Luke Smith, now in his mid-30s, has described how he overcame a severe alcohol addiction that saw him drinking around 500 units a week using a £3 pill called naltrexone, sometimes referred to as the "Ozempic of alcohol". The medication works by blocking opioid receptors in the brain, making drinking less pleasurable and helping curb cravings, and Luke says it has kept him free from the urge to drink for more than seven years despite years of failed attempts through Alcoholics Anonymous and rehab.

Luke, a Bristol-based sales professional, began drinking heavily in his mid-20s amid a work culture of regular after-hours drinking, eventually consuming a box of wine and a litre of gin daily during his worst period. He obtained naltrexone privately through The Sinclair Method, a clinic-based programme combining the pill with counselling that involves continuing to drink initially while taking the tablet before the first drink of the day. Studies cited in the article suggest naltrexone achieves close to an 80 per cent success rate in reducing or eliminating drinking, compared with under 15 per cent for AA's 12-step programme according to World Health Organisation figures, though the drug is currently mainly prescribed on the NHS to prevent relapse after sobriety rather than to help people cut down while still drinking.