Saxenda for Weight Loss

GLP-1 drugs have emerged as an effective option for weight management. As such, the popularity of these prescription medications has increased dramatically in recent years.

While drugs like Ozempic®, Wegovy®, and Mounjaro® are becoming household names, Saxenda® is one you may be less familiar with. So, what is Saxenda, how does it work, and who can get a prescription for it?

We’ve got all the information you need about Saxenda for weight loss. Keep reading to explore the basics (and more) of using Saxenda weight loss injections.

Saxenda is a brand name for the drug liraglutide. Liraglutide is a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist, or GLP-1 RA for short.

Saxenda is manufactured by the pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk. It’s approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for chronic weight management.

Fun fact: Liraglutide is also FDA-approved for treating type 2 diabetes under the brand name Victoza®.

The FDA has approved Saxenda for weight management in adults with obesity, which is usually defined as a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher.

It’s also approved for weight loss in adults with overweight (a BMI of 27 or higher) and at least one weight-related medical condition, such as:

• Type 2 diabetes

• High blood pressure (hypertension)

• High cholesterol

Saxenda has also been FDA-approved for use in children and adolescents 12 years and older with a body weight over 60 kilograms (about 132 pounds) or a BMI of at least 30.

Like other GLP-1 receptor agonists, Saxenda is intended to be used along with lifestyle changes that promote healthy weight loss. These include eating a reduced-calorie diet and increasing physical activity levels.

In December 2024, the FDA approved liraglutide injections as a generic version of Victoza to treat patients with type 2 diabetes. This form of the medication can be prescribed off-label for weight loss, but there isn’t currently a generic version of Saxenda FDA-approved specifically for weight loss.

Liraglutide, Saxenda’s active ingredient, works by mimicking the GLP-1 hormone that occurs naturally in the body.

But liraglutide is more resistant to enzymes that typically break down natural GLP-1. This allows liraglutide to stick around in the body for longer.

The effects of liraglutide include:

• Increasing insulin release, which lowers blood sugar levels (glucose)

• Inhibiting production of glucagon, a hormone that raises blood sugar

• Delaying the emptying of your stomach, helping you feel full for longer

• Acting on receptors in the brain that control appetite, which can reduce food cravings

All of these effects help support weight loss.

Saxenda is taken as a subcutaneous injection. This means it’s injected just under your skin. You can inject Saxenda in your abdomen, thigh, or upper arm.

You take Saxenda once daily (other GLP-1 injections like Ozempic or compounded semaglutide are taken once a week). It’s recommended to try to do your injection around the same time each day.

Saxenda weight loss injections are provided in a pre-filled pen. Before your first dose, your healthcare provider will show you how to use your Saxenda pen to inject the medication.

The recommended daily dose of Saxenda for weight loss is 3 milligrams (mg). However, you probably won’t start at this dose.

Like other GLP-1 medications, Saxenda dosing works on what’s called a dose escalation scheme. The starting dose of Saxenda is actually 0.6 milligrams. The dosage is gradually increased each week by 0.6 milligrams until you reach the recommended dose of 3 milligrams.

You’ll continue taking 3 milligrams of Saxenda each day going forward. This is called your maintenance dose.

This dose escalation scheme helps your body adjust to Saxenda and reduces the risk of digestive side effects.

The table below shows a typical dose escalation schedule for Saxenda.

Side effects can be a real drag, but every medication has some. Saxenda is no different.

According to Saxenda’s prescribing information, the most common side effects of Saxenda are:

• Nausea

• Vomiting

• Diarrhea

• Constipation

• Upset stomach

• Stomach pain or abdominal pain

• Injection site reactions

• Headache

• Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia)

• Fatigue

• Dizziness

• Fever

• Inflammation of the digestive tract (gastroenteritis)

Digestive issues are among the most common side effects of GLP-1s — Saxenda included. But for many patients, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.

Experiencing Saxenda side effects that affect the digestive system (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, etc.) is most common during dose escalation — when you increase your dose — while your body adjusts. For many, the side effects are temporary and go away after reaching the maintenance dose.

Of course, not everyone will experience all (or even any) of these side effects. If the adverse effects are severe or disrupt your daily life, get in touch with your healthcare provider.

Serious Side Effects of Saxenda

While less common, Saxenda can cause more serious side effects, including:

• Inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis)

• Gallbladder disease, which can include gallbladder problems like gallstones and gallbladder inflammation

• Fast heartbeat

• Severely low blood sugar, especially when used with other medications that lower blood sugar

• Kidney problems that may require dialysis (for those who experience nausea or vomiting and have existing kidney issues)

• Suicidal thoughts or behavior

• Allergic reactions

Any of these more serious Saxendra side effects call for immediate medical attention.

Saxenda may increase the risk of a type of thyroid cancer called medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC). So people with a family history of MTC or who have multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2 (MEN2) — a condition that can lead to thyroid tumors — shouldn’t take Saxenda.

People who are pregnant or are trying to become pregnant also shouldn’t use Saxenda.

