What happens when you stop taking Ozempic?
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Most people regain a lot of the weight. A year after stopping semaglutide, the drug in Ozempic and Wegovy, people in its main trial had regained about two thirds of what they lost, and most of the health gains faded too. If you’re thinking of stopping, plan it with your doctor and build the habits that hold your weight first.
What the trials found
| Trial | What happened |
|---|---|
| STEP 1 extension, semaglutide | Lost 17.3% of their weight in 68 weeks. A year after stopping, they were only 5.6% below where they started. |
| STEP 4, semaglutide | After 20 weeks on the drug, people switched to a placebo regained 6.9% of their weight over the next 48 weeks. People who stayed on it lost another 7.9%. |
| SURMOUNT-4, tirzepatide | After 36 weeks on the drug, people switched to a placebo regained 14% over the next year. People who stayed on it lost another 5.5%. |
Why it happens
These drugs act on the parts of the brain that control appetite. When the drug leaves your body, that effect goes with it. Semaglutide lasts about a week in the blood, so it takes several weeks after the last dose to clear.
Stopping is like switching off the air conditioning. The room drifts back toward the temperature outside, unless something else holds it there.
What to do
- Never stop or change a dose on your own. Plan it with the doctor who prescribes it.
- Build the habits while you’re on the drug: protein at every meal, lifting two or three days a week, a daily walk, and a daily weigh-in.
- Set a line. Pick a number, like 5 pounds up, that means you call your doctor or tighten your plan.
- Keep lifting. Muscle you build on the drug stays when you stop if you keep using it.
More on the drug is in Ozempic and Wegovy, and on maintenance in keeping it off.
4 sources
- Wilding et al., Weight regain and cardiometabolic effects after withdrawal of semaglutide: the STEP 1 trial extension, Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, 2022pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Rubino et al., Effect of continued weekly subcutaneous semaglutide vs placebo on weight loss maintenance in adults with overweight or obesity: the STEP 4 randomized clinical trial, JAMA, 2021pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Aronne et al., Continued treatment with tirzepatide for maintenance of weight reduction in adults with obesity: the SURMOUNT-4 randomized clinical trial, JAMA, 2024pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- US Food and Drug Administration, Wegovy (semaglutide) prescribing information, DailyMeddailymed.nlm.nih.gov
