Doctors warn about ‘very real risks' of Ozempic ‘golden dosing' trend: ‘Recipes for disaster'
GLP-1 users might be jabbing for weight loss, but many are trying to combat cash loss by squeezing an extra dose out of their medication.
The trend, dubbed 'golden dosing,' has been hyped by social media users as a way to get more bang for your buck. But doctors are warning it could be dangerous — and even set back your weight loss goals.
'Using a medication outside of its prescribed method is always risky — and in this case, especially unnecessary,' Dr. Michael Snyder, medical director of Bariatric Surgery at Rose Medical Center and an in-house expert at FuturHealth, told The Post.
Advertisement
4 Surveys show that roughly 1 in 8 US adults have tried GLP-1 drugs.
millaf – stock.adobe.com
What is golden dosing?
GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic, Mounjaro and Wegovy come in injectable pens that contain four doses, with each device lasting about a month.
But some users have noticed that their pens often have leftover liquid after their final jab.
This extra medication isn't a mistake. It's designed to allow for an initial flow check and to ensure that each of the four doses is accurate and complete.
Advertisement
Nevertheless, some TikTok users are extracting this leftover liquid with syringes and needles, using it as a fifth and final 'golden dose.' With out of pockets costs for these drugs sometimes topping $1,000 a pen, pulling out the extra medication has become a way to cut back a bit on exorbitant costs.
But experts say the trend raises some major red flags.
'The 'golden dose' is more of a cost-saving strategy than one focused on safety and effectiveness,' Dr. Shiara Melissa Ortiz-Pujols, a bariatric surgeon at Northwell Health, told The Post.
Advertisement
4 Typically, GLP-1 pens contain four doses.
Fernanda – stock.adobe.com
A dose of confusion
GLP-1 pens deliver pre-measured doses that are carefully prescribed by healthcare providers based on factors like weight and health status.
'Any deviation — even what might seem like a 'small' one — can disrupt how your body responds,' Snyder warned.
Advertisement
GLP-1s are typically titrated, meaning the dosage is gradually increased over time to help the body adjust to the drug.
'As we increase the dose, we expect greater effectiveness, but we also face a higher risk of severe side effects,' Ortiz-Pujols explained.
4 Taking too much of the medication can lead to painful gastrointestinal effects.
MR.PLAY – stock.adobe.com
Increasing your dose too quickly or taking inconsistent amounts week to week can worsen side effects, she said.
It could also complicate your treatment plan, making it difficult for doctors to accurately track how your body is responding to the medications and make informed adjustments based on your personal needs, Snyder cautioned.
From hack to hazard
Attempting to recover leftover medication using a syringe also carries 'very real risks' for your health, Snyder said.
Even minor miscalculations can lead to overdoses, triggering symptoms like nausea, vomiting and even pancreatitis.
Advertisement
4 There's a major risk for bacterial growth if the syringe isn't completely sterile.
Jo Panuwat D – stock.adobe.com
On the flip side, underdosing can blunt the drug's effectiveness, resulting in weight regain and glucose instability.
'To put it simply, how comfortable would you feel using what you think is the 'right amount' of a blood pressure medication, a blood thinner, or a narcotic?' Snyder posed. 'All of those could be recipes for disaster. This situation is no different.'
A hidden danger
Advertisement
The trend also poses a serious risk of infection.
'GLP-1 pens are designed to be used as a sealed system,' Snyder said. 'Using an external syringe breaks sterility, exposing the medication to bacteria during handling — even from clean-looking surfaces or hands.'
This can lead to local infections at the injection site or even systemic infections, Snyder noted, emphasizing that the risk is particularly high for those who reuse syringes or directly touch the drug solution.
