“Ozempic face” is a term for common side effects of the type 2 diabetes medication semaglutide (Ozempic). It can cause sagging and aging of facial skin.
Some patients who use diabetes drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy for weight loss have reportedly noticed facial aging and sagging. A New York-based dermatologist referred to this type of skin sagging due to rapid weight loss as "Ozempic face."
Some users of the diabetes drug Ozempic who use the drug off-label for weight loss have reported “Ozempic face” as a side effect to their rapid weight loss, causing the facial skin to sag and making them appear older.
A team of academics have found that the injectable prescription medications Ozempic and Mounjaro can cause serious side effects, such as accelerated ageing.
Instead, It's Rapidly Aging Their Faces. Ozempic, a medication used to treat type 2 diabetes, is being used off-label as a weight-loss drug. Some people on the drug say they've developed “Ozempic face,” which is a gaunt look.
Some popular examples of weight loss pills are Contrave (naltrexone/bupropion), Qsymia (phentermine/topiramate ER), and phentermine (Adipex-P). Some clinical studies suggest that Qsymia is the most effective weight loss pill.
In 2021, the US Food and Drug Administration approved semaglutide, under the trade name Wegovy, for treating obesity. And although the agency approved tirzepatide, marketed as Mounjaro, in 2022 for treatment of only type 2 diabetes, the drug is often prescribed as a weight-loss agent.
The skin of the face also loses its ability to retract after an episode of rapid weight loss due to reduced levels of elastin and collagen, which are essential for structural integrity. As a result, people taking Ozempic may report the following facial symptoms: increased signs of aging, such as more lines and wrinkles.
Stars like Chelsea Handler, Kyle Richards and more have spoken about the diet trend. Handler, for her part, admitted during a January 2023 episode of the “Call Her Daddy” podcast that she unknowingly took the medication.
How Long Can You Stay on Ozempic (semaglutide)? A person can stay on Ozempic® so long as they are tolerating the medication and it is deemed appropriate by their treating provider. There is no specific time frame when someone should stop taking Ozempic as it is a medication that is intended for chronic (long-term) use.
Ozempic stimulates the release of insulin and lowers blood sugar. When you abruptly stop using it, the amount of glucose in your body can spike, especially if you have diabetes. Some may end up in the ER due to sheer exhaustion from the blood sugar spikes and crashes.
Demand for popular weight-loss drugs, such as semaglutide and tirzepatide, remains high, but some patients on the drugs are now discovering an unwanted side effect: facial aging, Amy Synnott writes for the New York Times.
However, doctors have now issued a warning about “Ozempic face,” a possible side effect of using the drugs both as a weight-loss method and without the proper medical supervision, as users have shared their experiences with accelerated ageing.
Many have reported losing substantial weight after taking the trendy drug semaglutide, which has the brand name Ozempic or Wegovy. But plastic surgeons say they're seeing a rise in patients coming in with saggy, loose skin that appears after dramatic weight loss — a phenomenon known as "Ozempic face" or "Ozempic body."
The most common side effects with Ozempic include stomach problems like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach pain and constipation. These tend to be mild-to-moderate and usually clear up in a few weeks in most people.
According to the FDA, they've received reports that patients taking the compounded version of Ozempic have had “adverse effects.” They also noted people could be using doses of semaglutide that are derived from a salt — which haven't been tested — rather than its pure form.
The drugs also come with a warning that they may increase the risk of thyroid cancer, acute pancreatitis, gallbladder disease, low blood sugar, kidney injury, damage to the eye's retina and suicidal thinking or behavior.
“[Wegovy] creates upwards of about 20 per cent weight loss, which is a spectacular weight loss, and double at least of what we were expecting from anti-obesity medications just a year or so ago,” Prof Oldfield said. “[These results] are after a number of months, and you build up to the dose.
Some individuals may actually gain more weight after stopping an obesity drug than they initially lost, Conde-Knape added. Studies have similarly shown weight rebound in people who stop taking Ozempic.
It gained approval under the brand name Ozempic in Australia by the TGA. Wegovy is a slightly higher-strength version that gained FDA approval as a weight management medication in June 2021.