Stopping Semaglutide: What Happens Week by Week (Regain Data)
Agree a plan with your prescriber before you stop semaglutide. What you are trying to keep: in STEP 1, people on semaglutide 2.4 mg weekly lost 14.9% on average over 68 weeks.
- Average loss, top dose
- 14.9%
- On placebo
- 2.4%
- Trial length
- 68 weeks
- Trial
- STEP 1
Wegovy: key facts
Its half-life is about 1 week: after 7 d, half is gone, and after five half-lives (35 d), about 3% remains.
In STEP 1 over 68 weeks, body weight fell 14.9%, compared with 2.4% among those taking placebo.
Monthly price points for list prices and self-pay offers are shown in US dollars, with each figure taken from the manufacturer's price page.
Sources: FDA label (DailyMed), healthsystemtracker.org, prnewswire.com 1 2.
Stopping semaglutide: the numbers first
| Trial | Dose group | Average weight lost | Placebo or comparison | Weeks | Who was in it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STEP 1 | Semaglutide 2.4 mg weekly | 14.9% | 2.4% | 68 | Adults with obesity or overweight, without diabetes |
| OASIS 4 | Wegovy pill 25 mg daily | 13.6% | 2.4% | 64 | Adults with obesity or overweight, without diabetes |
| SURMOUNT-5 | Semaglutide 1.7 or 2.4 mg weekly (Wegovy) | 13.7% | semaglutide (Wegovy) | 72 | Adults with obesity, without type 2 diabetes |
| STEP 2 | Semaglutide 2.4 mg weekly | 9.6% | 3.4% | 68 | Adults with overweight or obesity and type 2 diabetes |
The sources cited are STEP 1 (FDA label (DailyMed)), SURMOUNT-5 (PubMed), and STEP 2 (PubMed).
Keeping the weight off
- Speak with your prescriber first so the plan covers follow-up visits and any other medicines.
- Keep the eating habits you developed while taking the drug: protein with each meal, smaller portions, and fewer sugary drinks.
- Keep moving. Strength training helps you keep the muscle you have now.
- Weigh yourself at a regular time, and agree beforehand on the change that should prompt a call to your prescriber.
- If you take it for diabetes, ask how your blood sugar will be managed after you stop.
How many people stopped in the trials
Sources: STEP 1 (FDA label (DailyMed)), STEP 1 (PubMed).