'There's no reliable way to make this DIY method safe,' Snyder said. 'That's why these pens are single-use and designed for highly controlled administration.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hill
an hour ago
- The Hill
Lawmakers urge Trump administration to clamp down on illicit GLP-1 sales
A bipartisan group of congressional lawmakers is calling on the Trump administration to address the continued sale of illicit, compounded GLP-1 products, warning that consumers may be accessing these drugs without knowing the product could be fraudulent. North Carolina Reps. Brad Knott (R) and Deborah Ross (D) wrote to Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Marty Makary, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, imploring them to end the sale of 'counterfeit, research-grade and illegal copycats' of popular GLP-1 medications. When the commercial, branded versions of tirzepatide and semaglutide were declared to no longer be in shortage, compounding pharmacies were disallowed from continuing to sell compounded versions of those drugs. While telehealth companies have transitioned away from compounded versions, state officials have warned that 'copycat' drugs have proliferated in the months since the shortages ended. Earlier this year, the National Association of Attorneys General sent a letter to the FDA to warn that 'counterfeit GLP-1 drugs have infiltrated the U.S. supply chain from China, Turkey, India, and other foreign sources.' According to the attorneys general, online retailers sell the active ingredient for the GLP-1s under the claim that they're 'for research purposes only' or 'not for human consumption' while still marketing them to consumers on social media. The FDA issued a warning in April, telling consumers to not take counterfeit Ozempic. The drug's manufacturer, Novo Nordisk, had alerted the agency that several hundred units of counterfeit product had entered the U.S. supply chain. At the time, the FDA said it was aware of six adverse events associated with the counterfeit products. Though the FBI issued a public service warning soon after the letter from the attorneys general was sent, Knott and Ross said raising public awareness wasn't enough. 'FDA has received hundreds of reports of adverse events, even some resulting in the hospitalization and death of patients who used illicit GLP-1s,' they wrote. 'This is likely a significant underreporting of adverse events experienced by patients because federal law does not require state-licensed pharmacies that are not outsourcing facilities to submit adverse events to FDA.' The lawmakers asked that the Trump Cabinet members fully use 'the legal tools at your discretion' to further detect illicit and enforce U.S. drug standards. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) sent his own letter to Cabinet members, calling for enhanced collaboration among agencies like FDA, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Justice Department in order to stop the counterfeit products from reaching the supply chain in the first place. The Hill has reached out to the agencies named in the letter for comment.
UPI
an hour ago
- UPI
Biking might help lower risk of dementia
In a new study, biking regularly for transportation appeared to lower risk of dementia by 19% and Alzheimer's disease by 22%. Photo by Adobe Stock/goodluz/HealthDay News Want to reduce your risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease? Get on your bike and ride, a new study recommends. Biking regularly for transportation appears to lower risk of dementia by 19% and Alzheimer's by 22%, according to results published Tuesday in JAMA Network Open. The results also suggest that cycling might even help increase the size of a brain region important for memory, researchers noted. "Cycling is a moderate- to high-intensity workout, and also requires balance," said Dr. Liron Sinvani, director of geriatric services at Northwell Health in Manhasset, N.Y., who reviewed the findings. "It requires more complex brain function than walking, which is why maybe it was a better reducer of dementia risk." "It's not about just doing exercise and making that part of your routine, but thinking about the way you live your life," she added in a news release. "So instead of having to drive somewhere, taking that bike and using active travel modes to get around as part of your lifestyle becomes very important." For the study, researchers analyzed data on nearly 480,000 people participating in the UK Biobank, a long-term health study of people living in England, Scotland and Wales. As part of the study, participants noted the forms of transport they used most often to get about, not including travel to and from work. During an average follow-up of 13 years, more than 8,800 participants developed dementia and nearly 4,000 developed Alzheimer's. Results showed a lower risk for dementia and Alzheimer's among those who cycled or included cycling among other forms of travel like walking, driving or using public transportation. "Our findings suggest that promoting active travel strategies, particularly cycling, may be associated with lower dementia risk among middle-aged and older adults, which carries substantial public health benefits by encouraging accessible, sustainable practices for cognitive health preservation," concluded the research team led by Liangkai Chen, an associate professor at Tongji Medical College at the Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, China. MRI brain scans showed that cycling also was associated with a larger hippocampus, a part of the brain involved in memory formation and learning, researchers noted. However, cycling's benefits appeared to extend mostly to people without a genetic risk for Alzheimer's, results showed. People without the APOE E4 genetic variant had a 26% lower risk of dementia and 25% lower risk of Alzheimer's. Results were not statistically significant among APOE E4 carriers, but indicated less protection from cycling. Interestingly, the results also indicate that driving offered some protection against dementia compared to taking the bus or subway. "Even when using inactive travel like car or public transportation, it seemed like driving had a little bit better impact [on brain health] than public transportation," Sinvani said in the news release. However, researchers noted that this observational study could not draw a direct cause-and-effect link between cycling and healthy brain aging. "What I tell my patients and family and friends whenever they ask me what they can do to reduce their risk of dementia, is whatever gets you outside doing stuff is what you should be doing," she said. "I think we see that it's not just the physical activity, but it's also in the balance, and it really engages different parts of your brain." If you're able to get on a bike, Sinvani said, do that. If you're aren't, use your feet. "I think if it's, 'should I walk or take a bike?' I would say take a bike, but if it's 'should I walk or just stay home?' I would say definitely walk," she said. More information The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on how physical activity boosts brain health. Copyright © 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
UPI
an hour ago
- UPI
Scientists studying axolotls in hopes of learning how to regrow limbs
Researchers are studying axolotls -- "small, smiling salamanders" -- in the hopes of learning how humans might one day regrow arms or legs. Photo by Adobe Stock/HealthDay News With their goofy grins and feathery gills, axolotls have become stars of the pet world and video games like Minecraft. But these small, smiling salamanders are also helping scientists explore a medical mystery: Can people someday regrow arms or legs? Axolotls are special because they can regrow body parts no matter the age. Lose a leg? They'll grow it back. Damage to their heart, lungs or even brain? They can also repair that! "This species is special," lead researcher James Monaghan, a biologist at Northeastern University in Boston, told The Washington Post. They have "really become the champion of some extreme abilities that animals have." In a new study -- published Tuesday in Nature Communications -- Monaghan's team used genetically engineered axolotls that glow in the dark to learn how this amazing process works. One mystery in limb regrowth is how cells "know" which part of the limb to rebuild. If an axolotl loses its upper arm, it grows back the entire arm. But if the injury is farther down, only the lower arm and hand regrow. "Salamanders have been famous for their ability to regenerate arms for centuries," Monaghan said. "One of the outstanding questions that has really plagued the field is how a salamander knows what to grow back." The answer may be a small molecule called retinoic acid. It's related to vitamin A and often used in skin-care products under the name retinol. The molecule acts like a GPS, helping cells know where they are on the body and what part to rebuild. Monaghan's team worked with axolotls that were genetically engineered to glow when retinoic acid was active. Then, they amputated limbs -- after giving the animals anesthesia -- and tracked their health, The Post reported. Monaghan said researchers monitored their health closely. "They don't show signs of pain or distress after limb amputation the way mammals might, and they regenerate fully within weeks," he said. When axolotls were given a drug that blocked the breakdown of retinoic acid, their limbs didn't regrow right -- an upper arm would form where a lower arm should be. Axolotls not given the drug regrew their limbs normally. This suggests that retinoic acid tells cells where they are and what part to grow. Higher levels of the acid seem to signal a spot closer to the body's center, according to The Post. "While we are still far from regenerating human limbs, this study is a step in that direction," said Prayag Murawala, a researcher at MDI Biological Laboratory in Maine, who helped make the glowing axolotls used in the study. Monaghan thinks this could help humans someday. "We all have the same genes," he said. "We've all made these limbs when we were embryos." The challenge is figuring out how to turn those same genetic blueprints back on later in life -- something axolotls can do but humans can't yet. "It's one of the oldest questions in biology, but it's also the most futuristic-looking," he said. Thanks to a growing interest in axolotls, especially among kids, this unique animal is helping to drive cutting-edge science. "It's a little surreal," Monaghan added. "You just see axolotls at the airport, axolotls at the mall. My kids are coming home with axolotl toys all the time, because people know what I do." More information The San Diego Zoo has more on axolotls. Copyright © 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
