Medication safetyLast medically sourced: 21 July 2026

Wegovy Pill: Important safety information

Your safety matters. Read this information before starting Wegovy Pill and keep the patient leaflet supplied with your medicine. This page does not replace a consultation with your doctor, pharmacist, or nurse.

Wegovy Pill is a prescription-only medicine. It is not suitable for everyone, and completing a DarDoc assessment does not guarantee a prescription. Your clinician will decide whether it is appropriate for you after reviewing your health, medical history, and current medicines.

At a glance

  • Active ingredient: semaglutide
  • Medicine type: glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist, also called a GLP-1 receptor agonist
  • Form: once-daily tablet
  • Available strengths: 1.5 mg, 4 mg, 9 mg, and 25 mg tablets, subject to UAE availability
  • Use: long-term weight management in eligible adults, alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity
  • Prescription required: yes

What is Wegovy Pill used for?

Wegovy Pill contains semaglutide. Semaglutide acts on receptors involved in appetite, helping people feel fuller and less hungry and experience fewer food cravings.

In the UAE, the Emirates Drug Establishment has approved oral Wegovy for long-term weight management in adults living with obesity, or overweight with weight-related medical conditions, when used alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity. EDE has also announced an indication for reducing the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events in eligible high-risk adults. Your clinician will determine whether you meet the criteria for an approved use.

Wegovy is not a substitute for insulin and should not be used simply for cosmetic weight loss.

Do not take Wegovy Pill if

  • You are allergic to semaglutide, salcaprozate sodium, magnesium stearate, or any other ingredient listed in the leaflet supplied with your medicine.
  • You are pregnant.
  • You are breastfeeding.

Do not use Wegovy with another medicine that contains semaglutide or with another GLP-1 receptor agonist unless the current UAE-approved leaflet and your prescriber specifically permit it. Taking medicines from the same class together may increase the risk of adverse effects or overdose.

Tell your clinician before taking Wegovy Pill

Tell your doctor or pharmacist about all medical conditions and every medicine, vitamin, or supplement you take. In particular, tell them if you:

  • Have or have previously had pancreatitis.
  • Have diabetes, use insulin, or take a sulfonylurea. These combinations can increase the risk of low blood sugar.
  • Have diabetic eye disease or notice changes in your vision.
  • Have kidney problems or are at increased risk of dehydration.
  • Have slow stomach emptying, also called gastroparesis, or severe digestive problems.
  • Have gallstones or other gallbladder problems.
  • Take levothyroxine for a thyroid condition.
  • Take warfarin or a similar oral anticoagulant. More frequent blood-clotting tests may be needed.
  • Take oral medicines that need to be absorbed quickly. Wegovy delays stomach emptying and its fasting instructions affect when other oral medicines can be taken.
  • Are planning surgery or another procedure involving general anaesthesia or deep sedation. Tell the surgical and anaesthetic team that you take Wegovy because delayed stomach emptying may increase the risk of stomach contents entering the lungs.
  • Are planning a pregnancy, think you may be pregnant, or could become pregnant.

Pregnancy and breastfeeding

Do not use Wegovy Pill during pregnancy. Use effective contraception while taking it. If you plan to become pregnant, speak with your clinician about stopping Wegovy at least two months beforehand. If you become pregnant while taking Wegovy, stop and contact your clinician promptly so your treatment can be reviewed.

Do not use Wegovy Pill while breastfeeding. Semaglutide passes into breast milk, and its effect on a breastfed baby is not known.

Stop taking Wegovy and seek urgent medical help if you experience

Possible pancreatitis

Severe, persistent pain in the stomach area, which may spread to your back, with or without nausea or vomiting. Acute pancreatitis can be serious and potentially life-threatening.

A severe allergic reaction

Difficulty breathing or swallowing; swelling of the face, lips, tongue, or throat; wheezing; a very fast heartbeat; pale or cold skin; or feeling dizzy, weak, or faint.

Sudden or worsening loss of vision

Sudden loss of vision or rapidly or gradually worsening eyesight, particularly painless loss of vision in one eye, requires urgent medical assessment. This may be a very rare eye condition called non-arteritic anterior ischaemic optic neuropathy, or NAION.

Possible bowel obstruction

Severe constipation together with stomach pain, marked bloating, or vomiting requires urgent assessment.

Contact your clinician promptly if you experience

  • New or worsening vision problems, particularly if you have diabetes or diabetic retinopathy.
  • Symptoms of gallstones or gallbladder inflammation, such as persistent upper abdominal pain, fever, or yellowing of the skin or eyes.
  • Ongoing vomiting or diarrhoea, difficulty drinking enough fluid, very dark urine, reduced urination, dizziness, or other signs of dehydration.
  • Symptoms of kidney or bladder stones, such as pain in the back or lower abdomen, difficulty urinating, or a change in urine colour.
  • A fast heartbeat, faintness, or persistent dizziness.
  • Side effects that are severe, do not improve, or make it difficult to eat, drink, or take your other medicines.

Low blood sugar

Low blood sugar is more likely if you have diabetes and take Wegovy with insulin or a sulfonylurea. Your clinician may adjust your diabetes medicine and ask you to monitor your blood sugar.

