Weight loss drugs increase risk of suicide—if you’re also taking an antidepressant

Taking a weight loss drug with an antidepressant could be a lethal combination.

Together, the drugs increase the risk of suicide and having suicidal thoughts, a major new study has discovered.

Up to 88 percent of people taking Ozempic (semaglutide) along with an antidepressant had suicidal thoughts, and 6.5 percent had attempted suicide, researchers from the University of Zurich.  A similar profile was seen in those taking another weight loss drug, Victoza (liraglutide), with 72 percent having suicidal thoughts, and 10 percent attempting suicide.

The researchers discovered the pattern when they analysed the World Health Organisation database of drug adverse reactions.  In all, there were 107 cases of suicidal thoughts among those taking semaglutide, and 162 cases among liraglutide users.

Around a third of the patients didn’t have a prescription for the drugs—suggesting they bought them off the web—and 25 percent were taking them for weight management, and another quarter for diabetes management.

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