After the weight loss drugs rose in popularity, users are now reporting a laundry list of symptoms — and the list keeps growing.
In addition to hair loss, muscle loss, and wrinkles, Ozempic and Wegovy users are saying they are experiencing vomiting multiple times a day and stomach paralysis.
Joanie Knight told CNN that she wishes she had never touched the drug. "This medicine made my life hell. So much hell. It has cost me money," she says.
Both Ozempic and Wegovy are made up of semaglutide, which mimick GLP-1, a hormone made naturally within the body. GLP-1 slows down the passage of food and curbs appetite. Now, patients and doctors are seeing this slow-down causes stomach issues like severe gastroparesis, AKA stomach paralysis.
Four hours after a meal, 10% of food is left in the stomach, with severe gastroparesis, 35% of food is left in the stomach.
Doctors originally didn't connect Knight's stomach concerns to the Ozempic she was taking, even as she was throwing up multiple times a day and popping an anti-nausea medication "like candy."
The American Society of Anesthesiologists advised patients to refrain from taking the drug a week before surgery because it will cause patients to regurgitate food during the operation.
In clinical trials for Wegovy, almost half of the participants had nausea, and one in four reported vomiting. For Ozempic, one in five people reported nausea, and one in 10 experienced vomiting.
Novo Nordisk responded to CNN and commented that GLP-1 drugs have been used for 15 years to treat diabetes and eight years for obesity. Some doctors think the stomach issues these patients are experiencing are a silent disease that has now become more prevalent since taking the drug.
There is no cure for gastroparesis and it can cause other conditions like malnutrition and dehydration. Overall, if you have experienced any side effects from Ozempic or Wegovy, contact your physician.
1 resource
- FDA. Ozempic.
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