Warning signs can appear suddenly and may include:

  • Cold sweat or cool, pale skin
  • Shaking
  • Headache
  • Fast heartbeat
  • Hunger or nausea
  • Sleepiness or weakness
  • Nervousness, anxiety, confusion, or difficulty concentrating
  • Changes in vision

Ask your clinician how to recognize and treat low blood sugar. Do not drive or use machinery if you have symptoms that affect your concentration or vision.

Other possible side effects

Like all medicines, Wegovy can cause side effects, although not everybody gets them.

Very common

These may affect more than 1 in 10 people:

  • Headache
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Diarrhoea
  • Constipation
  • Stomach pain
  • Feeling weak or tired
  • Upset stomach or indigestion

Common

These may affect up to 1 in 10 people:

  • Dizziness
  • Burping
  • Gas or bloating
  • Gastritis
  • Reflux or heartburn
  • Gallstones
  • Hair loss
  • Changes in taste
  • Changes in skin sensation
  • Low blood sugar in people with diabetes
  • Complications of diabetic eye disease

Uncommon

These may affect up to 1 in 100 people:

  • Acute pancreatitis
  • Kidney or bladder stones
  • Low blood pressure
  • Dizziness or light-headedness when standing or sitting up
  • Fast heartbeat
  • Increased pancreatic enzymes on a blood test
  • Delayed stomach emptying
  • Low blood sugar in people without diabetes
  • Increased bilirubin, which may cause yellowing of the skin or whites of the eyes

Rare, very rare, or frequency not known

  • Severe allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis or angioedema
  • Hip fracture
  • NAION, an eye condition that may cause painless loss of vision in one eye
  • Bowel obstruction

Gastrointestinal effects are often most noticeable while the dose is being increased. They should not be described as proof that the medicine is working. Vomiting and diarrhoea can cause dehydration and, in some cases, worsen kidney function.

This is not necessarily a complete list of side effects. Read the leaflet supplied with your UAE pack and speak with your clinician or pharmacist about any symptom that concerns you.

How to take Wegovy Pill safely

Take Wegovy exactly as prescribed. Do not change the dose or combine tablets to create a higher dose.

  • Take one tablet once daily on an empty stomach after fasting for at least eight hours.
  • Swallow the tablet whole with a small amount of water, up to 120 mL.
  • Do not split, crush, chew, or dissolve it. Doing so may affect how semaglutide is absorbed.
  • Wait at least 30 minutes after taking Wegovy before eating, drinking, or taking any other medicine by mouth. Waiting less than 30 minutes reduces semaglutide absorption.
  • Follow the dose-escalation schedule prescribed by your clinician. Do not increase the dose yourself.

The commonly published tablet schedule begins with 1.5 mg once daily and increases monthly through 4 mg and 9 mg to a 25 mg maintenance dose. DarDoc must not publish this schedule as UAE-approved until it is confirmed against the leaflet supplied with the UAE pack. Your prescription label and clinician's instructions take priority.

If you miss a dose

Skip the missed dose. Take your usual prescribed dose the next day. Do not take two doses to make up for a missed dose.

If you take more than prescribed

Contact your doctor or seek medical advice promptly. Taking too much may cause or worsen adverse effects, including nausea and vomiting. Do not attempt to correct the dose yourself.

If you want to stop treatment

Do not stop Wegovy without speaking with your clinician, unless you are experiencing an emergency symptom described above or become pregnant. Your clinician can advise how to stop or change treatment safely.

Children and adolescents

Wegovy tablets are not recommended for people under 18 years based on the tablet leaflet reviewed for this draft. The injection has different approved age criteria and must not be used as the authority for the pill.

Storage and disposal

  • Keep Wegovy out of the sight and reach of children.
  • Keep it in its original packaging to protect it from light and moisture.
  • Do not use it after the expiry date shown on the pack.
  • Follow the storage instructions on the UAE pack. Do not rely on injection storage instructions for the tablets.
  • Return unused or expired medicine to a pharmacy. Do not dispose of it in wastewater or household waste.

Report a suspected side effect in the UAE

Tell your doctor or pharmacist about any suspected side effect, including one not listed here.

You may also report it to:

  • Emirates Drug Establishment: pv@ede.gov.ae · EDRUG call centre 800 33784
  • Novo Nordisk UAE safety: nnuaesafety@novonordisk.com

When reporting, include the product name, strength, batch number if available, what happened, when it started, and relevant contact and medical information. Seek emergency care first if symptoms are severe or life-threatening.

Important limitations

  • Wegovy Pill is prescribed only after clinical assessment and may not be appropriate for you.
  • Individual responses and side effects vary.
  • Do not buy or use Wegovy from an unlicensed source.
  • Do not share prescription medicine with another person.
  • Do not use another semaglutide or GLP-1 medicine at the same time unless specifically directed under the applicable UAE-approved product information.
  • The safety information for Wegovy Pen and Wegovy Pill is not interchangeable. Administration, strengths, storage, age criteria, and some warnings differ.

Source information

This page was last medically sourced on 21 July 2026. It should be reviewed whenever the UAE registration, approved product information, safety communications, or marketed pack changes.

  1. EDE approval announcement for oral Wegovy, 1 June 2026
  2. EDE registered medical product directory
  3. Novo Nordisk UAE Wegovy professional page
  4. Novo Nordisk Wegovy tablet patient leaflet, UK market, revised June 2026
  5. Novo Nordisk UAE safety reporting
  6. EDE adverse-effect reporting service

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