scans (a low-dose X-ray scan that splits the body into fat, lean tissue and bone). A tape measure around the waist cannot tell the two apart, but waist size often falls when visceral fat falls.
Tesamorelin is a lab-made version of growth hormone-releasing hormone, the signal that tells the pituitary to release growth hormone. Its label indication is the reduction of excess abdominal fat in HIV-infected adult patients with lipodystrophy (abnormal fat buildup linked to HIV treatment).
| Trial | Tesamorelin | Placebo | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Study 1 | -18% | +2% | -20% |
| Study 2 | -14% | -2% | -12% |
When people were switched to placebo for weeks 26 to 52, visceral fat rose again: +22% and +16% in the two studies. The label says Egrifta is not for weight loss because its effect on weight is neutral, and that its long-term heart safety has not been established. The first published trial (Falutz 2007, 412 people) reported -15.2% versus +5.0%.
In a SURMOUNT-1 substudy of 160 people scanned by DXA, tirzepatide lowered total fat mass by 15.9 kg versus 3.6 kg on placebo, and estimated visceral fat by 40.1% versus 7.3%. Waist size fell 18.1 cm versus 3.4 cm. The substudy was small, 73% women, funded by the maker, and estimated visceral fat rather than measuring it directly.
AOD-9604 is a piece of the growth hormone molecule. A pooled report of six placebo-controlled trials, written by the developer, found no change in IGF-1 or glucose tolerance and no antibodies. It reports no fat-loss or weight result. We found no other published human efficacy data.
Terms on this page: Growth hormone secretagogue · GLP-1 receptor agonist · Research use only (RUO)