Jess Loren, GLP-1 user, shares another side effect of taking Ozempic: “It happened pretty instantly”

GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic or Wegovy are helping millions of Americans bring their weight and blood sugar levels under control with noticeable results. However, taking the drugs does come with some side effects.

One such is the loss of muscle mass, for which doctors and health experts urge those who use the drugs to incorporate an exercise routine as part of their treatment. Another one that people have noticed is the loss or muting of taste.

“It happened pretty instantly”

Such was the case for Jess Loren, a resident of Los Angeles who has been taking a GLP-1 medication to manage her polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) symptoms since April 2023. She explained to USA TODAY that she noticed the side effect almost immediately.

“It happened pretty instantly,” she told the outlet. “It’s muted. I can still taste it, but it’s not the same. Like the sugar was deleted.”

The treatment has been working for her, as evidenced above. However, she remembers loving the sweetness of such pleasures as Cap’n Crunch cereal, Coca-Cola, and Snickers bars that nowadays “taste bland,” as well as other flavors just aren’t as noticeable anymore.

Taste muting side effect is known to GLP-1 drug makers and doctors

Not everyone one on GLP-1 treatments experiences this particular side effect, but Loren is not alone. USA TODAY cited a study from March this year from the University of Pennsylvania, where researchers found that 85% of those taking GLP-1s scored far worse on an empirical taste test compared to people not on the drugs.

This was viewed across all five taste areas: salty, sweet, bitter, sour and umami.

While one of the authors of the study said the team was “quite surprised” by the results, doctors with patients taking GLP-a drugs weren’t. They have already been aware of this happening, but there is no known reason for what is causing it nor exactly how many people it is affecting.

Furthermore, a spokesperson for Novo Nordisk, maker of popular Ozempic and Wegovy, as well as Victoza told USA TODAY that the “altered taste sensation, known medically as dysgeusia, is a well-known class effect for all marketed GLP-1s and has been listed in the respective prescribing information for these medicines.”

“This can manifest in various ways, with an unpleasant, abnormal or altered taste sensation, and is often described as metallic,” they added.

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