Oral semaglutide (Wegovy) was authorized by the U.S. Meals and Drug Administration (FDA) in December 2025 as a therapy for weight reduction in individuals with weight problems and no less than one associated well being situation. In scientific trials, oral semaglutide helped individuals lose a median of 13.6 % of their complete physique weight over about 15 months. For somebody with a beginning weight of 235 kilos, this equates to a weight lack of about 33 kilos.
Oral semaglutide is a prescription drug meant for use at the side of a reduced-calorie food plan and common bodily exercise to assist adults with weight problems and associated well being issues drop some weight. Additionally it is used to decrease the chance of main cardiovascular occasions, similar to coronary heart assault and stroke, in adults who’re obese or overweight and have coronary heart illness. Wegovy is the primary oral glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonist authorized for these functions.
GLP-1 medicine (together with semaglutide) work by mimicking GLP-1, a hormone made within the small gut, that impacts the world of the mind that processes starvation and will increase the sensation of fullness by slowing abdomen emptying.
Negative effects and warnings
The most typical unwanted effects of Wegovy embody nausea (essentially the most steadily reported symptom), gastrointestinal points similar to constipation, diarrhea, stomach ache, and vomiting. Different unwanted effects might embody dizziness, fatigue, headache, heartburn, runny nostril or sore throat.
Wegovy tablets, obtainable in doses as much as 25 milligrams (mg), are taken each day upon awakening on an empty abdomen with not more than 4 ounces (oz) of water. It’s best to then wait half-hour earlier than consuming, ingesting, or taking another oral drugs.
This prescription could also be a limiting issue for some individuals. Even once-daily drugs might be ineffective if they do not match naturally into an individual’s life-style, says Oda Oda, M.D., a board-certified household drugs doctor at Baker Well being in New York Metropolis.
“Oral semaglutide is commonly insufficient outdoors of scientific trials as a result of adherence and unwanted effects are limiting elements,” says Dr. Oda. “That is essentially the most tough of those weight reduction medicine due to the strict fasting and timing necessities.”
Wegovy just isn’t really useful for individuals with a private or household historical past of medullary thyroid most cancers. (Wegovy prompted thyroid tumors in rodent research, however it’s unclear the way it impacts the thyroid in people.) It is also not really useful for individuals who have or have had pancreatic or kidney illness, sort 2 diabetes, a historical past of diabetic retinopathy, or psychological well being issues. Don’t use if you’re planning a surgical procedure that requires anesthesia, are pregnant or planning to grow to be pregnant inside the subsequent 2 months, or are breastfeeding.
If none of those contraindications apply to you and you may adhere to its particular dosing directions, Wegovy tablets could also be an choice for you. “Oral semaglutide could also be efficient in extremely skilled sufferers who wish to keep away from injections,” Auda says.
