Wegovy Pill

Thousands of people across the UK have successfully used Wegovy and Mounjaro as weekly injections to help them lose weight, but there's now another, arguably more accessible way of supplementing weight loss.

After a successful launch in the United States, a once-daily Wegovy Pill (oral semaglutide) is now available in the United Kingdom, following an official safety review from the UK’s medical regulators, the MHRA.

Here, we break down everything you need to know about the new weight-loss pill, comparing the Wegovy pill vs Wegovy injection, how it works, and its price point.

Semaglutide, the active ingredient inside Wegovy, was initially developed by the Danish multinational pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk to treat type 2 diabetes. It works in exactly the same way as the Wegovy injection, namely mimicking a natural hormone your body produces after you eat, called GLP-1. However, in pill form, it’s arguably far easier and more accessible, especially for those who may not like the idea of having to use an injectable.

To stop the tablet from being destroyed by the stomach acid, the Wegovy pill uses a special protective coating called SNAC. Once swallowed, this coating shields the tablet from your stomach acid, allowing it to safely pass through the stomach wall and into the bloodstream, where it can begin its work. Note: this is why it's incredibly important to take the tablet whole (rather than crushing or halving it) in order for it to be most effective.

Once absorbed, it acts exactly like GLP-1 - namely, helping to amplify and elongate a feeling of natural “fullness” after you eat. It achieves this in three ways:

• Stops "Food Noise": Speaks to the appetite centres in your brain to turn down constant hunger and reduce intrusive cravings.
• Keeps You Fuller for Longer: Slows down your digestion, which means food stays in your stomach a little bit longer - helping you feel satisfied for hours after eating smaller meals.
• Prevents Sugar Crashes: Helps your body manage blood sugar levels smoothly - minimising sugar spikes and crashes, which in turn staves off afternoon cravings for high-sugar snacks

The excitement behind the Wegovy pill comes from a global clinical trial called the OASIS-4 trial, which tested the daily tablet in adults with overweight or obesity. In this study, 307 participants were randomly assigned to receive either the Wegovy pill (oral semaglutide 25 mg) or a placebo once per day, alongside lifestyle intervention, for around 64 weeks.

If you're wondering how effective the Wegovy pill is for weight loss, the results speak for themselves:

• Average weight loss: people taking the daily tablet lost an average of 6% of their total body weight when adhering to treatment, compared to around 2.7% in the placebo group
• High success rates: around 3% of people on the pill lost at least 5% of their starting weight, and roughly one in three achieved 20% or more weight loss. In comparison, only a small proportion of the placebo group reached these thresholds, with around 3% losing 20% or more of their body weight

The clinicians concluded from the study that taking a 25 mg dose of the Wegovy pill once daily “resulted in a greater mean reduction in body weight than placebo in participants with overweight or obesity”.

The active ingredient may be the same, but both different forms of Wegovy require slightly different routines. Below, we’ve pulled together the major differences.

Your stomach is full of hydrochloric acid, sitting between a pH of 1.5 and 3.5. When you take semaglutide, your body treats it like any other peptide and tries to break it down. Thankfully, as we mentioned earlier, the SNAC coating helps shield the Wegovy pill from getting destroyed before it has a chance to work. However, there are a few things you’ll need to do to help it along the way.

• Take it on an empty stomach - yes, before your coffee: Take your tablet first thing in the morning, right when you wake up after an 8-hour fast. Why? If the tablet gets mixed up with any food mass, it’ll prevent the SNAC coating from touching the stomach wall. Your stomach fires up its enzymes, and the semaglutide will be broken down.
• Watch your water intake: Swallow the tablet whole with a small sip of plain water. Do not drink more than half a glass (120ml). Too much water dilutes the pill's protective coating, meaning it’ll get broken down.
• The 30-minute rule: After taking the pill, wait at least 30 minutes before having breakfast, drinking your morning coffee or tea, or taking any other daily medications. This gives the pill the best chance to work uninterrupted.

As with the injectable form of Wegovy, the pill can have side effects. The OASIS-4 study found that gastrointestinal adverse effects were common, affecting around 74% of participants taking the Wegovy pill, compared to around 42% of those taking a placebo. These were generally described as mild to moderate in severity, and most occurred during the dose-escalation period.

Importantly, the majority of Wegovy pill side effects reduced over time, and the overall safety profile of oral semaglutide 25 mg was consistent with other GLP-1 medications.

Common side effects may include:

• Nausea or a mild upset stomach
• Diarrhoea or constipation
• Heartburn and indigestion
• Feeling unusually tired

You can start your consultation process with us today, or explore our other weight management services.