(NewsNation) — As drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy have surged in popularity over their ability to promote rapid weight loss, the discussion has shifted to what happens when you stop taking it.
Studies have shown the active ingredient in Ozempic and similar drugs can help users achieve and sustain weight loss when used in conjunction with lifestyle adjustments.
The drugs semaglutide and tirzepatide — better known by the brand names they are marketed under: Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro — were initially manufactured for people living with diabetes.
Now, the drugs aren’t just being prescribed for diabetics anymore. They’ve become popular as everyone from celebrities, influencers to everyday Americans as a way to lose weight quickly. Some Americans are even traveling to Mexico to get the weight loss drugs.
Despite its popularity, people stop taking the medication for a variety of reasons.
For some, their insurance does not cover it and they simply cannot afford the medication that is meant to be taken once a week and can cost over $1,000 a month.
For others, the weight loss might come with potentially serious side effects that they decide are just not worth it to continue.
Either way, research has shown that the desired weight loss only lasts while you are taking the medication.
What is ‘rebound weight gain’?
Studies show that once people stop using the medication, any weight they’ve lost is likely to return. It is being referred to as “rebound weight gain” and it is making headlines.
Research published in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism shows participants regained two-thirds of their prior weight loss one year after ceasing to take the medication.
The 2002 study examined changes in body weight and cardiometabolic risk factors involved when patients no longer took the medication.
The study found that a majority of people who stopped taking the medication gained most of the weight back within a year of stopping.
Similarly, the positive changes researchers had seen in cardiometabolic risk factors had also reversed.
This comes amid reports of the prescribed medications having less-than-ideal outcomes for some patients.
What are Ozempic health concerns?
In an interview with People, Dr. Ania Jastreboff, an obesity medicine physician scientist at Yale University, said the drugs aren’t meant to be stopped.
The drugs are intended for type 2 diabetes and obesity — both chronic conditions.
“If you have a patient who has high blood pressure, they have hypertension, and you start them on an antihypertensive medication, and their blood pressure improves, what would happen if you stopped that medication? Well, their blood pressure would go back up — and we’re not surprised. It’s the same with anti-obesity medications,” she explained.
Healthcare professionals say the decision to stop any medication should be discussed with your primary care physician.
Rates of weight gain after stopping the drugs vary depending on the individual’s overall health and student weight gain can impact blood pressure and blood sugar.
In an interview with NPR, Dr. Karla Robinson, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based family physician, said, “We’re seeing a lot of patients have this rebound weight gain, and it can really be devastating,”
Dr. Mopelola Adeyemo, clinical instructor of nutrition at UCLA, joined “NewsNation Prime” to discuss the health risks of pausing Ozempic.
She said the real risk comes from restarting the medication after stopping it for an extended period.
“Because this class of medication is treating chronic diseases like obesity, they are really meant to be taken weekly and continuously, not meant to be taken as desired,” Adeyemo said.
How to keep the weight off
Healthcare providers stress exercise and a proper diet can be helpful in weight maintenance when transitioning away from pharmacological assistance to losing weight.
They stress lifestyle adjustments made to sustain weight loss while on the medications are even more important when deciding to stop.
Since you are likely to regain weight if you stop using the drug, it is important to make changes in your lifestyle as well.
“Semaglutide is not a substitute for diet and exercise,” Dr. Kathleen Dungan, an endocrinologist in the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, told Healthline. “But can be a very effective treatment.”