4 min read
- A new study found people lost an average of 32.4 pounds while on semaglutide and tirzepatide.
- People who discontinue GLP-1 drugs regained nearly 22 pounds within a year. They returned to their starting weight in less than 2 years.
- Doctors say there’s three common mistakes people make that is likely contributing to weight gain.
GLP-1 MEDICATIONS LIKE Ozempic and Zepbound have revolutionized the weight loss space. But are GLP-1s the miracle cure to obesity? Some might think so, but it’s one thing to lose the weight. It’s another to keep it off.
A recent study published in The BMJ confirmed what you might suspect: people are bouncing back to their original weight after quitting weight loss drugs.
That’s not great news, especially if you’re someone who cannot cope with the side effects or don’t want to be on a GLP-1 for life. Then there’s the financial aspect. Paying monthly for a drug isn’t cheap. The Wegovy pill is technically cheaper, but this still might not be realistic if you’re one of the 27.2 million without health insurance.
If you’re planning on ending your GLP-1 drug use someday, the last thing you want is to lose all your progress. But there’s a way to reduce that risk. Below, doctors share how to avoid the three super common mistakes people make when discontinuing GLP-1s.
People Return to Starting Weight in Less Than 2 Years
Looking into the weight regain after Ozempic, researchers collected data from 37 studies involving 9,341 participants on a weight loss drug. Some took older weight loss drugs like liraglutide (Saxenda, Victoza) and other took the newer semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound). People stayed on a weight loss drug for about 39 weeks and researchers followed up on their weight loss progress usually after 32 weeks.
People lost weight at different rates, but the most notable were those taking semaglutide and tirzepatide. On average, people on those lost an average of 32.4 pounds. The observations didn’t end there.
People who slimmed down on GLP-1s found their weight creeping back up. In fact, people would regain 21.8 pounds within a year. The researchers estimated most folks would return to their starting weight around 1.5 years.
The results were convincing enough for the researchers to include a note of warning. In their final statements, they wrote “these findings suggest caution in short term use of these drugs without a more comprehensive approach to weight management.”
3 Common Mistakes Doctors See When Stopping a GLP-1
Not Having a Strong Exercise and Diet Plan
The biggest mistake is not having a plan in place before dropping a GLP-1 drug. Because here’s the truth. The body doesn’t want you to lose weight. It goes back to your 10th grade biology class. Our human ancestors had to fight tooth and nail to find enough to eat, and the body adapted to retain fat to live. It can perceive weight loss as a threat to your survival. When you go off a GLP-1, your body wants to restore its balance. So “you need a very strong dietary and exercise program in place,” says Richard Siegel, MD, co-director of the Diabetes and Lipid Center at Tufts Medical Center and endocrinologist at Tufts Medicine Weight and Wellness Center-Stoneham.
Keeping the Same Habits
Luis Medina Mora, MD, an endocrinologist at Northwell’s Lenox Hill Hospital, adds another mistake to the list. Not changing your habits.
Too many people assume the habits they formed when their appetite was suppressed on a medication will stick around, he explains. That’s not what actually happens.
“Once the physiologic appetite suppression is gone, ‘I’ll just keep doing what I did’ often isn’t enough without adjustments,” Mora says. “Others stop right before high-risk periods—holidays, travel, or major stress—rather than timing discontinuation when routines and supports are strongest.”
Not Seeing Your Doctor Anymore
Once people see results or reach their goal weight, people think they don’t need to see their doctor anymore. Diana Huang, MD, family physician at Swedish Downtown Primary Care, says it’s a mistake. In fact, she notes your doctor can help to maintain the trajectory of weight loss after quitting GLP-1s.
Siegel has seen it time and time again. Patients will lose the weight and stop coming to his practice…only to come back a few years later looking for help. And Huang says some patients won’t come back at all out of embarrassment.
“An unfortunate thing I see is that patients, likely in large part due to the high stigma around weight gain, will not get in touch when they stop or are unable to continue the medications,” Huang explains. “That really keeps us helping them optimize the trajectory of things.”
This is especially if you’ve stopped because your insurance stops covering GLP-1s. “Once patients get to a healthy weight, they often do not meet the insurance criteria to get these medication covered,” says Mir Ali, MD, medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center. “Until the insurance companies think of dealing with obesity as a chronic disease and not a lack of willpower or a psychological problem, this will continue to be an issue.” He advises still checking in with your doctor who can provide alternative options.
Some, Not All, Need to Stay on Ozempic for Life
When Mora prescribes a GLP-1 drug to his patients, he says it’s impossible to know the results. Some lose weight and can start to wean off the drug after several months. Others will need to stay on for life.
“I always clarify to my patients the possibility that they will need to continue the medication long-term,” Mora says. This can look like staying at a lower dose of the drug for maintenance therapy or maintaining their regular dosage.
That may not sound great, but Mora reminds MH readers this isn’t the first drug people have had to take for life. People don’t think twice about staying on a life-saving medication for managing heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Obesity meds should be no different.
Korin Miller is a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Self, Glamour, and more. She has a master’s degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.
Jocelyn Solis-Moreira, MS is the associate health & fitness for Men’s Health and has previously written for CNN, Scientific American, Popular Science, and National Geographic before joining the brand. When she’s not working, she’s doing circus arts or working towards the perfect pull-up.
