An Ad Cites a Weight-Loss Percentage. What Should You Ask Next?

A weight-loss percentage can make an advertisement feel unusually concrete. Yet the number may describe a drug trial rather than people enrolled in the advertised program. Your first question should be simple: “Whose results are these?” A published study, a paid testimonial and a provider’s description of its services answer different questions. None should silently stand in for the others when you are deciding whether to pay for care.

This guide uses published clinical context and public documentation from CoreAge Rx, Ro, Enhance.MD, Sesame, Walgreens and Found, consulted October 19, 2026. It does not establish that each company advertises a particular percentage. Instead, their documented differences show why the next questions matter: the medicine, formulation, route, follow-up and payment arrangement may differ substantially from what a cited study evaluated. The goal is better preparation for a conversation, not a prediction of your response.

At a glance

A study result is not a clinic result: STEP 1 and SURMOUNT-1 studied specified injectable medicines in defined populations. Their findings do not establish outcomes for a reviewed provider, compounded preparation, microdose or individual.
Sources: [3] [4]
Formulation matters: CoreAge Rx says its compounded tirzepatide is typically formulated with B-12; discussing a version without B-12 requires provider review.
Sources: [11]
Testimonials require context: Ro discloses that members were paid for their testimonials. Those stories are not a substitute for systematically measured program outcomes.
Sources: [27]
Program fees can exclude medicine: Success by Sesame advertises subscriptions starting at $59 per month with an annual subscription, excluding medication; individual providers may charge more.
Sources: [28]
Compounding has a separate evidence boundary: FDA says compounded preparations are not FDA approved and recommends them when an individual’s medical needs cannot be met by an approved drug. Nonapproval alone does not establish clinical inequivalence.
Sources: [1]

Start by asking what the percentage actually measures

Ask the advertiser for the original source, not just a chart or study name. Does the percentage mean average weight change, the share of participants reaching a threshold, or one person’s experience? What was the starting population, and when was the outcome measured? A percentage without those details is incomplete. Request the comparator result as well: a treatment-group number alone leaves out part of the evidence needed to understand the study.

Keep personal stories in a separate category. Ro explicitly says its featured members were paid for testimonials. That disclosure is useful, but it does not establish how typical those experiences were or what happened across the full membership. Ask any program citing its own success rate how participants were selected, how many had follow-up measurements and how people who stopped treatment were handled. The documentation reviewed here does not establish comparable measured performance across these six providers.

Five questions that turn an advertised percentage into something interpretable
Ask	Request	Why it matters
Whose outcome is this?	Original study or documented program analysis	Separates drug research from provider performance
What does the percentage mean?	Average change or proportion reaching a threshold	Different measures answer different questions
Who participated?	Eligibility criteria and diabetes status	Defines the population represented
What was studied?	Product, formulation, route and study arm	Prevents borrowing evidence for a different offering
What else happened?	Duration, comparator and discontinuations	Adds time and tolerability to the headline

Sources: [3] [4] [27]

Put familiar trial numbers back into their studies

STEP 1 enrolled 1,961 adults with obesity, or overweight plus a weight-related condition, without diabetes. Over 68 weeks, average weight change was minus 14.9% with subcutaneous semaglutide in the studied 2.4 mg weekly arm, versus minus 2.4% with placebo; both groups received lifestyle intervention. Gastrointestinal events led to discontinuation in 4.5% versus 0.8%. Novo Nordisk funded the trial. The dose identifies the research arm, not instructions for a reader.

SURMOUNT-1 enrolled 2,539 adults with obesity, or overweight plus a weight-related complication, excluding diabetes, for 72 weeks. Average changes were minus 15.0%, 19.5% and 20.9% with studied subcutaneous tirzepatide arms of 5, 10 and 15 mg weekly, respectively, versus minus 3.1% with placebo. Gastrointestinal events were most common; adverse-event discontinuations were 4.3%, 7.1% and 6.2%, respectively, versus 2.6%. Eli Lilly funded it. These are not provider outcomes, individual forecasts or a head-to-head comparison with STEP 1.

Sources: [3] [4]

Ask whether the offered medicine matches the evidence

A shared ingredient name is only the beginning. CoreAge Rx describes compounded semaglutide given by subcutaneous injection and says its compounded tirzepatide typically includes B-12. It also markets separate semaglutide and tirzepatide “Microdosing Therapy” offerings. Ask which exact preparation the advertisement concerns and whether the cited study evaluated that preparation. Our medication questions guide can help organize the distinction between ingredient, formulation, route and presentation.

