The term “Ozempic face” has become popular for describing the appearance of the face after weight loss – specifically weight loss that happens after taking Ozempic or similar medication.
The term refers to a hollowness in the cheeks or extra skin that can show up when you lose fat in your face. But “Ozempic face” is not a medical term. In fact, use of the term can increase the stigma around weight, making light of conditions and adding to the long list of negative terms assigned to obesity.
Although the common term is “Ozempic face,” facial effects of weight loss can happen with any of the medications similar to Ozempic – or just from rapid weight loss in general.
Ozempic is in a class of drugs called GLP-1 agonists. GLP-1 agonists are medications that help manage blood sugar levels in people with type 2 diabetes. But they can also promote weight loss.
GLP-1 agonist medications doctors may prescribe for weight loss include:
Ozempic face side effects
If you lose fat in your face from taking Ozempic or similar drugs, it may cause:
- A hollowed-out look to your face
- An increase in wrinkles on your face that can make you look older
- Sunken eyes
- Sagging skin around your jaw and neck (jowls)
- Changes to the size of your lips, cheeks, and chin
- Abnormal distribution of fat in your face (lipodystrophy)
What Causes Ozempic Face?
It’s common to deal with saggy skin after you lose a lot of weight, no matter how you shed the pounds. This is especially true when your weight loss happens in a short amount of time. Facial changes may be less noticeable if you lose weight slowly.
In one study on people who took GLP-1 agonist medications to treat type 2 diabetes, the average weight loss was just over 17% of body weight in 68 weeks. By comparison, people working to lose weight with diet and exercise alone lost around 2% of their body weight in that same time.
Experts tend to recommend a weight loss rate of 1-2 pounds a week for healthy, sustainable weight loss. On average, people who take Ozempic for weight loss lose about 11% of their body fat within 6 months. Because there’s less fat just under the skin, extra skin can hang loose where fat once filled out that area.
Aging alone can lead to fat loss both near the skin’s surface and deeper. Your skin is also less able to adjust to changes as you age. Taking Ozempic or similar drugs may bring on the appearance of this facial aging faster.
How to Avoid Ozempic Face
You may not be able to prevent the facial side effects of rapid weight loss from Ozempic or similar drugs. But there are a few ways to stay healthy and perhaps lessen some of the effects of weight loss on your skin:
Drink plenty of water. Hydrated skin is much better at keeping its plasticity, or the ability to return to its original shape after stretching.
Choose a drug or dosage with a slower weight loss rate. Each drug works differently with different body types and personal factors. Work with your doctor to find the right one for you.
Eat enough calories. Drugs like Ozempic dampen your desire to eat. Be sure you’re getting the right amount of nutrition each day so you don’t speed up weight loss even more.
Pay attention to protein. Protein helps maintain and build muscle. Getting enough will help you not lose muscle as you lose fat.
Exercise. There’s no evidence that exercise can tighten the skin itself. But it can tone the muscles under the skin for a leaner appearance. It will also help you maintain your weight, improve blood flow, and can help you sleep better.
Ozempic Face Treatment
Losing fat from your face or having loose skin from your weight loss is not dangerous, and it doesn’t require treatment. But if the difference to your face is something you want to change, there are a few options you can ask your doctor about. Each treatment comes with its own risks.
Facial fillers
Facial fillers or dermal fillers are shots that smooth wrinkles and lines on your face by plumping them up. They give specific spots on your face more volume. Typically, a dermatologist performs the procedure.
The “filler” that goes into your face may be made in a lab or may be fat from your own body. When a doctor uses fat from your body as filler, it’s called autologous fat grafting. Other options include:
You get facial fillers in a doctor’s office. Most people see results right away, and the results can last months to years. This is one of the least expensive options for adding volume to your face. Health insurance doesn’t typically cover it, since it’s considered a cosmetic procedure.
After you have it, you may have bruising, swelling, or discomfort. Side effects are rare, but some of the risks include:
- A lopsided appearance
- Damage or scarring to your skin
- Infection
- Lumps or bumps under your skin
- Numbness
- Pimples that look like acne
- Rash and itching
Platelet-rich plasma shots
This treatment involves injecting your own blood cells and plasma into areas to be plumped. A doctor takes a blood sample and separates out the platelets so they’re concentrated in your plasma. Then they inject that platelet-rich plasma into targeted spots on your face.
Platelets have growth factors that can trigger cell reproduction and tissue regeneration or healing. Some people find that it reduces wrinkles and plumps skin, but researchers haven’t done enough studies on people to have solid evidence that it works.
The risks include pain, bruising, and swelling. Rarely, blood can cause infection if it’s mishandled before a technician injects it back into you.
