How Long Can You Stay on Ozempic For Weight Loss?

You may have heard that Ozempic® (semaglutide) can help with weight loss, but how long can you stay on Ozempic exactly? Ozempic is a type 2 diabetes drug, which means it’s intended for long-term (even life-long) use. 

Ozempic is a diabetes drug sometimes prescribed off-label for weight loss. (Off-label use means it’s prescribed for something other than what the FDA approved it for.) So there’s no set timeframe for how long you’ll stay on it if you’re taking it as a weight loss medication.

Like snowflakes, music tastes, and weird celebrity crushes, everyone’s weight loss journey is different. How long you decide to take Ozempic for weight loss is really up to you. 

But, according to a study sponsored by Novo Nordisk, weight regain is common after stopping semaglutide.

When you stop taking Ozempic will depend on several factors, including your starting weight, goal weight, and whether you have any health conditions.

Read on to find out if you have to take Ozempic forever, the risks of long-term use, and what alternative weight loss medications are out there.

There’s no set time frame for how long you can stay on Ozempic if you use it off-label for weight loss. If you tolerate it well, you’ll probably want to stay on Ozempic at least until you reach your goal weight.

This is something you’ll want to discuss with a healthcare provider. They may recommend taking the medication until you reach your goal weight or longer for long-term weight management.

How long you take Ozempic will depend on: 

• Your starting weight

• Your goal weight

• Whether you have any underlying medical conditions

• Whether you make nutrition and exercise changes alongside taking Ozempic 

• How well you tolerate the drug 

In short, how long you can stay on Ozempic will all depend on you and your body. Your provider can monitor your health on Ozempic to determine if and when you need to come off the drug.

Side Effects May Dictate How Long You Take Ozempic

You know what they say about best-laid plans. As with any prescription drug, Ozempic comes with potential side effects.

So, even if a healthcare provider thinks you’ll be a good candidate for it, you never know how your body will react. You could experience side effects severe enough that you want to stop treatment earlier than planned.

Common side effects of Ozempic include: 

• Nausea 

• Vomiting

• Diarrhea

• Abdominal pain

• Constipation 

These side effects are most common at the beginning of treatment, especially when you increase your dose. They often subside after a few weeks.

Is Ozempic long term? There isn’t much research into long-term Ozempic use, but it appears to be safe. As mentioned, Ozempic is approved by the FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) as a diabetes drug to help those with type 2 diabetes manage their blood sugar levels.

So, it is designed to be taken long-term — after all, type 2 diabetes is typically a lifelong condition.

Ozempic Clinical Trials for Weight Loss

A 2022 review sponsored by Novo Nordisk rounded up the results from the STEP (Semaglutide Treatment Effect in People with obesity) clinical trials. These trials looked at how a weekly 2.4-milligram (mg) semaglutide injection affected people with excess body weight and obesity.

STEP 1, 3, 4, and 8 trials looked at participants with overweight and obesity without type 2 diabetes. These studies found an average weight loss ranging from almost 15 percent to upwards of 17 percent over 68 weeks.

STEP 5 lasted 104 weeks — two years! — and found that average weight loss was about 15 percent at the end of the study.

If you’re wondering, other STEP trials looked at participants with type 2 diabetes. 

Semaglutide was relatively well tolerated in these studies. Participants experienced gastrointestinal side effects, but most of these side effects were short in duration and mild or moderate in severity.

How Long Does It Take to Start Losing Weight on Ozempic?

A 2021 study sponsored by Novo Nordisk looked at almost 2,000 adults with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher or 27 or higher with at least one weight-related health condition. 

Participants took a weekly 2.4-milligram injection of semaglutide alongside making some lifestyle changes. They showed weight loss by the four-week mark, and this weight loss continued for the duration of the 68-week study.

So this suggests weight loss can happen relatively quickly on semaglutide, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll come off the drug quickly.

If you don’t have diabetes, you probably won’t have to take Ozempic forever. You might take the drug until you reach your goal weight and a healthcare provider advises you to stop taking it.

