The European Union’s drug regulator is probing a possible link between diabetes drugs, popular for weight loss, and suicidal thoughts.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is assessing 150 reports of possible cases of self-injury among people taking a class of medications called GLP-1 agonists, which play a role in regulating metabolism and hunger.
The EMA said the Icelandic Medicines Agency initiated the review due to reports of suicidal thoughts and self-injury in individuals using liraglutide and semaglutide drugs for weight loss.
Semaglutide belongs to the glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists sold under the brand name Ozempic. In 2014, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved semaglutide for weight loss among obese or overweight people with at least one weight-related condition, such as high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, or high cholesterol. For them, semaglutide is sold under the name Wegovy, which is a higher-dose version of Ozempic.
“It’s important to note that the EMA review is only for GLP-1s indicated for obesity,” Ambre James-Brown, global vice president of Media & Digital Global Communication at Novo Nordisk, told The Epoch Times. “The EMA review does not include diabetes medications, meaning this is not an investigation of Ozempic.”
While the investigation is ongoing, the EMA has advised health care professionals to monitor patients taking this class of drugs for signs of suicidal thoughts or behavior.
Suicidal Behavior Linked to These Meds Has Been Noted Before
GLP-1 agonists were introduced to the market in 2005. The FDA approved (pdf) Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 agonist liraglutide (brand name Victoza) in 2010 to treat diabetes, and the company’s drug Ozempic was FDA-approved for diabetes treatment in 2017.
A 2020 clinical review (pdf) by the FDA did caution about a potential association between liraglutide and suicidal thoughts in adolescents.
According to the review, suicidal behavior was observed in both a placebo group and the group receiving liraglutide. The agency found no significant imbalance of psychiatric events overall but noted that obese adolescents may be at a higher risk for suicidality and depression.
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