Thu Feb 12

Will Ozempic-style patches help me lose weight? Two experts explain

Written by: Nial Wheate, Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University

Could a simple patch, inspired by the weight-loss drug Ozempic ^[1], really help you shed excess kilos without the pain and effort of an injection?

Promotions of these Ozempic-style, weight-loss patches ^[2] are popping up online, promising dramatic results with little evidence to back their claims.

Personal recommendations for the patches are common. This includes from some “doctors” on social media. But independent fact checkers have shown these endorsements are AI-generated ^[3].

So, before you spend your money, here’s why you should think twice about buying a weight-loss patch.

What’s in them? Do they work?

Ozempic-style patches are also known as GLP-1 patches. But they do not contain any pharmaceutical ingredient from Ozempic (semaglutide) or related drugs such as Mounjaro (tirzepatide).

Instead, the Ozempic-style patches contain a mixture of herbal extracts ^[5] including berberine ^[6], green tea (Camellia sinensis), the tropical fruit Garcinia cambogia and bitter orange (Citrus x aurantium L.).

There is some laboratory evidence that select compounds from berberine ^[7], the polyphenols in green tea extract ^[8] and hydroxycitric acid from G. cambogia ^[9] may have some effect. This includes suppressing appetite, lowering blood glucose (sugar) levels and playing a role in regulating fat metabolism to promote weight loss.

However, laboratory evidence doesn’t automatically translate to what happens in humans. In fact, recent evidence in humans shows these herbs have little effect on weight loss.

Let’s take berberine. Mostly, the evidence ^[10] indicates that people who take it don’t lose a lot of weight. One scientific review showed that taking up to 3 grams daily ^[11] for a year had only a small effect on weight and waist circumference.

Another review that analysed data from multiple studies found that up to 2.4g of green tea extract ^[12] supplement daily for 13 weeks and more than 4g of G. cambogia daily for 17 weeks did not affect people’s weight.

For bitter orange extract ^[13], a daily dose of up to 54 milligrams of synephrine (a compound isolated from bitter orange extract) for eight weeks did not lead to weight loss.

It is important to note that all these studies are for oral formulations of herbal extracts, such as tablets or capsules, rather than for extracts delivered by patches.

Do they get through the skin?

Whether an extract in a weight-loss patch gets through the skin depends on how the extract was made.

Our skin ^[14] is highly lipophilic, meaning it absorbs oily or fat-soluble chemicals, and blocks water-loving, or hydrophilic, substances.

So not all medicines can be delivered through the skin. Ozempic, for instance, is administered as an injection because the drug molecule in it is too big and water-loving to pass through the skin.

If the extracts in the patches are made using a water-based process, their ingredients are unlikely to pass through the skin and will simply sit inactive on your body until you remove the patch.

The next issue is that patches can only hold very little herbal extract. In the studies we discussed above, grams of material were needed to see any effect. In reality, Ozempic-style patches typically hold less than 0.1g of extract.

So, even if the ingredients get through the skin, these patches don’t contain enough to have any meaningful effect.

You can’t assume patches are safe

The Therapeutic Goods Administration ^[15] regulates medical products in Australia, including herbal extracts.

For a herbal product to be permitted for sale in Australia it must be listed on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods ^[16]. There are no Ozempic-style patches on the register.

This means the quality and safety of any patch you buy has not been assessed and cannot be guaranteed.

An Australian study found instances where contamination with undeclared plant materials, heavy metals and prescription drugs, such as warfarin, have been reported in unregistered herbal products ^[17]. These contaminants are dangerous because they can potentially be absorbed through the skin, then circulate around the body.

In a nutshell

While the idea of Ozempic-style weight-loss patches might seem appealing, they do not work, and their safety is far from guaranteed.

Instead of wasting your money, speak to your doctor or pharmacist who can recommend proven treatments for weight loss. They can provide safe and effective options tailored to help you reach your health goal.