As mounjaro gains popularity as a treatment option for weight loss and blood sugar control, some people have expressed concerns about the medication and its possible side effects.
Does Mounjaro cause hair loss? It’s a question that weighs on the minds of many seeking its benefits. One of those worries is whether Mounjaro can make people lose their hair. Even though Mounjaro doesn’t cause hair loss very often, it is a real worry for people who are thinking about using it as a treatment.
This article will discuss how common hair loss is with Mounjaro, what may be causing hair loss in people who are taking the drug, and what you can do if you experience hair loss while taking Mounjaro.
You can make smart choices about your treatment options and take action to address any worries if you know the facts and possible causes of hair loss while taking Mounjaro.
What is Mounjaro?
Mounjaro is a prescription injectable drug that is taken once a week to help reduce blood sugar levels. It is similar to other well-known GLP-1 drugs, like Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy. It has been shown to help people lose weight, but right now it is only allowed for use in people with type 2 diabetes.
When taken at the right doses, Mounjaro (tirzepatide) was shown in clinical studies to help lower hemoglobin A1C levels and promote weight loss. When you take Mounjaro (tirzepatide), you should change what you eat, how often you sleep, and how much you exercise. People think that medicine works best when it is mixed with professional help and support.
Does Mounjaro have side effects?
The drug Mounjaro (Tizerpatide) can have bad affects, just like any other drug. It seems that these symptoms are worst at the start of treatment or after the dose is raised. Most bad effects only last a short time and are easy to treat.
Common side effects
- Diarrhea.
- hair loss;
- Vomiting.
- Nausea.
- Loss of appetite
- Stomachache.
- Constipation.
- Digestion problems.
Serious side effects
- Extreme sensitivity to allergens. This requires immediate medical attention because it can cause a rash and breathing problems.
- Pancreatitis. Feeling sick, throwing up, and having a high fever are all signs. They may be indicative of a more serious condition that requires immediate medical intervention.
- Medullary Thyroid Carcinomas. Imagine that a specific type of thyroid cancer runs in your family. In this case, your doctor may advise against taking tirzepatide.
- Gallbladder related to the gallbladder. Gallstones are a possible complication.
- Diabetes or low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). Combinations with insulin, sulfonylureas or glinides increase this risk.
It is recommended that you start with 2.5 mg of Mounjaro. After four weeks, amounts can be raised by 2.5 mg at a time, as long as the body can handle it, up to a maximum of 15 mg once a week. A doctor sets the doses and makes sure they are taken correctly. The doses may need to be changed to help people reach their blood sugar, weight loss, and metabolic health goals.
Who experienced hair loss after using Mounjaro?
Off-label weight loss treatment with Mounjaro is allowed, which means that doctors can give it to people who are overweight. It is not, however, an approved treatment for the disease right now.
Dr. Vijaya Surampudi , deputy director of UCLA’s weight management program based in Los Angeles, says that “hair loss is unlikely to be related to medications,” but it is a temporary effect of weight loss. .
6% of people who took bigger doses of Mounjaro also had alopecia, and 1% of people who took a placebo also had hair loss. During the clinical testing phase for the weight loss drug Wegovy, 3% of people who took it also lost their hair.
Eli Lilly told NBC News that the hair loss was only temporary and wasn’t just on Mounjaro. Eli Lilly is very sure about the drug and has now moved on to Clinical Trial 3b. This is where the big drug company will make Mounjaro directly compete with Novo’s approved drug Wegovy.
The study starts in April 2024 and ends in February 2025, after 78 weeks. A big chunk of weight loss in patients during the study will be used to judge how well the treatment worked.
Weight loss causes temporary hair loss. Why?
Most of the time, worry and weight loss go hand in hand. In particular, people who start strict diets say they feel more stressed.
A study in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine found that people who closely tracked how many calories they ate each day felt a lot more stressed.
Losing hair and being stressed often go hand in hand. Stress can stop stem cells from working, which can help hair grow, according to research.
People who start tight or calorie-controlled diets may lose their hair because they put their bodies under a lot of stress, which raises cortisol levels.
Weight Wise helps people who want to lose weight combine healthy living habits with weight loss treatments. For example, we help people eat well and exercise.
