Semaglutide Muscle Loss: How Common, How Long It Lasts
The semaglutide labels do not list muscle loss as a side effect. What people mean by it: losing muscle along with fat while losing weight.
- In the label
- Not listed
- Most common in the label
- Nausea 20.3%
Wegovy: key facts
Its half-life is about 1 week. After 7 d, half is gone, and five half-lives (35 d) leave about 3%.
During STEP 1, the 68-week figures were 14.9% of body weight and 2.4% on placebo.
Monthly prices in US dollars include the list price and self-pay offers, each taken from the maker's price page.
Sources: FDA label (DailyMed), healthsystemtracker.org, prnewswire.com 1 2.
What the Ozempic label shows instead
The Ozempic label does not list muscle loss. Most often, it lists these five side effects.
| Side effect | Placebo | Ozempic 0.5 mg | Ozempic 1 mg | More than placebo, 1 mg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nausea | 6.1% | 15.8% | 20.3% | +14.2 points |
| Vomiting | 2.3% | 5% | 9.2% | +6.9 points |
| Diarrhea | 1.9% | 8.5% | 8.8% | +6.9 points |
| Abdominal pain | 4.6% | 7.3% | 5.7% | +1.1 points |
| Constipation | 1.5% | 5% | 3.1% | +1.6 points |
Source: Ozempic label (DailyMed).
Source: FDA label (DailyMed).