- 15-17% weight loss in clinical trials
- 20% reduction in major cardiovascular events
- Weekly injection
- Always read the patient information leaflet before use
- You can find the official Wegovy brochure here, which includes helpful information about getting started with your new medication
What is Wegovy (semaglutide)?
Wegovy is a weekly weight loss injection that helps you take control of your health. This clinically proven treatment could help you lose 15-17% of your body weight[1] while protecting your heart health. In fact, it's the only weight loss injection licensed for both weight management and cardiovascular risk reduction.
Start your Wegovy consultation
How it works
Wegovy mimics GLP-1, a hormone your body already produces, acting like a volume control for hunger. Here's how it supports your weight loss goals:
- Suppresses appetite and reduces food cravings
- Keeps you feeling satisfied for longer after meals
- Slows stomach emptying so you feel full sooner
- Helps improve blood sugar control
Your treatment schedule
Available doses
- 0.25mg
- 0.5mg
- 1mg
- 1.7mg
- 2.4mg
Each pen contains 4 weekly doses (one pen per month).
Your dose schedule
We’ll always start you on the lowest dose and slowly build up to help your body adjust, a process known as titration. Below is what your treatment plan could look like:
- Weeks 1-4: 0.25mg weekly
- Weeks 5-8: 0.5mg weekly
- Weeks 9-12: 1mg weekly
- Weeks 13-16: 1.7mg weekly
- Week 17+: 2.4mg weekly (your maintenance dose)
Is it right for you?
Eligibility requirements
You could be eligible for Wegovy if you:
- Are 18 years or older (licensed from age 12, but we can only prescribe to adults 18+)
- Have a BMI of 30+ (obesity) or a BMI of 27+ with a weight-related health condition
- Are ready to make lifestyle changes, including diet and exercise
- Have cardiovascular risk factors, as it offers heart protection
Why choose Wegovy?
Although Mounjaro shows higher average weight loss[2] in clinical trials over similar timeframes (21% vs 15-17%), Wegovy offers advantages that might make it the right choice for your individual needs.
Heart health
Wegovy is the only weight loss injection licensed to reduce cardiovascular risk by 20%[3]. This means you're not just losing weight but investing in your heart health. For further reading on Wegovy's other benefits, including links between liver disease and heart failure, click the highlighted guide article.
Contraception
Unlike Mounjaro's dual-action approach, Wegovy won't interfere with your oral contraception, so you can focus on your weight loss journey without worrying about whether you’re at risk of pregnancy. For further guidance on contraception while using Wegovy, please refer to this document.
Established track record
Clinical data supports Wegovy's safety and effectiveness for long-term use, giving you confidence in your treatment choice.
Safety information
Who should not use it
It isn't suitable if you:
- Are under 18, pregnant or breastfeeding
- Have a personal or family history of thyroid cancer
- Have multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2
- Are allergic to semaglutide
Common side effects
Most people experience mild side effects that improve as their bodies adjust to the medication. These may include:
- Headaches
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Diarrhoea
- Constipation
- Injection site reactions
For further information on Wegovy side effects and how to treat them, refer to the linked guide article.
How to use
Your weekly injection routine
Making Wegovy part of your weekly routine is straightforward:
- Choose a regular day and time each week that works for your schedule
- Rotate injection sites (upper arms, stomach, or upper legs) to keep your skin healthy
- Stay 5cm away from your belly button
- Use a fresh needle each time for hygiene and comfort
- Count to 6 after injecting before removing the needle to ensure you get the full dose
Read our guide on ‘How to take Wegovy’ for detailed instructions on how to inject.
Dosing guidelines
Following your prescribed schedule is important not only for getting the best results, but also for ensuring you remain safe:
- Always stick to your prescribed dosing exactly as directed by your healthcare provider
- Don't try to extract doses from your pen after completing four weekly injections, as the remaining liquid is only for priming purposes and could lead to inconsistent dosing, pen problems or increased side effects
- Avoid modifying your dosing schedule or injecting less frequently to make pens last longer, as this can reduce Wegovy's effectiveness and create gaps in your treatment that may compromise your progress
- Always discard your pen after four doses, regardless of any liquid you can still see
Living with Wegovy
Storage
Keep your pen refrigerated (2°C-8°C) in its original packaging to protect it from the light. For storage guidance, including the best way to travel with your pen, our 'Storage safety for weight loss injections' guide covers everything you need to know.
Food and alcohol
You can inject at any time, whether you've eaten or not. However, since it slows your digestion, you might find it more comfortable to eat smaller meals and avoid greasy or spicy foods, especially when starting or increasing your dose.
If you do decide to drink alcohol, have it in moderation. It can slow your weight loss progress and may increase nausea. Some people also find they have a lower alcohol tolerance while using Wegovy.
Check out our guide on lifestyle changes for Wegovy to ensure you’re making the most of your treatment.