Enhance.MD adds another important distinction: it markets Core as injectable semaglutide, Advanced as compounded tirzepatide and Elite as an injectable combination of semaglutide and tirzepatide. Its tirzepatide microdosing program is another separate offering. The trials described above do not establish results for those compounded preparations, combinations or microdoses. FDA approval belongs to a specific product, not a platform; compounded preparations lack that approval, which alone proves neither equivalence nor inequivalence.

Sources: [13] [14] [11] [17] [8] [22] [29] [26] [3] [4] [1]

Separate enrollment criteria from the population in the trial

A program’s willingness to assess you does not mean a study’s average applies to you. Enhance.MD publishes a minimum BMI of 25 for new GLP-1 patients and 20 for maintenance patients currently or recently using GLP-1 treatment, with medical history also determining eligibility. Sesame describes ideal medication candidates as having BMI at least 30, or at least 27 with a weight-related condition. These are provider descriptions, not interchangeable eligibility rules or individualized advice.

CoreAge Rx treats adults 18 and older, offers service only in the United States and says availability can vary by state, therapy and medication. Ro asks about medical history, lifestyle and goals; a provider determines eligibility and may request metabolic testing. Bring questions about your medicines, supplements, allergies, health conditions and pregnancy plans to that assessment. NIDDK emphasizes clinician discussion of benefits, adverse effects and costs, rather than choosing treatment from an advertised percentage.

Sources: [10] [28] [11] [15] [2]

Find out what care accompanies the prescription

The service surrounding a prescription deserves its own questions. Ro lists regular check-ins, unlimited provider messaging, side-effect management, tracking tools and individual coaching; its membership also includes laboratory testing if necessary, but not medication. Found says its compounded-tirzepatide care team follows up monthly and offers messaging between visits. Found’s advertised 24/7 Aimee access refers to an AI companion, not continuous human clinical availability. Ask who responds, through what channel and within what expected time.

Walgreens describes an initial on-demand video visit for qualified general-program patients, followed mostly by chat visits, with additional video available. Initial visits start at $49; follow-up chat and additional video visits are $49 each, with medicine separate and no subscription required. Its 24/7 pharmacy-expert chat is a different service, may involve waiting and is not for emergencies. The support questions guide helps distinguish the prescriber, pharmacy and administrative team.

Sources: [6] [27] [5] [16] [25] [18] [24] [2]

Ask what the advertised price buys over time

A clinical percentage says nothing about the bill. Ro advertises membership at $39 for the first month, then $149 monthly on its monthly plan, or as low as a $74 monthly equivalent with annual prepayment; medication is additional. Sesame starts at $59 per month with an annual subscription and advertises a $99 month-to-month option, excluding medication. Its billing text also specifies 28-day billing for that option. Ask for the actual charge dates, not just the monthly label.

CoreAge Rx advertises compounded semaglutide from $79 per month and tirzepatide from $129 per month, with supplies and free shipping, while another homepage block says compounded GLP-1s start at $99. The conditions securing each minimum and the final checkout total are not established in the reviewed documentation. Ask for the specific offer, supply, first charge and subsequent charges in writing. Use these price questions beyond the monthly figure before assuming a low entry price describes ongoing care.

Sources: [6] [12] [28] [19]

Trace the prescription through the pharmacy and delivery

Ask who will dispense your actual prescription before treating a trial citation as reassurance about the entire service. CoreAge Rx’s FAQ requires its affiliated pharmacy network, while its terms allow requesting a pharmacy of your choice before ordering. Enhance.MD’s FAQ names Tru Meds Rx, Strive Pharmacy and Pharmacy Hub and permits an outside pharmacy with medication billed separately. Its terms list different partners. These differences call for confirmation of the current arrangement, not assumptions about who prepares or ships your medicine.

The delivery timeline is another separate question. CoreAge Rx estimates order completion in approximately five to seven business days when information is submitted promptly, followed by approximately two to three business days after pharmacy shipment for arrival; neither is a guarantee. Ask for storage instructions and a problem-reporting contact. FDA explicitly advises not using an injectable GLP-1 that arrives warm or insufficiently refrigerated and contacting the provider or dispensing pharmacy. That advice should not be displaced by general shipping reassurance.

