Swapping blockbuster weight loss jabs for the pill form could help slimmers keep the weight off, new data suggests.
US researchers found that obese adults who switched from weight loss jabs to the Wegovy pill continued to lose weight, dropping more than half-a-stone in just three months.
The treatment is the first and only daily pill of its kind approved for use in the UK – and experts say it could help patients stay on the drug for longer as it’s more convenient than injections.
Scientists at Cornell University found that more than 40 per cent of users who switched to the pills lost an additional 5 per cent of their body weight over a 12-week period.
The results suggest that switching to the pill may help maintain weight loss momentum, after progress on injections begins to slow.
Typically, weight loss on the jabs is fastest during the first few months of treatment, with users shedding around 6 per cent of their body weight in the first three months.
After this, weight loss starts to slow, with many patients reaching a plateau after six to 12 months on the drugs.
Initial trial results found that on average users were able to drop around 17 per cent of their body weight – almost three stone – after taking the pill for just over a year.
Online pharmacies in the UK say they have waiting lists topping 100,000 patients who want to get their hands on the Wegovy pill
By comparison, Wegovy jab users lost an average of 15 per cent of their body weight.
The latest findings come from OCTANE, an observational study analysing data from 194 overweight or obese adults who switched from injectable drugs to Novo Nordisk’s daily Wegovy pill.
The study is among the first to examine how people who have previously taken the popular weight loss medications – known as GLP-1 agonists – respond to an oral alternative.
The researchers found that after switching to the pill, nearly a quarter of participants moved out of the obese category within three months.
The proportion of participants classified as clinically obese fell from 87 per cent to 66, while nearly half of the participants lost at least 5 per cent of their body weight.
The study also found 87 per cent of participants took their medication every day.
Separate real-world research suggests almost two thirds of obese patients stop taking the jab within a year – partly due to side-effects including vomiting, nausea and diarrhoea.
‘In everyday clinical practice, we see patients who respond well to injectable therapy but who, for personal or practical reasons, want to try an oral option,’ Dr Louis Aronne, the study’s co-author, explained at the annual meeting of The European Association for the Study of Diabetes in Milan.
‘Our findings suggest that a switch to oral medication may be a viable path for the right patient.’
George Godfrey, Senior Director of Medical & Regulatory at the Wegovy manufacturer Novo Nordisk, described the results as encouraging.
‘The data gives us an early look at what happened when people made that choice in the real-world.
‘On average patients lost weight, with most taking their medicine consistently. This shows that switching to the Wegovy pill helped people lose weight while allowing them a new way to align their weight loss therapeutic journey with their lifestyle.’
However, further research is needed to determine whether the pill – which contains semaglutide, the same active ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic – can offer more sustainable weight loss than jabs.
The pill mimics a hormone in the body called GLP-1 – which triggers the sensation of feeling full.
Wegovy pills have been licensed in the UK for obese adults with a BMI of 30 or above, or those with a BMI between 27 and 30 who have at least one weight-related condition.
Take‑up of the pill is expected to be monumental, with polling suggesting that twice as many patients would be willing to take a weight‑loss tablet as the injections.
It has to be taken with a sip of water on an empty stomach after fasting for at least eight hours. Users must then wait at least half an hour before eating or drinking.
Tens of thousands of people in the UK are thought to have already switched to the pill since it became available privately in July 2026.
But, unlike the injected version, it is not yet available on an NHS prescription.
It is understood that Novo Nordisk plans to meet with the UK Government to discuss rolling it out on the NHS. The price is thought to be the sticking point.
