Can GLP-1 Drugs Like Ozempic Really Change Your Sense of Smell and Taste?
Why this matters: health reporting relevant to everyday decisions and well-being.
Some GLP-1 users report changes in their taste and smell, according to a new study. Tatsiana Volkava/Getty Images Researchers report that GLP-1 drugs used to treat type 2 diabetes may impair a person’s sense of taste and smell. Experts say taste and smell dysfunction doesn’t appear to be a common side effect of GLP-1s, which are widely prescribed for weight loss. The weight loss benefits of these medications likely outweigh any negative effects on smell and taste. GLP-1 medications prescribed to treat type 2 diabetes may affect a person’s sense of smell and taste, according to a new study. Researchers report that study participants who used GLP-1 drugs had a higher rate of disturbances in taste and smell than people who were only prescribed diabetes medications. They said the effects of GLP-1s on these sensory functions could be connected to the drugs’ absorption into a person’s nervous system. “This study suggests that GLP-1RA therapy is associated with a higher risk of smell and taste disturbance, highlighting the need for closer monitoring and greater public health awareness,” the study authors wrote. “Future research is required to validate these findings and to further explore the mechanisms underlying this association,” they added. The researchers published their findings on June 25 in the journal JAMA Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery. Experts say that loss of smell or taste from GLP-1 medications doesn’t appear to be widespread. Mir Ali, MD, a bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in California, said he hasn’t heard many concerns from his patients about taste or smell impairment. Ali wasn’t involved in the study. “I don’t think it should discourage people from taking these medications,” he told Healthline. “The trade-off of getting to a healthy weight far outweighs any changes to taste or smell.” GLP-1s linked to taste, smell dysfunction For their study, the researchers exam