Popular 'miracle' weight loss drug is causing people to lose their vision, lawsuits claim

[Wicked Blue]

By Anthony G. Attrino | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Two Massachusetts women have filed separate federal lawsuits against pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk, of Plainsboro, alleging the company’s popular weight-loss medication Wegovy caused them to suffer permanent vision loss.

The complaints, both filed on June 6 in U.S. District Court in Trenton, claim that Novo Nordisk failed to adequately warn doctors and patients about the risk of developing Non-Arteritic Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy, also called “NAION,” a serious and irreversible condition that leads to sudden blindness.

-snip-

More than a dozen lawsuits filed in New York and New Jersey claim that weight-loss drugs like Wegovy and Ozempic caused sudden vision loss due to NAION.

The lawsuits allege the condition, linked to semaglutide — the active ingredient in Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus — results from a loss of blood flow to the optic nerve.

https://www.nj.com/middlesex/2025/06/popular-miracle-weight-loss-drug-is-causing-people-to-lose-their-vision-lawsuits-claim.html

[SheltieLover]

1. Shocking

[House of Roberts]

2. Has Trump been taking this stuff, reckon?

[Attilatheblond]

3. Willing to bet he was using it during the campaign

Lost some weight fast, skin droopy. Oh, and maybe that's why he tries to walk into walls.

[Trueblue Texan]

5. And his eyes look so strange lately...like he's staring into nothingness. nt

[Hekate]

11. That would be the dementia and the drugs

[AlexSFCA]

13. we would've noticed if he did

[synni]

4. My doctor was pissed because I wouldn't accept a weight loss drug he wanted to prescribed for me

I found a new doctor, and I've lost almost 50 pounds on my own.

Big Pharma is disgusting.

[Alice Kramden]

8. Congrats on your weight loss

My doctor did the same thing, but I still see her.

[bedazzled]

14. I didnt want to take it either

Lost 40 lbs myself. Aren't we wonderful? Congrats!

[mucholderthandirt]

24. I told my new doctor straight up I would refuse to take any of these things.

And my eyesight is already so bad, I don't need something to make it worse. I fear going blind more than anything else.

I did get insulin, which is helping with the weight loss. It seems I'm not actually Type II, but a immune-response diabetic (slang term is Type 1.5). I may be able to stop that after September, though, if my A1C goes down enough.

[Dr. T]

17. This is an example of a big problem with America's

healthcare-for-profit system.

At some point, your doctor stops being a doctor and becomes a salesman, using our darkest fears to pad his bank account, selling us products and services we don't really need.

It's up to us to determine when they've crossed that line.

I believe some hospitals will insist you get an expensive MR scan if you show up with a broken fingernail.

[yourout]

6. I did Ozempic for a year then started throwing up two days a week including a trip to the ER.

Went on Rybelsus for about a year then started throwing up one or two days a week and finally just threw in the towel and went back to metformin and exercise.

[Norrrm]

9. Had metformin for pre-diabetes. Unpredictable diarrhea. Surprise!

[angrychair]

15. I'm taking that now

It's was...challenging...at first but it's better now. For me the key was timing and a quality probiotic.

I started taking it at least an hour before I ate breakfast and always with my daily probiotic and that seems to keep things...calm.

[Alice Kramden]

7. K&R for visibility

No pun intended

[JoseBalow]

16. I see what you did there

[Alice Kramden]

21. Ha!

[EYESORE 9001]

10. Fen-Phen comes to mind

This concoction for weight loss was yanked from the market after it was found to damage heart valves. We’re so conditioned as a society that we turn to medication to attempt reversal of bad nutritional habits. Always choose the easy route. That in itself is a symptom of a sick society IMO.

[Historic NY]

12. I wonder what the dose is

I've been on a low dose since late last yr recently went to 1.0 . It was initially developed for the heart, and that is why I'm on it.

[BidenRocks]

18. My VA Dr. offered Ozempic

I declined as a wait and see how it works in the wild.
Wait and not see. I'm glad I passed. 220 to 190 on my own.
Fasting now and then helped me.
Not eating fast food didn't hurt.

[mucholderthandirt]

25. IF is good! So is doing low carb, watching those starches.

I don't do keto, I generally follow the old Atkins, and it works. I try to do a shorter eating window, rather than fasting, but with metformin and the other drugs I can't get back to what I was doing.

At any rate, most of these drugs don't really do much, they still list a "low calorie" diet and exercise. If you can eat low calorie, you don't need drugs.

[Footay]

19. For some it is a miracle drug

I've spent almost 3 years on a GLP-1 and my life has changed because of it. It is, indeed, a miracle.

If your blood pressure is out of range, you take medication to regulate it. This medication makes my body work the way it is supposed to - like others' do normally. I am grateful beyond measure.

I've lost 185 pounds.

[DenaliDemocrat]

20. This is a bullshit title

GLP-1 CAN cause blurry vision as changes in blood sugar can and do affect the shape of the eye lens.

There is no definitive link between eye stroke of the optic nerve and GLP-1’s.

[Alice Kramden]

22. It's a legitimate concern

A quick Google search shows many articles on this, having to do with blood flow to the optic nerve. Here's one:

https://www.massgeneralbrigham.org/en/about/newsroom/press-releases/popular-prescription-weight-loss-drugs-linked-to-uncommon-blinding-condition]

[phylny]

23. YMMV

I’ve been taking Ozempic for years. Not a miracle weight loss drug as you need to make diet and exercise changes but I’m down 50 pounds, my A1C is great and I don’t care what anyone thinks. Ridiculing people who have fought obesity is still an acceptable thing, I guess.

[ProudMNDemocrat]

26. It has been 11 years of keeping my weight off through Weight Watchers.

Lifestyle changes, behavioral changes, exercise, and healthier eating has helped me keep close to 60 pounds off since hitting my goal in July of 2014. My weight loss journey began June 3rd, 2013, clocking in at 208 pounds for my 5'5" frame. I have been wearing the same size slacks since early 2014.

But I also understand that there are more serious issues going on with those who opt to use these medications than through lifestyle changes alone. I see obese people all the time and think to myself, I could have been like that if I did not care about my health, etc.

My Doctors are glad I work at being healthy. I am Gluten and Lactose sensitive. I have to listen to my body, knowing what foods it will tolerate; and in strict moderation, those foods it cannot that I eat only on occasion like deep fried or overly wheat based. Same goes for Beers and Wines due to the fermentation process.

I will stick to what I am doing for the rest of my life. Others will not be so lucky.