What is Liraglutide?
Liraglutide is a medication belonging to the Glucagon-like Peptide-1 (GLP-1) family of drugs.
Liraglutide prescriptions are used to help patients with chronic weight management, alongside improved lifestyle habits (i.e., healthy diet, regular exercise, etc.).
While liraglutide is the generic name for this medication, the brand name for liraglutide is Saxenda.
If you’d like to learn more about how liraglutide functions, you’re welcome to explore the product information for more information. We’ll also answer many of your burning questions on this page.
How does Liraglutide work?
Liraglutide works for weight loss by activating your GLP-1 receptors through stimulating certain G-proteins within your body.
Your GLP-1 receptors help your body regulate both your appetite and how quickly you feel full, and managing these receptors can be an invaluable weight management tool.
To answer the ‘What does liraglutide do?’ question more simply: it helps you reduce your daily caloric intake by reducing the size and frequency of your meals, and often reduces ‘food noise’ and cravings. You can think of liraglutide as helping you to eat less, if that helps.
Want to learn more? Explore our blog on how weight loss medications work for more information.
What is Liraglutide used to treat?
How do you take Liraglutide?
Liraglutide injections are taken once a day subcutaneously, which means under your skin. It’s very important not to inject liraglutide medications directly into veins and/or muscles.
The best places to inject your liraglutide dosages are the front of your waist (on your abdomen), the front of your thighs, and your upper arms. You should also rotate the areas where you’re injecting your liraglutide dosages to avoid developing irritation at the injection site or lumps in your skin.
Specific instructions on how to use the pre-filled injections will be included when your medication is dispensed, and you should always be sure to follow those instructions as closely as possible for effective results.
How long does Liraglutide last after you take it?
What are the common side effects of Liraglutide?
It’s important to remember that the side effects of liraglutide will vary from person-to-person. Some people may experience no side effects of liraglutide at all, or only those that appear in the short-term, because the side effects usually disappear as they adjust to the treatments.
However, when considering some common potential side effects, these include:
- Nausea
- Diarrhea
- Constipation
- Vomiting
- Gastrointestinal issues (i.e., gastritis, dyspepsia, stomach discomfort, bloating, gas, etc.)
- Headache
- Dizziness
- Abdominal pain
There are other side effects that you should talk to your Health care practitioner about but some of which are:
- Gallstones
- Low blood sugar
- Increase in pancreatic enzymes (i.e. pancreatitis)
If you start to notice any of these potential side effects of liraglutide becoming severe or beginning to impact your quality of life, be sure to talk to your practitioner about it. If you’d like to learn more about these types of treatments, you can explore the product monograph for more information.
They may be able to adjust your prescription to reduce these liraglutide side effects, or suggest an alternative medication that may cause you less side effects.
Who shouldn't take Liraglutide?
There are a number of people who shouldn’t request an online liraglutide prescription in Canada, because it may have negative effects based on your existing medical conditions. You shouldn’t use liraglutide if you:
- Have a family history of medullary thyroid cancer
- Have Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome (MEN 2)
- Are allergic to any of the active ingredients in liraglutide medications
- Are pregnant or are planning to become pregnant
- Are breastfeeding
In order to make sure that it is safe for you to take liraglutide, it is important for your healthcare practitioner to know about all your health conditions. Some health concerns that are especially important to discuss are:
- Have heart palpitations or irregular heart beat
- Have or at risk of gallstones
- Have or have had suicidal thoughtsor suicide attempt
- Have heart problems (eg. heart failure, heart attack, angina etc)
- Have diabetes
- Use insulin
- Have or have had pancreatitis
- Have ever had an allergic reaction to any of the ingredients in liraglutide
- Have kidney, liver or stomach problems
- Are pregnant or planning to become pregnant
- Are breastfeeding or planning to breastfeed
- Are already experiencing severe vomiting, diarrhea, and/or dehydration
Your practitioner will be able to ensure that if you’re going to use liraglutide treatments, you’re doing it in a safe, supervised way and avoiding as many liraglutide side effects as possible.
Can liraglutide cause or affect other medical conditions?
Most people that use online liraglutide prescriptions won’t experience any major side effects, other than the expected ones, which should lessen or disappear over time as your body adjusts to the liraglutide medications.
There are a number of people who shouldn’t use liraglutide, due to risks associated with other conditions that they already have. This is part of the reason why you can’t get a liraglutide prescription in Canada until you’ve been assessed by a licensed healthcare practitioner, like those at Felix.
When should I take liraglutide?
You can take your online liraglutide prescription anytime of day or night once it arrives, but be sure to continue taking it around the same time of day as you continue with follow-up liraglutide injections.
Also, remember to rotate your injection sites between liraglutide dosages, so that you avoid irritation or lumps at the injection sites.
How quickly does liraglutide work?
Liraglutide begins to work within your body in just a few hours after taking your first liraglutide dosage. However, it’s essential to understand that liraglutide is a long-term treatment.
It can take weeks or months for you to begin noticing substantial changes in your weight or body mass, and that’s completely normal.
Weight loss and weight management are things that shouldn’t happen too quickly, or it can actually be detrimental to other parts of your body (i.e., your muscles, your bones, etc.).
How effective is liraglutide?
Liraglutide is effective for many patients, but we have to point out that the process of using liraglutide will look somewhat different from patient-to-patient.
Some people may notice changes in just a few weeks, while others may take months to start meeting smaller milestones. This is normal and to be expected.
Each person’s weight management journey is going to be somewhat unique, and it will be easier for some than others, because of things we can’t control like genetics and biology.
Online liraglutide prescriptions can be effective for many people, but you’ll need to work alongside your practitioner to find the right liraglutide dosage to meet your needs; as well as commit to other health lifestyle changes (i.e., diet, exercise), to get the best results.
Further reading
