‘Ozempic babies’: Can weight-loss drugs make birth control, Plan B less effective?

Women are reportedly falling pregnant while taking Ozempic - despite the fact they're on birth control. Photo / Getty Images

Heard the term “Ozempic baby” recently? Women are sharing their stories of unplanned pregnancy while on weight-loss medications Ozempic and Mounjaro - in spite of the fact that they are on birth control or living with infertility. But health experts have raised concerns that women aren’t being made aware of this possibility when they’re prescribed the drug.

“I got pregnant on Ozempic and was on the pill! Baby boy is due in June,” one woman shared in a TikTok video that’s been shared thousands of times. Another commented, “My surprise Ozempic baby is almost 4 months old, and thankfully very healthy.”

“This is so scary,” wrote another. “I have an IUD in, so I hope I don’t get pregnant.”

A woman named Deb Oliviara told USA Today she had started taking Ozempic to lose weight. While she didn’t consistently take a birth control pill, she said she’d struggled to fall pregnant so far, so wasn’t worried about the effects of the drug.

Two months after starting the medication, she found out she was pregnant - something she told the outlet was “very much a surprise” after having experienced two miscarriages and a stillbirth.

So, why is this happening?

Experts told USA Today that it’s likely down to two reasons. One, drugs like Ozempic alter hormonal imbalances and can thus increase fertility. Two, these drugs could technically be rendering birth control pills less effective.

Ozempic is a GLP-1 - glucagon-like peptide 1. It can interact with oral medications like birth control, meaning women might not be absorbing their pills properly in order to prevent pregnancy effectively.

What’s more, studies on animals have shown GLP-1s can lead to miscarriage or birth defects, which is why most manufacturers recommend stopping taking the drugs during pregnancy, or at least two months before you plan to fall pregnant if at all possible.

Maternal-fetal medicine specialist Manijeh Kamyar told the outlet many of her patients haven’t been made aware of the risks that come with taking Ozempic during pregnancy.

Ozempic and other weight-loss medications could have an effect on the birth control pill. Photo / AP

“I think that that’s a huge gap in the use of this medication, especially when something like this ramps up so quickly,” the Nevada-based obstetrician and gynaecologist said.

“If you accidentally get pregnant while on this, I don’t know what that’s going to mean for your pregnancy … I cannot guarantee the safety of this medication in pregnancy.”

GLP-1s could affect morning-after pills like Plan B too - something that’s cause for concern in the US, where in many states abortion is banned.

However, other forms of contraception, like IUDs or the birth control injection, won’t be affected by the drug, as they work either in the uterus or the bloodstream rather than the digestive tract.

According to Healthline, more research into the effects of Ozempic on birth control is needed.

While there is currently no published research confirming this, Dr Philip Ngo told the outlet there are some “theoretical concerns”.

“If the hormones in birth control pills aren’t being fully absorbed because of the delayed emptying from semaglutide, there’s a chance that the pill may not be quite as effective [as if the hormones were being absorbed completely],” he said.