Show Description
In this episode of Foundations and Functions, Dr. Amick dives into a crucial and timely topic: how GLP-1 medications like Wegovy and Mounjaro—originally developed for diabetes and now widely used for weight loss—may affect fertility and pregnancy. As use among women has skyrocketed in recent years, the discussion highlights potential risks related to birth control absorption, pregnancy safety, and even IVF timing. If you're using or considering GLP-1s and fertility is part of your journey, this episode is essential listening.
Plus, Rachel from the Integrative Medicine team shares how GLP-1 therapies may go beyond weight loss to support energy, inflammation reduction, and cardiovascular wellness. Whether you're exploring metabolic health options or have questions about GLP-1 safety during reproductive stages, this quick but informative conversation offers practical insights to help guide your next steps.
Disclaimer:
The information provided in this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. The content is not a substitute for professional medical care, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
If you would like more detailed medical information, please contact Integrative Medicine through their website at https://integrativemla.com/
Show Transcript
Welcome to Foundations and Functions weekly podcast, where we return to when medicine actually made you better. Now here's Dr. Jason Amick and Dr. C.J.
Pabla.
Welcome to Foundations and Functions. This is going to be a short talk today. I read a recent article that really caught my attention about GLP-1 medications and fertility. And those are definitely two things that we see quite a bit at our practice at Integrative Medicine Laser and Aesthetics.
Dr. Pava and I feel like we talk about this quite a bit every day. So, just kind of some background, these GLP-1 medications are pretty popular. You've heard of the brand names Wigovi, Monjaro, these sort of things. The generic names tend to be the sub-muglutide, the terzapatides that are out there. These are glucagon-like peptides. GLP1s mimic these hormones that are naturally occurring in our body. And what they do is they help regulate your blood sugar, they stimulate your pancreas to increase insulin when your blood sugar gets high to help regulate that blood sugar, get the sugar actually into the cells for metabolism.
They help control your digestion, they help control your appetite. These are naturally occurring things that our body already makes. We actually produce them in our gut. But we found a lot of benefit from using these GLP-1 agonists, these synthetic hormones that actually help regulate blood sugar. So people who are diabetics are getting a lot of benefit from that. In addition to regulating blood sugar, they're seeing some weight loss.
So it's kind of evolved into this, definitely this weight loss adjunct that people are getting some good benefit. And so, according to the article I read, the use among women for GLP1s from 2020 to 2023 in three short years, that number rose by 594%. So it's a pretty popular thing out there right now. And one of the things I wanted to talk to you today about is
how does GLP-1 agonist affect fertility? You know, there's a lot of concern with patients in our practice about fertility. And so I wanted to touch base on this with more and more women using this.
So the key here, there are a couple of things about this. First of all, I want to make sure that we share that because of the action of the GLP-1 actually slowing down your peristalsis, the kind of the way food moves through your stomach and your GI tract, it can actually affect your birth control. So if you're someone who isn't necessarily concerned about getting pregnant, you're actually trying to do the opposite.
You're trying to avoid pregnancy by taking birth control pills, but you're on the GLP-1, it can actually affect the absorption of that birth control pill. So that's a cautionary tale, things to think about out there. The other side of that is what's the risk for women taking a GLP-1 who become pregnant or during pregnancy. And this is one of those really important things in healthcare and medicine that we focus on for safety for our patients. And that is this. There's no evidence of safety.
The big reason is because it's hard to get pregnant women to show up to studies to see if something bad will happen to your baby. So in light of that, the general recommendation would be if you are actively trying to get pregnant, if you become pregnant or think that that may be a possibility, a GLP-1 medication may not be the safest thing for you. Certainly, there's no studies about the safety of GLP-1
medications with breastfeeding. So again, our recommendation would typically be to avoid those medications while breastfeeding. And even undergoing in vitro fertilization, you know, when we talk about harvesting eggs or stimulating eggs, there's quite a bit of literature out there that says, look, we probably ought not be using a GLP-1 when you're doing egg removal for at least up to two weeks before and sometimes even a month before.
So those were things I just wanted to touch base with folks that are out there that may be considering a GLP-1 medication but may also be either concerned about fertility or may find themselves on a GLP-1 and find themselves pregnant, you know, what to do. Generally, the recommendation would be to stop, see your health care provider right away. We always want to make sure that you're getting healthy safely.
I'm Rachel, the patient coordinator, and I just wanted to thank you for tuning in to today's episode. Dr. A. Mick gave some incredible insight into GLP-1 peptides and how they're transforming more than just weight management. Whether you're interested in improving metabolic health, reducing inflammation, supporting cardiovascular wellness, or simply feeling more energized,
these peptides may offer benefits far beyond what most people expect. If any part of today's conversation resonated with you, or if you're curious about whether GLP-1 therapy might be a fit for your goals, we'd love to hear from you. You can easily reach out to our office through our website, or give us a call to schedule a consultation.
And one more thing, this podcast is about staying informed together. If there's a study, article, or trending topic you'd like us to review on a future episode, let us know. We want to make sure we're answering the questions that matter most to you. Thanks again for listening, and we look forward to connecting with you soon.
The information provided in this podcast is for educational and information purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. The content is not a substitute for professional medical care, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have
regarding a medical condition. If you would like more detailed information, please contact Dr. Amick or Dr. Pabla at Integrative Medicine through their website at Integrative Medicine through their website at integrativemLA.com.
