TikTokers share unwanted 'Ozempic face' side-effect

What’s more important - your figure or your face?

It’s a question for those participating in the latest weight-loss trend - injectable type 2 diabetes management drugs like Ozempic.

The drug, semaglutide, is being marketed under brand names like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Rybelsus and has been rumored to be a favorite among celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Elon Musk.

By injecting the drug into your body once a week, it reduces appetite and increases insulin thus reducing cravings and making it easier for people to lose weight.

Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter

Although the drug was initially created for people with type 2 diabetes or obesity, it has become a hit with people looking to lose weight - even when not medically necessary to do so.

But before you try to get your hands on the coveted drug, you should know that it has some adverse side effects, including making people appear older in their faces.

Jennifer Berger, a 41-year-old woman who recently try Mounjaro, an injectable drug similar to Ozempic, told New York Times that after losing 20 pounds she noticed she looked older.

“I remember looking in the mirror, and it was almost like I didn’t even recognize myself. My body looked great, but my face looked exhausted and old,” Berger said.

“As you get older, if you get too thin or kind of slim or fit-looking you actually can look older in the face and I call this ‘Ozempic face’,” Dr Paul Jarrod Frank said on TikTok.

“There’s something about the medication that’s really almost creating a mild facial wasting,” he added.

Typically, with any type of rapid weight loss the first sign of fat loss appears in the face.

"I’m now finding that in this group of patients, they actually need facial re-volumization," Dr Frank said.

Editor's Note: This article was amended on January 27. It previously called Ozempic a weight-loss drug, however it was approved by the FDA as a diabetes management drug.

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.