But in the STEP 4 clinical trial, people who stopped taking Wegovy after 20 weeks quickly regained the weight they had lost. While those who continued taking it reached their maximum weight loss after one year on a maintenance dose. 

This trial suggests that long-term treatment is the key to treating obesity, a chronic and relapsing disease.

A 2021 review looked at the results from three semaglutide clinical trial programs. It concluded that a significant benefit of semaglutide was that it can be used “for long-term management of weight.”

The review also noted that Wegovy® (the higher-dose version of Ozempic made by the same manufacturer, Novo Nordisk) “is supposed to be used for long-term weight management.”

So, can you stay on Ozempic for life to keep the weight off? In theory, yes.

Can You Stop Taking Ozempic at Any Time?

You certainly don’t need to take Ozempic indefinitely or power through if the side effects get to be too much. However, you shouldn’t abruptly stop using the medication (or any prescription drug, for that matter) without letting your prescribing healthcare provider know.

Your provider can offer guidance on when and how to stop semaglutide injections.

Ozempic is still a relatively new drug, but there’s no reason to think it has any long-term risks.

The 2022 Novo Nordisk-sponsored review we mentioned earlier found the drug to be relatively safe over trials ranging from 68 weeks to 104 weeks, but we don’t know much beyond that point.

Here’s what we know about Ozempic’s health risks. 

The drug comes with a black box FDA warning stating that semaglutide causes thyroid C-cell tumors in rodents. Sounds scary, but it’s currently unclear if Ozempic causes thyroid tumors or thyroid cancer in humans.

For now, people with a personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) or with multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2 (MEN 2) shouldn’t take Ozempic.

Beyond that, some rate but serious health issues were reported in clinical trials, including: 

• Pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas) 

• Diabetic retinopathy complications (an eye disease) 

• Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) if you take an insulin secretagogue or insulin

• Acute kidney injury 

• Acute gallbladder disease 

Seek medical advice if you notice any serious side effects. 

Ozempic isn’t your only option if you’re considering drugs that might support weight loss. 

There are other injections, such as: 

• Compounded semaglutide 

• Wegovy (the higher-dose version of Ozempic FDA-approved for weight loss) 

• Tirzepatide (Zepbound® and off-label Mounjaro®)

• Liraglutide (Saxenda® and off-label Victoza®) 

There are also non-injectable medications, such as: 

• Semaglutide (Rybelsus®) 

• Off-label metformin

• Naltrexone-bupropion (Contrave®)

• Phentermine-topiramate (Qsymia®)

• Orlistat (Xenical®)  

• Topiramate (Topamax®)  

How long you can stay on these other weight loss medications also varies wildly. It’ll ultimately depend on your weight loss goals, overall health and how the drug works for your body.

Of course, there are also drug-free weight loss interventions you can try, such as nutritional plans, exercise routines and behavioral change tools and services.

Theoretically, you could stay on Ozempic forever, as long as you’re tolerating the drug well. However, that doesn’t mean you have to stay on Ozempic for the long haul. A healthcare provider can help you decide whether to go on and stay on Ozempic and when to come off.

Here’s what you need to know:

• How long you can stay on Ozempic is super personal. Ozempic isn’t FDA-approved for weight loss, so there’s no set time limit for taking it. It’ll depend on things like your starting weight, goal weight, medical history, lifestyle interventions, and how well you tolerate the drug.  

• Long-term Ozempic use seems safe. It’s designed as a long-term diabetes medication, after all. Studies spanning up to two years show semaglutide is relatively safe and that side effects are mild to moderate and often resolve with time. But we’re still learning about Ozempic’s long-term effects. 

• Weight gain can happen when you come off Ozempic. But that doesn’t necessarily mean you should stay on the medication forever. Chat with a healthcare provider for advice on stopping the drug and personalized guidance on keeping weight loss off.

If you’re still exploring your options, know that Ozempic isn’t the only weight loss treatment out there. Check out our guide to Ozempic versus metformin, for example. 

And whatever you choose, there’s plenty of support to help you along the way.