Popular Weight-Loss Drugs Pose Serious Risks for Pregnant Women — But Warnings Are Buried

Ozempic and Wegovy, the drugs at the center of the latest weight-loss craze, carry serious and under-discussed risks for pregnant women.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warns that the use of Ozempic — approved for diabetes but taken off-label for weight loss — and Wegovy should be discontinued at least two months prior to pregnancy because it takes that long for the body to eliminate the drug.

But the National Institutes of Health (NIH) reports that nearly half of the pregnancies in the U.S. are unplanned. And the drug is popular among women and marketed to women of childbearing age.