From smelly flatulence to increased fertility, Ozempic has been linked to a host of unusual side effects.
But men are reporting what might be the most embarrassing yet: erectile dysfunction.
Reddit pages devoted to Ozempic and other weight-loss drugs are littered with accounts of men experiencing difficulty performing in bed, likely due to low testosterone caused by the blockbuster drugs.
Safety leaflets included with the drugs include a warning that sexual dysfunction could be a side effect, but the association has not been studied extensively.
A study earlier this year found the problem was a side effect in around one in 75 men taking weight loss drugs, with many describing frustration and humiliation in the bedroom.
A study on the side effects of taking weight loss drugs found that about one in 75 men will suffer from erectile dysfunction and low testosterone levels.
Many men seeking to lose weight with these drugs have been surprised at their loss of ability to have sex and have turned to their Reddit colleagues for advice on how to beat the side effects, one of ‘among them saying: “I’ve been taking Ozempic for 3 months. The TT level dropped very quickly and I am on treatment to fix it now.
“Has anyone had experiences similar to this?” »
Another 23-year-old man, who has been taking semaglutide, the active ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic, for five weeks, said he had never suffered from erectile dysfunction before.
He said: “I recently started seeing someone and am now dealing with a complete loss of erection.
“The first time worked because I eventually got and kept an erection after an hour of unsuccessful attempts.
“But the second time, I got an erection when we were about to do it and then, just like that, it was over.
“It’s a little embarrassing to have to resolve this issue in front of a new partner.”
And another said: “Taking (Ozempic) 1.5 times a week I had complete loss of erection. The Dr who prescribed me Viagra didn’t work at all. I stopped (Ozempic) on my own, three weeks later, I was working normally.
Only a few studies have found that men taking these drugs were more likely to have low testosterone, which has confused doctors because weight loss generally regulates T levels.
Dr Shauna Levy, an obesity specialist at Tulane University, told DailyMail.com that this side effect was “counterintuitive” because fat loss also leads to lower estrogen levels in women. men.
She added: “I don’t deny that it happens, but the path doesn’t reveal itself immediately.”
Weight loss is known to decrease circulating levels of estrogen, the female sex hormone, lower levels of which have helped many women at risk of breast cancer and those with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
Meanwhile, weight loss has been linked to increased testosterone levels, with one study showing that weight loss can improve testosterone levels in overweight middle-aged men by almost 50%.
Low testosterone alone rarely causes erectile dysfunction, which can often be attributed to other health problems, such as hardening of the arteries and high cholesterol.
But testosterone affects libido and lower T levels could lead to reduced sexual desire, leading to erectile dysfunction.
The reason for low testosterone in male Ozempic users has eluded doctors, including Dr. Levy, who said, “I don’t understand the mechanism of why this would happen” and SHE FOUND NO patient in the Tulane system who reported this side. effect.
Dr. Brian Liao of the University of Texas School of Medicine, co-author of the study, said: “Our results (were) in the opposite direction to expectations, where we expected weight loss to improve symptoms of erectile dysfunction.”
This retrospective study found that more than 3.8 percent of men experienced erectile dysfunction while taking these medications, compared to less than 2 percent in the control group.
But Dr. Levy remains skeptical about the prevalence of this side effect, even after speaking to Novo Nordisk’s medical liaison, a person at the company who serves as a link between drug makers and doctors who administer these medications.
She told DailyMail.com that the representative for Novo, the maker of Wegovy and Ozempic, had never heard of the link: “It’s always a sign to me that it’s not the most common thing when the medical liaison has never heard of it.” That’s not to say it’s not a thing, it’s just not on their radar.
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