Ozempic and weight loss drugs officially probed over suicide risk

Some people on Ozempic and Wegovy are experiencing thoughts of suicide or self-harm, leading to a probe into the popular weight-loss drugs.

The UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) will be reviewing safety data on a drug class used in medications — just two weeks after a similar response by the European Union, Reuters reported.

Ozempic is a medication designed for people with Type 2 diabetes that has become widely used as a weight loss drug.

Ozempic and Wegovy are semaglutides, which help the pancreas release the right amount of insulin when blood sugar levels are high. The Eli Lilly counterpart, Mounjaro, is a tirzepatide that has been shown to help control blood sugar as well.

The drugs work by mimicking a natural hormone, GLP-1, which slows down the passage of food through the stomach, making people feel full for longer.

The MHRA told Reuters in a statement on Tuesday that they’ll be reviewing the GLP-1 receptor agonists — liraglutide and semaglutide — in the drugs.

“Patient safety is our top priority,” Dr. Alison Cave, the agency’s chief safety officer, told Reuters. “We will carefully consider all available evidence and communicate any further advice to patients and healthcare professionals as appropriate.”

Drugs being examined include Ozempic, Wegovy and Novo Nordisk’s Saxenda, which is an older drug containing liraglutide that’s approved as a weight-loss treatment with lower effectiveness than Wegovy,

However, the MHRA that Ozempic was not approved for weight loss, but “it is commonly used off-label for that purpose” in Britain.

Novo received a request for review from the MHRA on Monday on the correlation between potential suicidal and self-harming thoughts and GLP-1 drugs.

“We are currently reviewing safety data on the risk of suicidal thoughts and thoughts of self-harm associated with medicines known as GLP-1 receptor agonists, used for treating both type 2 diabetes and weight loss,” Cave, who is chief safety officer at Novo Nordisk, said.

Also included in the review are AstraZeneca’s type 2 diabetes drug — called exenatide and marketed as Bydureon — Sanofi’s lixisenatide and Eli Lilly’s dulaglutide.

Sanofi told Reuters that they “are working with the MHRA.”

“Sanofi confirms our continuous patient safety and pharmacovigilance monitoring system has not identified any safety concerns,” it said.

Eli Lilly is also “aware” of the review, telling Reuters, “Patient safety is Lilly’s top priority, and we will respond to the review regarding safety signals related to dulaglutide (Trulicity) as part of our routine regulatory review processes.”

The probe, which will review adverse drug reactions reported by doctors and patients, was initiated on July 12, though it’s unknown when it will end or what results could come out.

Between 2020 and July 6, 2023, the MHRA said it received five adverse reports “involving semaglutide” and associated with “suicidal and self-injurious behavior.” Between 2010 and July 6, 2023, they received 12 adverse drug reactions “involving liraglutide” and associated with “suicidal and self-injurious behavior.”

Meanwhile, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) — which polices the safety of medicines used in the EU — said earlier this month that it launched an investigation into all of Novo Nordisk’s weight-loss treatments, plus any other medicines that contain semaglutide or liraglutide, after Iceland’s health regulator flagged three cases of patients on the meds having suicidal and self harm-related thoughts.

Medics are also sounding the alarm about additional side effects, including blurred vision, kidney failure and gallstones.

CNN reported several dieters who have been diagnosed with severe gastroparesis, a condition that slows or stops the movement of food from the stomach to the small intestine, likely as a result of taking Ozempic, their doctors believe.

Some people are rushing to the restroom and waking up with soiled sheets, and some say they joined a “s–t the bed club,” saying they’ve woken up to find themselves covered in their own poop.

Users of the drug have also claimed they experienced odd dreams about Hollywood stars.

People have been sharing bizarre slumber fantasies on social media that include joining the cast of “The Golden Girls,” preparing to rob a museum with Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck, and carrying Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s baby and then blending their families.

“Ozempic finger” has digit and wrist sizes shrinking, and jewelers have reported that women are coming in droves to size down their rings and bracelets — up a shocking 150% compared to last year. Another nasty side effect is “Ozempic burp” — specifically “sulfur burps” smelling of rotten eggs.

Some have even said their butts have flattened “like a pancake” — including one person who reportedly had undergone a previous Brazilian butt lift.