There’s no data on the presence of Saxenda in breast milk. Those who are breastfeeding should seek medical advice from a healthcare provider before starting Saxenda.

Lastly, Saxenda shouldn’t be prescribed to those who’ve had a previous allergic reaction to liraglutide.

Now to the million-dollar question: Is Saxenda effective for weight loss? The short answer here is yes, but let’s dig a little deeper.

A 2016 review assessed the results of five clinical trials of liraglutide used along with a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity. It found that liraglutide consistently led to four to six kilograms of weight loss over the trial period. That’s roughly nine to thirteen pounds.

Additionally, more trial participants on liraglutide lost at least five to ten percent of their baseline body weight compared to those who received a placebo.

Saxenda vs. Other GLP-1 for Weight Loss

You’ve probably heard about the effectiveness of other GLP-1s like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro. So how does Saxenda compare?

The STEP 8 clinical trial was done to see how effective liraglutide is for weight loss compared to semaglutide. (Semaglutide is the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy.)

The trial found that semaglutide was more effective for weight loss than liraglutide. Participants taking semaglutide lost an average of 15.8 percent of their baseline body weight compared to 6.4 percent with liraglutide. Trial participants taking semaglutide also had a higher likelihood of losing 10, 15, or 20 percent or more of their baseline body weight.

No clinical trials have done a head-to-head comparison of liraglutide with tirzepatide yet. Tirzepatide is the active ingredient in Mounjaro and Zepbound®.

However, a 2023 meta-analysis of clinical trials found that a weekly tirzepatide dose of 10 or 15 milligrams led to more weight loss than a 2.4-milligram semaglutide weekly dose and a 3-milligram liraglutide daily dose.

The list price of Saxenda is $1,349.02 for one pre-filled pen — so the cost can really stack up over time.

For reference, one pre-filled Saxenda pen contains 18 milligrams of liraglutide. One pen will last six days when you’re on the 3-milligram daily maintenance dose.

Not everyone who’s prescribed Saxenda will end up paying the full list price. Health insurance may cover the cost of weight loss medications, but not always.

If you’re ever unsure about whether a medication is covered under your insurance plan, reach out to your insurance provider to double-check.

If you’re on Saxenda for weight loss, there may come a point where you decide to stop taking it. You might decide it’s just not for you (those digestive side effects can be rough and are a common cause of discontinuation). Or maybe you’ve achieved your weight loss goals.

When you stop taking Saxenda, you might notice that your appetite goes up and some food cravings return. You may also regain some of the weight you’ve lost. In fact, weight regain is pretty common after stopping a GLP-1 weight loss medication.

The good news is that there are things you can do to help prevent weight regain. Remember the changes in diet and exercise you made when you started Saxenda? Stick to them!

Some research has found that maintaining an exercise routine during liraglutide treatment may help prevent weight gain after you stop taking it.

If Saxenda doesn’t work out for you, other weight loss medication options are available.

Other weight loss medications FDA-approved to treat overweight and obesity include:

• Orlistat (Xenical®)

• Phentermine topiramate (Qsymia®)

• Naltrexone-bupropion (Contrave®)

• Semaglutide (Wegovy)

• Tirzepatide (Zepbound)

A healthcare professional can go over the pros and cons of each type of weight loss medication and how they work. This can help you to make an informed decision on which medication may be ideal for you personally.

Weight loss surgery could also be an option. Though it’s not usually the first thing people try, bariatric surgery is a proven way to achieve long-term weight loss for patients with obesity.

If you’ve been trying to lose weight, you’re certainly not alone. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly half of Americans surveyed between 2013 and 2016 reported that they’d made an effort to lose weight in the past 12 months.

Researchers have found that Internet searches for “lose weight” and “weight loss” have increased from 2004 to 2018. This comes as the prevalence of obesity in the United States rose from 30.5 percent around the year 2000 to 41.9 percent by 2020.

We’ve covered a lot of information about Saxenda for weight loss, so let’s go over the key points again:

• Liraglutide, the active ingredient in Saxenda, is a GLP-1 receptor agonist drug — it’s in the same class of medications as Ozempic and Wegovy.

• The FDA has approved Saxenda for chronic weight management for people with obesity and those with overweight and weight-related medical conditions.

• Saxenda isn’t meant to be anyone’s sole weight loss strategy. A healthy diet and regular exercise are vital supplements to Saxenda.

• Saxenda is injected subcutaneously once daily.

• Your medical provider will start you on a lower dose of Saxenda and gradually increase it until you reach a maintenance dose of 3 milligrams daily.

• Digestive side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea are common with Saxenda, particularly during dose escalation.

• Saxenda leads to consistent weight loss for many patients — but possibly less than weight loss medications containing semaglutide or tirzepatide.

• You may regain some weight after stopping Saxenda.

At the end of the day, each person’s weight loss journey is different. What works for some may not work as well for others.

Not sure where to start? Meeting with a healthcare provider is a good idea.

Consider doing our free online weight loss assessment to see what options might be available to you.