Start your Wegovy consultation
Sources
1. Wilding, J. P. H., et al. (2021). Once-weekly semaglutide in adults with overweight or obesity. New England Journal of Medicine, 384, 989-1002. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2032183
2. Wadden, T.A., Chao, A.M., Machineni, S. et al. Tirzepatide after intensive lifestyle intervention in adults with overweight or obesity: the SURMOUNT-3 phase 3 trial. Nat Med 29, 2909–2918 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-023-02597-w
3. Lincoff AM, Brown-Fransden K, Colhoun HM, et al, 2023. Semaglutide and cardiovascular outcomes in obesity without diabetes. N Engl J Med. 389(24):2221-2232.
Find similar products
Wegovy Weight Loss Injections Reviews
Advice & Guides
What dosage of Wegovy should I take?
How does the semaglutide in Wegovy work?
Wegovy vs Saxenda - 6 differences between GLP-1 injections
8 Wegovy side effects and how to manage them
Funding your weight loss treatment
How to take Wegovy in 7 easy steps
Who can take Wegovy weight loss injections?
Lifestyle changes for Wegovy
Is Wegovy the same thing as Ozempic?
Wegovy and Ozempic are two medications which use the same active ingredient for different purposes.
They are both manufactured by Novo Nordisk, which holds the patent for both medications at the moment. Ozempic is a medication for patients with type 2 diabetes that helps you to control your blood sugar, and it can be used alone or alongside other medicines like insulin or metformin.
As they both contain semaglutide, these medications work similarly, but that doesn’t mean you can use them interchangeably.
Ozempic is used in different dose sizes to Wegovy, with Wegovy often being prescribed in higher amounts, so if you’re already taking Ozempic for type 2 diabetes you won’t be able to take Wegovy as well, as this could cause an overdose of the active ingredient.
Is a sharps bin included with this product?
Yes, we can supply sharps bins you can use to safely dispose of Wegovy or Saxenda pens.
When you have completed your consultation with our prescribers, the option to include a sharps bin with your order will be there for you to select.
Depending on your order size, we may be able to give you your sharps bin for free, but there may be a charge for smaller orders.
Once you have your sharps bin, you will need to contact your local council to organise collection and its safe disposal when your bin is full.
What is the difference between Wegovy and Saxenda?
Saxenda is another brand of weight loss injection that is very similar to Wegovy.
They work in a similar way, but use different active ingredients and have different dosage sizes. Saxenda uses an active ingredient called liraglutide, which is part of the same group of medicines as semaglutide — GLP-1 receptor agonists.
Saxenda needs to be injected once a day, whereas Wegovy only needs to be injected once a week.
Saxenda pens also need you to set your dose manually and insert a new needle for each dose, Wegovy doesn’t need you to do either of these as each pen is only used once.
The final big difference is that Wegovy has been shown to be much more effective than Saxenda in clinical trials.
With Saxenda you can lose 5% of your starting weight within 12 weeks of taking its maximum dose, but clinical trials of Wegovy have found that patients lose an average of 15% of their starting weight.
Can I drink alcohol while I’m taking Wegovy?
You can drink alcohol while you’re taking Wegovy, it shouldn’t affect the way this treatment works.
However, we always recommend that you drink in moderation and try to drink water or another soft drink between alcoholic drinks to help you stay hydrated.
Something else you should look out for is the calorie content in alcoholic drinks.
Alcoholic drinks often contain a lot more calories than you might expect, so drinking a lot can interfere with your weight loss simply by increasing your calorie intake.
Do Wegovy pens need replacement needles?
Unlike Saxenda, Wegovy pens don’t need you to replace their needles after each use.
This is because Wegovy pens are single-use only, so you won’t need to measure out a dose manually and won’t need to worry about putting a new needle onto your pen.
This is one of the reasons that patients prefer this treatment to Saxenda, as you don’t need to manage dosing or needles by yourself, making the whole process simpler.
How long do Wegovy weight loss injections take to work?
Wegovy injections get to work in your system right away, but that doesn’t mean that the pounds will fall off within a couple of days.
Clinical trials of Wegovy have shown that patients typically lose 15% of their starting body weight during their treatment, but how quickly this happens depends on the number of calories you’re eating every day.
Wegovy works by helping to control your appetite and reduce food cravings, making it easier for you to stick to the low-calorie diet you’ll need to lose weight.
A healthy rate of weight loss is generally considered to be 1 - 2lbs a week, so you may want to use this as a rule of thumb when considering your weight loss goals.
Do I need a prescription for this medication?
You do need a prescription for this medication in the UK.
Our healthcare professionals can provide prescriptions if they think this treatment would be right for you and your condition.
When you click the button which reads “Start Consultation” at the top of this page, you’ll see a short questionnaire set up by our healthcare team which is designed to help them understand your medical needs.
Just like an in-person consultation with your GP, our doctors will assess your answers to their questions and write a prescription for the treatment they think will be best for you.
You’ll then be able to pay for your medication and we’ll send it out to you quickly and in discreet packaging.
Why do you need to know my BMI?
Weight loss treatments are only suitable for use in people with a BMI (body mass index) of 30 or above, or a BMI of 27 or above in those who have weight-related medical conditions. If your BMI is lower than this, then our prescribers won’t be able to recommend this product as a treatment for you.
Starting to take weight loss medication when you have a lower BMI could mean that you lose too much weight and become underweight, which can also contribute to some medical conditions.
