Can You Get Pregnant While Taking Ozempic? How Weight-Loss Medications Affect Fertility

For some women, pregnancy has been an unexpected — and surprising — side effect of taking weekly injectable medications for weight loss. Many who’d given up on ever becoming pregnant have been able to conceive while taking medications like semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound). 

These “Ozempic babies” make sense. For people with excess weight and low fertility, losing weight typically helps restore normal menstrual periods and ovulation — both of which can help with pregnancy.

Originally approved for Type 2 diabetes as Ozempic and Mounjaro, semaglutide and tirzepatide belong to a group of weekly injectable medications commonly used for weight loss. They work by mimicking certain gut hormones, like glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). This hormone is involved in regulating insulin and appetite. 

Both medications also have counterparts specifically approved for weight loss, sold as Wegovy and Zepbound. These medications have been shown to reduce body weight by 15% to 20%.

But is it safe to take medications like semaglutide and tirzepatide to get pregnant? And what happens if you do get pregnant while taking these medications?

Quiz: Am I pregnant?

Does Ozempic affect fertility?

It certainly seems so. There are many anecdotal reports of people becoming pregnant while taking semaglutide and other medications that mimic GLP-1. 

But to date, there’s no formal data on this. GLP-1 medications haven’t been studied as fertility treatments. And women who were planning on becoming pregnant weren’t part of the clinical trials on semaglutide and tirzepatide. 

This is because it’s not ethical to expose someone who could be pregnant or wants to become pregnant to a medication that isn’t known to be safe in pregnancy. 

So, data on whether or not these medications affect fertility will need to be gathered in alternative ways. In other words, as more people take these medications and become pregnant, researchers and clinicians will be able to collect more indirect information about whether GLP-1 medications do improve fertility. 

EXPERT PICKS: WHAT TO READ NEXT

• Don’t take Ozempic while pregnant: Studies in animals suggest medications like Ozempic could cause pregnancy loss and birth defects. There isn’t enough evidence in humans yet to say if they’re safe in pregnancy. 

• The link between PCOS, weight, and fertility. Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common cause of fertility problems in women. Learn more about this hormonal imbalance and how to treat it. 

• Can diet help you get pregnant? What you eat can play a role in your fertility and overall health. Find out what to eat more of — and what to avoid. 

How does semaglutide affect fertility?

There are two ways that GLP-1 medications may affect fertility. One is through weight loss. The other may be by making birth control pills less effective. Let’s look at both.

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Weight loss 

Excess body fat can lower fertility. It does this by interrupting your menstrual cycle and preventing you from ovulating. So, in people with excess body weight, losing weight can result in: 

• Restored ovulation 

• More regular menstrual cycles

• Improved fertility 

Most of the evidence for this comes from research in women with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). This is a common hormonal imbalance that’s linked with weight gain, irregular menstrual cycles, and low fertility. Other linked health issues are Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and acne. 

There’s no cure for PCOS, but weight loss can improve symptoms. Lifestyle changes to eating habits and exercise are a good place to start. And GLP-1 medications help normalize menstrual cycles and improve fertility. They’re so effective that they were recommended as part of treatment guidelines for adults with PCOS and higher weight. 

More research is underway to support the use of semaglutide as treatment for PCOS. 

Does Ozempic affect birth control?

Mounjaro and Zepbound include a warning in their prescribing information that they may reduce the effectiveness of birth control pills. This is especially the case when starting them and after dose increases. 

This effect may be due to how medication slows the passage of food through the stomach. This makes you feel fuller longer. But it could also interfere with how any pills — including birth control pills — are absorbed. 

With Ozempic and Wegovy, the warning is less clear. It says there’s a chance that all oral medications may be less well absorbed. 

Because of the way that GLP-1 medications act on digestion, they shouldn’t affect the effectiveness of birth control methods that aren’t pills. Examples of these are intrauterine devices (IUDs), implants, patches, and vaginal rings. 

Should you take Ozempic when trying to get pregnant?

There’s not a straightforward answer here.

If you’re considering pregnancy, discuss your medications, health, and weight goals with your primary care provider or obstetrician. The decision to start, continue, or stop a medication like semaglutide or tirzepatide should be based on a careful assessment of the benefits and potential risks.

To be clear, GLP-1 medications aren’t typically recommended for women who’re actively trying to conceive. The role of these medications is to manage blood sugar levels and manage weight. And their impact on a developing pregnancy is not well understood. 

That said, healthcare professionals do recommend a stable and comfortable weight before trying to become pregnant. Both excess weight and low body weight can negatively impact fertility and the health of a pregnancy. 

So, in some cases, GLP-1 medications could be part of a weight-management plan before pregnancy. But, once you do become pregnant, you’d need to transition to an approach that is proven to be safe in pregnancy. 

These medications last a long time in the body. So you should plan to come off them at least 2 months before trying to get pregnant. 

Is Ozempic safe while pregnant?

It’s probably not safe to take semaglutide or other GLP-1 medications while pregnant. Exceptions would be when the risks of stopping the medication outweigh the risks of continuing it. 

Pregnant women (and those who were planning to become pregnant) were excluded from Ozempic trials. So there’s no long-term safety data on whether Ozempic and other GLP-1s are safe for a developing baby. But there’s evidence from animal studies that these medications may cause harm to the pregnant mother and the pregnancy. 

On the other hand, small studies compared GLP-1 medications to other diabetes medications in early pregnancy in people with Type 2 diabetes. And they found no increase in major birth defects. That’s reassuring, but it’s not really enough to say that it’s safe to take these medications while pregnant. 

Much more research is needed to know if GLP-1 medications are safe in pregnancy. But use of these medications for weight loss is rising quickly. So, experts’ understanding of this is likely to change rapidly. 

Here’s why: As more and more people take these medications and become pregnant while taking them, drug registries will be able to collect information about what effects GLP-1 receptor agonists may have on pregnancy, your health, and the health of your baby. 

There’s a Wegovy drug registry collecting data about the safety of Wegovy in pregnancy. It plans to continue until summer 2027. A pregnancy registry for Zepbound is expected, too, but it isn’t active yet. If you become pregnant while taking Zepbound, the manufacturer recommends calling 1-800-545-5979. 

For now, be cautious. If you take semaglutide or tirzepatide, and you find out you’re pregnant, stop the medication immediately and contact your prescriber. After all, these medications work by restricting food intake. It’s not hard to imagine that this could have consequences for a developing baby. 

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Written by:

Sophie Vergnaud, MD

Sophie Vergnaud, MD, is the Senior Medical Director for GoodRx Health. A pulmonologist and hospitalist, she practiced and taught clinical medicine at hospitals in London for a decade before entering a career in health education and technology.

Reviewed by:

Alyssa Billingsley, PharmD

Alyssa Billingsley, PharmD, is the director of pharmacy content for GoodRx. She has over a decade of experience as a pharmacist and has worked in clinical, academic, and administrative roles.

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