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GLP-1 drugs

Limited evidenceUpdated November 1, 2026 · 7 sources · Written by the AumniVIDA team

What is glp-1 drugs?

GLP-1 drugs such as semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound) are weekly injections approved for type 2 diabetes and obesity. They cut appetite and produce large weight loss. Some healthy people take them, often at low doses, hoping to slow aging. That use is off-label, and no trial has tested it.

Listed here because well-known people have tried it on themselves. Trying something is not recommending it; each entry says whether the person tells others to do it.

Who has tried it

Tried by 4 people we can source: 2 kept, 1 testing, 1 stopped.

Kept

Testing

Stopped

What the evidence shows

Limited evidence

For their approved uses the evidence is strong. In adults with obesity, weekly semaglutide cut body weight by about 15% over 68 weeks [1] and tirzepatide by up to about 21% over 72 weeks [2]. In more than 17,000 people with heart disease and overweight but no diabetes, semaglutide lowered heart attacks, strokes and cardiovascular deaths by about a fifth [3]. The weight comes back for most people who stop: in SURMOUNT-4, people switched to placebo regained much of what they had lost [4].

For aging itself, the evidence is early. Semaglutide started late in life extended lifespan in female mice and matched many benefits of calorie restriction [5]. In people, the only signal is a post hoc analysis of a 32-week trial in adults with HIV, where semaglutide slowed several DNA methylation aging clocks [6]. Clocks are not outcomes, and that group is not representative of healthy adults.

No trial has tested low or "micro" doses, or tested any dose in lean, healthy people, for lifespan or healthspan. The best dose for that purpose, and its long-term risks in people who do not need weight loss, are unknown. One observational study linked semaglutide with a higher rate of a rare optic nerve stroke [7].

Safety

  • Semaglutide and tirzepatide are prescription drugs approved for type 2 diabetes, obesity and, for semaglutide, lowering cardiovascular risk. Taking them to slow aging is off-label and unproven.
  • Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and constipation are common, especially while the dose is being raised. Rarer risks include pancreatitis and gallbladder disease, and one observational study linked semaglutide with a rare optic nerve stroke.
  • They carry a warning about thyroid C-cell tumors seen in rodents and are not for people with a personal or family history of medullary thyroid cancer or MEN 2, or during pregnancy.
  • Weight loss on these drugs includes some muscle, and most of the weight returns after stopping.
  • Compounded and "research" versions sold online are not FDA approved, and splitting single-use pens for microdoses has not been studied. Any use belongs with a physician.

Common questions

Does Oprah take a GLP-1 drug?

Yes. She started one in 2023, stopped in January 2024 to see if she could manage without it, and went back on it. In December 2025 she described it as a lifelong treatment, much like blood pressure medicine. She has not said which drug she takes.

Does Bryan Johnson take tirzepatide?

Not anymore. He tried a low dose in January 2025 and stopped after about three weeks, reporting a higher resting heart rate, lower heart rate variability and worse sleep.

Do GLP-1 drugs slow aging?

Nobody knows yet. Semaglutide extended lifespan in female mice [5], and one small post hoc analysis in adults with HIV found slower aging clocks [6]. In people with heart disease and overweight it cut heart attacks and strokes [3], but no trial has tested these drugs for aging in healthy people.

Does microdosing GLP-1 drugs work?

There is no trial evidence for it. The doses that have been tested are the approved ones, which produced weight loss of 15% or more in people with obesity [1] [2]. Very low doses for longevity have not been studied for benefit or safety.

Sources

  1. 1.Wilding JPH, Batterham RL, Calanna S, et al. Once-Weekly Semaglutide in Adults with Overweight or Obesity. N Engl J Med, 2021. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2032183
  2. 2.Jastreboff AM, Aronne LJ, Ahmad NN, et al. Tirzepatide Once Weekly for the Treatment of Obesity. N Engl J Med, 2022. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2206038
  3. 3.Lincoff AM, Brown-Frandsen K, Colhoun HM, et al. Semaglutide and Cardiovascular Outcomes in Obesity without Diabetes. N Engl J Med, 2023. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2307563
  4. 4.Aronne LJ, Sattar N, Horn DB, et al. Continued Treatment With Tirzepatide for Maintenance of Weight Reduction in Adults With Obesity: The SURMOUNT-4 Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA, 2024. doi:10.1001/jama.2023.24945
  5. 5.Feng Y, Barthez M, Wang Y, et al. Late-life semaglutide treatment slows ageing and extends lifespan in female mice. Nature, 2026. doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10940-7
  6. 6.Corley MJ, Dwaraka VB, Pang AP, et al. Semaglutide slows epigenetic aging in a randomized trial of HIV-associated lipohypertrophy. Nat Commun, 2026. doi:10.1038/s41467-026-72861-3
  7. 7.Hathaway JT, Shah MP, Hathaway DB, et al. Risk of Nonarteritic Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy in Patients Prescribed Semaglutide. JAMA Ophthalmol, 2024. doi:10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2024.2296

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