Long-term weight loss with treatment plans will help lower your chance of hair loss, keep your stress levels low, and improve your health.
When you take weight loss drugs, your body may briefly think you are stressed even if you aren’t.
Your body may think it needs to save resources for some of its most important processes because people who take weight loss drugs often lose a lot of weight in a short amount of time.
This means you could stop spending money on things that help hair grow, which would make you lose more hair than normal.
Read More: How does Mounjaro work for weight loss – Its new Ozempic
How does hair loss occur?
In the top layer of your skin, hair cells make hair. The new hair shafts push the old hair cells up and out of the skin as they grow. Your hair is made up of old hair cells linked together.
As a normal part of its life cycle, your hair grows in four different stages:
- The anagen phase – the growth phase of the hair cycle, when new hair is formed.
- The catagen phase – the point at which a certain group of hair cells stop growing hair.
- The telogen phase – when hair strands remain in their follicles but no longer grow.
- The exogenous phase – where individual strands fall out of their follicles so that the growth process begins again.
When hair’s growth cycle is stopped, it falls out. The growth phase, anagen, is stopped, and the telogen phase starts earlier. Your body will stop stopping the anagen phase once it gets used to the weight loss. The growth cycle will then return to normal.
Is hair loss permanent?
When you lose weight, you often lose your hair temporarily. When your body gets used to its new weight, it usually goes back to its normal activities and hair cycle.
People who have surgery to lose weight are often told that they might lose their hair for up to three months afterward.
Telogen effluvium is the name for temporary hair loss caused by body stress. Your body will send vitamins and minerals to other parts of your body after a big change or a long time of worry.
It feels like your body is being attacked, so it sends more nutrients to heal it. When your weight stays the same, hair loss will generally stop and hair will grow back.
How to stop hair loss from mounjaro?
There are things you can do to lower your risk of hair loss while taking Mounjaro or other weight loss drugs.
- As a supplement to Mounjaro, you should follow the nutrition and workout plan suggested by your advisor.
- Take extra vitamins and minerals, like iron, zinc, vitamins A, B, and C. To make sure your body gets the nutrients it needs, ask your expert what other supplements you can take. It is important to follow the suggested dosages because taking too many vitamins can also lead to hair loss.
- Eating protein with meals and snacks in a way that follows the directions your consultant gives you.
- Keep taking the weight loss medicine exactly as your doctor tells you to. Since you aren’t giving your body a chance to adjust to the weight loss, changing what you eat can hurt your weight loss and make your hair loss worse.
Hair loss worries: what to do?
A lot of people find it stressful and upsetting to lose their hair. A side effect of Mounjaro that doesn’t happen very often is hair loss. You should talk to your primary care doctor if you sense any worry.
They can help you figure out if your hair loss is caused by Mounjaro or something else, like a medical condition, a drug, or the way you live your life.
Your primary care doctor may send you to a dermatologist or another expert to get more tests and information about how to treat your condition.
They can also give you advice on how to deal with hair loss, such as by making changes to your food or lifestyle or by giving you topical or oral medications.
Do not be afraid to talk to your primary care doctor about your worries about hair loss. If you deal with it right away, you can work to find an answer and ease any stress or trouble it may be causing.
FAQ
Can I take Mounjaro without a prescription or is it sold without a prescription?
No, Mounjaro is a prescription medication and is not sold without a prescription. You must consult a healthcare professional and receive a prescription to obtain Mounjaro. It is important to use Mounjaro under the supervision of a medical professional.
How can I minimize the risk of hair loss while using Mounjaro?
If you are concerned about the possibility of hair loss while using Mounjaro, consider starting with a lower dosage and monitoring your body’s response. Additionally, maintaining a balanced diet and addressing any underlying health issues may help support hair health.
Final Thoughts: Does mounjaro cause hair loss?
This is still being studied: how does Mounjaro cause alopecia? Some people think that the hair loss might be because of how tirzepatide affects your hormones or metabolism.If you lose your hair after taking Ozempic, Wegovy, or Mounjaro, it could be a lifelong condition caused by these drugs, your genes, a medical condition, getting older, or something else.
There are professionals who can help you figure out not only the most likely reason for your hair loss but also the best way to make it grow back and get denser.