Popularity of surgical and pharmacological obesity treatment methods searched by Google users: the retrospective analysis of Google Trends statistics in 2004-2022

Background
Many individuals search for obesity treatment options on the Internet. We aimed to analyze the popularity of pharmacological and surgical obesity treatment methods searched by Google users.
Methods
We used Google Trends to identify topics representing: recommended surgical methods (n=9), recommended pharmacological methods (n=10), and not recommended pharmacological methods (n=34). The data was generated for 2004-2022 and 2020-2022. Relative Search Volume (RSV) was adjusted using "Gastric bypass surgery" as a benchmark. We analyzed the geographical and temporal trends of the topics.
Results
In 2004-2022, the topics representing recommended surgical methods numerically gained the most popularity among Google users, but in 2020-2022 the recommended drugs exceeded other obesity treatment methods. The most popular individual topics since 2004 were "Flaxseed", "Spirulina", "Carnitine", "Bariatric surgery", and "Orlistat". The most dynamic increases of searches since 2004 were observed for "Sleeve gastrectomy", "Curcumin", "Psyllium" and "Bupropion / Naltrexon". Since 2018, topics representing GLP-1 analogs such as "Semaglutide" and "Saxenda" revealed exponential increases in RSV, causing that "Semaglutide" to become the 4th most popular topic in 2020-2022.
Conclusions
Google users across the world were the most interested in topics representing bariatric surgery, but recently recommended drugs for the treatment of obesity gained the most attention. The most popular individual topics were dietary supplements with uncertain effects on weight loss. Professionals should recommend reliable Internet sources about obesity.

背景
众多个人在互联网上搜索肥胖治疗方案。本研究旨在分析谷歌用户搜索的药物和外科肥胖治疗方法的流行度。
方法
我们利用谷歌趋势识别代表推荐外科方法（n=9）、推荐药物方法（n=10）以及不推荐药物方法（n=34）的议题。数据生成时间为2004-2022年以及2020-2022年。使用“胃旁路手术”作为基准调整相对搜索量（RSV）。我们分析了这些议题的地理和时效趋势。
结果
在2004-2022年间，代表推荐外科方法的议题在谷歌用户中数量上获得了最高的流行度，但到了2020-2022年，推荐的药物超过了其他肥胖治疗方法。自2004年以来最受欢迎的单一议题包括“亚麻籽”、“螺旋藻”、“左卡尼汀”、“减重手术”和“奥利司他”。自2004年以来搜索量增长最快的议题为“袖状胃切除术”、“姜黄素”、“车前子”和“安非他酮/纳曲酮”。自2018年以来，代表GLP-1类似物如“司美格鲁肽”和“索马鲁肽”的议题显示RSV呈指数级增长，使得“司美格鲁肽”在2020-2022年间成为第四大热门议题。
结论
全球谷歌用户对代表减重手术的议题最为关注，但最近，用于治疗肥胖的推荐药物获得了最多的关注。最受欢迎的单一议题是那些对减肥效果不确定的膳食补充剂。专业人士应推荐关于肥胖的可靠互联网资源。