Johann Hari: They’re Lying To You About The Side Effects Of Ozempic!

Ozempic and similar drugs are synthetic versions of GLP‑1, a gut hormone that tells the body it’s had enough food. Natural GLP‑1 is cleared in minutes; the drug version stays active for a week. Initially thought to act mainly on the gut (slowing gastric emptying), newer neuroscience shows it penetrates the brain widely, altering reward and satiety circuits so people feel 50–80% less hungry and often lose 15–24% of body weight in a year.

For people with high BMI and/or type 2 diabetes, GLP‑1s can dramatically improve health: big trials show roughly 20% fewer heart attacks and strokes, and gastric‑surgery data suggest large weight loss can cut deaths from diabetes by 92% and overall mortality by ~40% over seven years. However, French registry data indicate a 50–75% relative increase in thyroid cancer risk among diabetics on GLP‑1s, pancreatitis risk appears roughly ninefold higher, and there are FDA‑flagged concerns about depression and suicidality in a minority of users.

In trials, within a year of stopping semaglutide, people regained on average about 70% of the weight they’d lost, implying that for most, the drug functions like statins: a lifelong treatment, not a cure. There is also concern about tolerance (the drug becoming less effective over time) and the possibility that, if withdrawn after years of use, a slowed metabolism could leave some people heavier and less healthy than at baseline.

All large, rapid weight loss causes loss of lean mass as well as fat. With Ozempic, some patients lose 20–30% of their lean muscle. If they’re already slim—or using the drug purely for vanity—this can set them up for sarcopenia in later life, with greater risk of falls, disability, and death. Maintaining resistance training and protein intake is critical; for people without obesity, Hari strongly advises against taking GLP‑1s because they incur these risks without clear health benefits.

Food is rarely just fuel; people eat for comfort, distraction, and emotional regulation. GLP‑1s dismantle the ability to soothe with overeating, similar to bariatric surgery, where 17% of patients need inpatient psychiatric care afterwards and suicide risk almost quadruples. Around one in ten post‑surgery patients develop a new addiction (alcohol, gambling, shopping). Hari notes his own emotional blunting and the need to find alternative coping mechanisms, and warns that many users will confront unresolved trauma, stress, or relationship problems once food is no longer a numbing tool.