Ozempic's popularity has led to unexpected pregnancies and could help find a cure for infertility

The widespread use of the weight-loss drug Ozempic and its analogues has led to an unexpected "birth surge" that has raised concerns among experts, as the effects of these drugs on pregnant women have not been studied, the Financial Times reports .

The publication notes that against the backdrop of Ozempic's growing popularity among people who want to lose weight, numerous stories about unexpected pregnancies have begun to spread online. Women taking Ozempic write about them on social media with the hashtag #Ozempicbabies.

Many of them had previously had problems conceiving or were taking birth control pills at the same time as Ozempic. The exact number of women who became pregnant while taking Ozempic is unknown, but the drug manufacturer Novo Nordisk has begun recording such cases in order to monitor newborns during their first year of life. At the same time, company representatives emphasized that pregnant women should not take Ozempic.

As FT writes, most experts believe that the birth rate surge is caused by weight loss in female patients, which in turn leads to increased fertility. It is known that type 2 diabetes and obesity, for which Ozempic is prescribed, disrupt the menstrual cycle and ovulation. These diseases also reduce female fertility, increase the risk of miscarriage and other complications. In men with diabetes and obesity, fertility also decreases due to deterioration in sperm quality.

At the same time, writes FT, a pharmacologist researcher at the University of Ulster, Charlotte Moffett, believes that the matter may not only be in increasing fertility due to the patient’s general condition improving while taking Ozempic. She noted that the same receptors that weight loss drugs target are located in the reproductive system.

"These GLP-1 receptors... are found in the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus. We also see them in the ovaries, testicles, and throughout the endometrial lining," she explained. This means they can affect hormone production, ovulation, and male fertility, she said.

The publication notes that if Moffett's guess is correct and gut hormones affect fertility, then one day this could lead to the discovery of a cure for infertility. At the same time, Moffett emphasized that there is too little data for such statements. She noted that children born to women taking weight-loss drugs appear healthy, but more research is needed to be sure that Ozempic is safe for pregnant women.

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