Weight-Loss Wonder or Health Hazard? Ozempic Risks Emerge

Beyond weight loss, GLP-1 drugs may trigger severe side effects.

The popularity of weight-loss drugs like Ozempic is soaring, but a significant number of users discontinue them before experiencing full benefits. While celebrated for shedding pounds, these medications also carry a growing list of potentially severe health risks.

Growing Concerns Among Medical Professionals

Despite the buzz, medical professionals are increasingly concerned about severe illnesses reported after several months on semaglutide, also known as GLP-1 drugs. According to Penny Ward, a physician at King’s College London, “The most concerning side effects include pancreatitis and the effects on musculoskeletal disorders.”

In fact, a regulator in the UK has flagged the potentially deadly side effects of acute pancreatitis following at least ten deaths linked to GLP-1 drugs among British users.

How Common Are Side Effects?

Although clinical trials indicated the drugs were acceptably safe for their intended use, new side effects have surfaced since their public release. Ward notes that it’s “not unusual” for additional adverse reactions to emerge once a product is in clinical use because “Rarer side effects may emerge as more patients take these medicines in clinical practice…simply as a result of the much larger number of people treated than were included in the clinical development trials.”

A study in *Nature Medicine* (January 2025) analyzed health risks in over 215,000 people taking GLP-1 drugs for diabetes. Researchers discovered previously unrecognized risks, including an 11% increased risk of arthritis and a 146% increased risk of pancreatitis, backing up numerous past studies showing an increased risk of gastrointestinal side effects.

Vision Problems and Other Risks

Reports of blindness after taking Wegovy also surfaced last year. Further investigation revealed that GLP-1 drugs are associated with an increased risk of nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), a disease affecting the optic nerve. While rare, a study in *JAMA Ophthalmology* found that people with diabetes taking GLP-1 drugs are four times more likely to develop NAION compared to the general population.

According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, NAION affects roughly 1 in 10,000 Americans over 50 each year (AAO, 2024).

Graham McGeown, an honorary professor of physiology at Queen’s University Belfast, suggests that “This research does suggest an association between semaglutide treatment and one form of sight-threatening optic neuropathy, but this would ideally be tested in larger studies.”

More Research Needed

Experts emphasize the need for further research to fully understand the side effects and real-world risks of GLP-1 drugs. Karolina Skibicka, a neuroendocrinologist at the University of Calgary, calls for “more data… about those taking the drug for obesity, who need a higher dose compared to people with diabetes, and taking it for longer than two years.” She also notes that “especially, we need studies which include women. Women show unique side-effects to many pharmacotherapies, and still [in] most studies women are often underrepresented at various stages of testing.”

Weighing Benefits Against Risks

Despite the emerging concerns, Skibicka states that “the list of benefits for this drug, if taken as prescribed, is still significantly longer and more impactful than risks. It has the promise of saving and improving many lives.” She believes it is “unlikely” that these rare but serious side effects will lead to stricter prescribing recommendations.

Interestingly, researchers are also uncovering surprising ‘beneficial’ side effects of GLP-1 drugs. Studies suggest a reduced risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. The January study also reported reduced risks of blood coagulation and clotting disorders, cardiorenal and metabolic disorders, and several respiratory conditions in diabetic patients taking GLP-1 drugs.

Researchers propose that GLP-1 drugs’ broad influence stems from their action on multiple body systems and their treatment of obesity, a significant contributor to various health issues.