What Happens to Your Body on Ozempic?

Ozempic® is a life-altering medication that can treat Type 2 diabetes and promote weight loss. But it’s not a free pass. You still need to put in the work, change your lifestyle, and make healthy decisions every day.

You won't be alone if you take Ozempic for weight loss. Our Premiere Medical Center team offers advice, encouragement, and ongoing medical care, monitoring your progress and helping you reach your goals.

We begin the journey with a medical evaluation and teaching what you need to know about Ozempic.

About Ozempic 

Ozempic is a once-weekly injectable medicine for treating Type 2 diabetes. The active ingredient in Ozempic, semaglutide, lowers blood sugar and A1C levels. It also reduces the risk of heart attacks and strokes, two common complications of diabetes.

 People taking Ozempic lose weight, often achieving a fast and significant drop. Though Ozempic isn’t FDA-approved for weight loss (as of June 2024), we can prescribe it off-label to help you reach your healthy weight.

Whether you take Ozempic for Type 2 diabetes, weight loss, or both, it’s essential to combine the medication with a healthy lifestyle.

 You won’t achieve or maintain the best results without following a healthy diet, getting regular exercise, and managing calories. Most people find watching their caloric intake easy because of how Ozempic works. 

How Ozempic works in your body

Semaglutide mimics GLP-1, a natural hormone released in your gastrointestinal tract when you eat. GLP-1 (and semaglutide) trigger three reactions in your body.

 First, semaglutide affects the pancreas, making it produce more insulin. The insulin then enters the bloodstream and lowers blood sugar.

 Second, Ozempic temporarily stops your liver from releasing excessive sugar into the bloodstream.

 Finally, the medicine slows the movement of food through your stomach. This activity fills two crucial roles. It helps treat diabetes by preventing spikes in blood sugar after you eat. 

Retaining food in your stomach longer also helps you lose weight because it sends messages to your brain. As a result, you feel full faster and don't feel hungry. 

Ozempic’s potential side effects

Most people taking Ozempic don’t experience problems. Some have minor issues that improve as their bodies get used to the medicine. Others struggle with daily side effects that don’t improve, ultimately forcing them to stop taking the drug.

 The most common problems affect the gastrointestinal tract, causing diarrhea, constipation, vomiting, stomach pain, and bloating. You can usually relieve these side effects with small changes like having smaller meals, eating slowly, and drinking enough water.

You may experience headaches, fatigue, dizziness, or acid reflux, problems we can usually manage by slowly increasing the dose.

 Losing fat from your face too rapidly can make you look gaunt, cause wrinkles, and change the appearance of your cheeks and lips. This unusual side effect, dubbed “Ozempic face,” can occur if you take any GLP-1-mimicking medication.

 Like all medications, Ozempic poses a rare risk of serious problems. These include:

• Inflamed pancreas (pancreatitis)
• Vision changes
• Allergic reactions
• Gallbladder disease
• Kidney disease
• Increase in heart rate
• Low blood sugar

 Low blood sugar symptoms include sweating, shaking, irritability, confusion, and dizziness. 

Stopping Ozempic may affect your results

If you stop taking Ozempic, your body doesn’t take over for the medicine. As the medicine clears out of the body, some people regain weight, especially if they don’t follow a healthy lifestyle.

People with Type 2 diabetes may need to fine-tune their diet or take medication to manage their blood sugar levels after discontinuing Ozempic.

Call Premiere Medical Center in Toluca Lake, California, or book online if you have questions about Ozempic or want to start a weight loss program with our experienced team.