Microneedling
In microneedling, a doctor makes small holes in the top layer of your skin using very thin needles. This damages your skin on purpose so that your skin will make more collagen and elastin – proteins that help keep skin smooth and firm – as part of the healing process. Microneedling can help with loose skin and the appearance of fine wrinkles.
You’ll get a numbing cream beforehand. The doctor will either use a handheld roller or an electric device to do the procedure.
Skin may be red or swollen for up to 5 days afterward. Some of the risks include bruising, scarring, and skin infection.
Fat transfer
Fat transfer is like permanent filler. You may hear doctors call it autologous fat transfer, fat grafting, fat injections, or lipofilling.
A doctor does liposuction on a part of your body with fatty tissue, such as your stomach or bottom, and injects this fat into the parts of your face that need more volume.
It’s an outpatient procedure, but you’ll need about 3-7 days to recover afterward. You may need to wear compression bandages while you heal. It takes about 6 months for moved fat cells to create a new blood supply before you see your final results.
Risks of fat transfer include:
- Bleeding
- Fat that gets stuck in a vein and goes to your lung (fat embolism)
- Fluid buildup under your skin (seroma)
- Death of injected fat cells
- Scarring
Plastic surgery
Certain surgeries may restore volume to your face. These include:
Faceliftand/or neck lift (rhytidectomy) In this surgery, a doctor cuts your skin at the ears, hairline, or neck (in front of your earlobe). They lift the facial skin and tighten tissues and muscles in your face underneath while also sculpting or moving fat. They reposition the face skin and stitch it back.
Because a facelift is a major surgery, there are many risks, including a collection of blood on the face called a hematoma, permanent scarring where the surgeon cuts and reattaches your skin, injury to nerves, hair loss, and skin loss.
The effects last a long time – typically around 10 years – but aren’t permanent. Aging can cause wrinkles and further drooping of the skin.
Cheek implants. In this surgery, a doctor inserts medical silicone implants into your cheek area. One particular kind of cheek implant, submalar, is just below the cheekbone. It creates fuller cheeks to round out a gaunt, sunken appearance.
It’s possible for cheek implants to shift after you get them. Other risks include bleeding, infection, numbness in your cheeks, and chronic pain after the procedure. Cheek implants are permanent, but you can get them removed.
How to restore volume to your face naturally
Certain healthy practices can improve the appearance of your skin and even help boost your skin’s volume. These include:
Don’t smoke. Smoking ages your skin more quickly and brings on wrinkles faster.
Eat well. A well-balanced diet with plenty of antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables helps you age well, while refined sugar and processed foods can speed up skin’s aging.
Prioritize skin care. Wash your face gently twice a day (more often if you’re sweating heavily). Moisturize after washing to help trap water in your skin to keep it plump. Wear sunscreen any time you go outside.
Get plenty of sleep. A lack of sleep is tied to an increase in wrinkles. Research shows that without enough sleep, your immune system is weakened, which can reduce the amount of collagen – the protein that helps give your skin elasticity – in your skin.
Try collagen supplements. Studies show that taking collagen supplements can help boost skin hydration and may reduce signs of aging. Always talk to your doctor before taking any kind of supplement.
Does Ozempic Face Go Away?
The way your face looks will change as you gain and lose weight. Most people who stop taking GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic will regain most if not all of the weight they lost. If you regain your lost weight, your facial appearance will go back to what it was before you began losing weight.
If you don’t regain weight and don’t do any kind of volume-restoring treatment for your face, your face will likely stay the way it is after your weight loss.
Ozempic Face Takeaways
“Ozempic face” is a nonmedical term that refers to the gaunt appearance in the face that can happen when someone loses weight quickly, specifically while taking a GLP-1 drug such as Ozempic. The rapid loss of fat from the face is the cause of the hollowed cheeks and looser skin.
It’s not dangerous and doesn’t need treatment, but there are procedures that can restore some volume to the face for those who want it. These all come with their own risks. Unless you gain weight in your face or do some sort of treatment, the facial effects of your rapid weight loss will last indefinitely.
Ozempic Face FAQs
How do I avoid Ozempic face?
Losing weight more slowly can help prevent the fat loss in your face that creates the facial effects of “Ozempic face.” You can also practice certain healthy lifestyle habits to increase your skin’s health and reduce fine lines and wrinkles so that the effects are minimized.
What does Ozempic face look like?
Rapid weight loss can cause a gaunt, hollow look in the face because of fat loss below the skin’s surface. Skin may become looser and your face may show wrinkles and fine lines more once there’s less fat below the surface.
Is Ozempic face reversible?
Several procedures can restore some of the volume to your face, such as plastic surgery or fillers. If you regain the weight you lost while taking Ozempic or a similar weight loss drug, your face should regain a fuller appearance.