Sources: [11] [21] [10] [23] [7] [1]

Settle the exit terms before paying for a hoped-for result

An eligibility refund is not a weight-loss guarantee. Enhance.MD promises a full initial-payment refund if onboarding determines a person is ineligible for its formulation. CoreAge Rx’s FAQ promises an automatic 100% refund if a prescription is not approved, but its refund policy retains an applicable $50–$100 consultation fee. That policy also makes prescription sales final after approval and transmission to the pharmacy, even before shipping, and generally makes orders nonrefundable after 30 calendar days, subject to applicable law.

Ask separately about stopping future charges and recovering money already paid. Sesame’s program page describes cancellation before the next cycle, while its general terms require email or telephone cancellation at least 48 hours before renewal processing and exclude prorated membership refunds. Found says renewal payments are nonrefundable and recommends canceling or pausing at least 48 hours before the scheduled charge. Our renewal questions guide helps turn these distinctions into a dated checklist rather than an assumption that cancellation means reimbursement.

Sources: [8] [11] [7] [28] [9] [20]

Questions & answers

What should I ask CoreAge Rx about a percentage beside its microdosing offer?

Ask whether the evidence tested the exact compounded preparation and microdosing approach being offered. CoreAge Rx markets both semaglutide and tirzepatide microdosing, but the trials discussed here do not establish outcomes for those offerings. Also request the intended formulation and, for tirzepatide, whether it includes B-12. Do not treat the commercial program name as proof of a measured benefit.

Sources: [13] [14] [11] [3] [4]

How should I interpret Ro member stories?

Ro discloses payment for member testimonials. Ask whether any advertised percentage comes from a published drug trial, those stories or a separate analysis of Ro members. If it is a member analysis, request the population, follow-up period and handling of missing outcomes. Ro’s documented messaging, coaching and check-ins describe services; they do not by themselves establish an average program weight-loss result.

Sources: [27] [6]

Does Enhance.MD’s Elite description establish greater measured weight loss?

No such conclusion is established by the reviewed documentation. Enhance.MD markets Elite as an injectable semaglutide-and-tirzepatide combination with strong appetite and glucose-control language. That is a provider description, not a result from STEP 1 or SURMOUNT-1, neither of which tested this combination. Ask for evidence specific to the offered preparation rather than combining percentages from separate studies.

Sources: [29] [3] [4]

What should I clarify about Sesame’s questionnaire estimate?

Sesame describes its introductory questionnaire as helping users see how much weight they could lose and personalize the program. Ask how any estimate is produced and whether it represents a scenario or documented outcomes from comparable members. The subsequent video consultation reviews medical history and goals, with laboratory testing if needed. Sesame’s terms expressly say a prescription is not guaranteed.

Sources: [28] [9]

Does Walgreens pharmacy chat replace paid clinical follow-up?

The documentation describes different services. Walgreens advertises 24/7 pharmacy-expert chat, with possible waiting and no emergency use, while weight-management follow-up chat visits cost $49 each. Pharmacy-chat availability does not establish a zero fee or replace the prescriber’s responsibilities. Ask which channel handles your concern, whether it creates a billable visit and when a clinician can respond.

Sources: [24] [18]

Do Found’s testing claims establish trial-level effectiveness?

Found says its compounded semaglutide undergoes third-party potency, purity and sterility testing before shipment. Those are quality-related claims, not clinical outcome measurements. The reviewed documentation does not identify the external laboratory or provide certificates of analysis. Ask what testing documentation is available, while keeping that question separate from whether a study evaluated the exact preparation you would receive.

Sources: [16] [3] [1]

Our assessment

A well-sourced percentage can help explain what a medicine achieved in a particular study. It cannot identify the best provider, guarantee your response or settle questions about a different preparation. These programs document meaningful service differences, including consultation formats, follow-up, pharmacy channels and separate charges. Some also publish conflicting terms. Before enrolling, obtain the original evidence reference, the exact proposed medicine, a follow-up plan and written payment and cancellation terms. Clear answers make an offer easier to evaluate; they still do not convert a trial average into a personal promise.

Sources & documentation

Public materials consulted October 19, 2026. Provider statements are attributed claims, not independently verified clinical outcomes. Terms can change; obtain a current written quote.

An Ad Cites a Weight-Loss Percentage. What Should You Ask Next?

At a glance

01Start by asking what the percentage actually measures

02Put familiar trial numbers back into their studies

03Ask whether the offered medicine matches the evidence

04Separate enrollment criteria from the population in the trial

05Find out what care accompanies the prescription

06Ask what the advertised price buys over time

07Trace the prescription through the pharmacy and delivery

08Settle the exit terms before paying for a hoped-for result