Doctor shares GLP-1 users' biggest mistake and what you should do instead
A doctor has shared the 'better' way to use GLP-1 drugs intended for weight loss, after highlighting the 'biggest mistake' people usually make.
With more people using drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro for weight loss than ever before, a health expert has warned users to avoid making this common error.
"Don't go up on the dose because the calendar says so", warns Dr Jones.
Patients are often advised to follow a pre-planned schedule, upping doses of the medication typically every 4 weeks, according to MedExpress.
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But the doctor explained that this isn't how the research was intended to guide dose increases.
Speaking with UNILAD, he said: "A lot of people get these medications through high-volume operations with almost no clinical contact, where one physician signs off on thousands of patients and nobody ever asks how it's going.
"Without that conversation, the schedule becomes the plan by default, and people climb toward the maximum whether they need it or not."
What should GLP-1 users really look out for?
The doctor noted there is a key stage in treatment that medical teams should closely monitor.
"The point where the constant thinking about food quiets down and cravings settle, but a person can still eat normally and get on with their day," he explained.
"Past that point, more medication doesn't buy much and costs plenty."
What happens when GLP-1 users 'overshoot'?
Taking more of the medication than necessary can also reduce its effectiveness, according to Dr Jones.
He added: "When people overshoot, appetite disappears completely.
"They stop eating enough, they lose muscle, and they never build any of the habits that have to hold the weight when the dose eventually comes down.
"The scale moves and nothing underneath it changes."
But the doctor also warned about weight potentially 'bouncing around'.
He noted that a single week without weight loss, which he describes as a 'flat week', is not, by itself, a reason to increase a GLP-1 medication dose.
"The better signal", he noted, "Is whether food is back in your head all the time.
"Either way, that's a conversation with your prescriber."
How many people use GLP-1s in the US?
An astonishing 11 percent of people in the US now report taking the medication for weight loss, according to a new study - up from three percent in 2024, resulting in an increase of eight percent.
Obesity reached its peak in the US in 2022, when 39.9 percent of people were medically classed as obese.
But during the intervening time, it has dropped down to 36.4 percent.
And while there is an obvious correlation between the rise in GLP-1 drugs and lower obesity rates across the country and the world, researchers have warned that other factors may also be playing a part.
Lifestyle changes, public health efforts, and other factors are also likely to have contributed to the decline.
Topics: Weight loss, Health, Ozempic, Mounjaro, Drugs
Mia Williams