You’ve probably heard by now that Ozempic may do much more than *just* help you lose weight and manage your blood sugar. Along with lowering the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, tamping down PCOS symptoms, and combating a slew of other serious health conditions, three new studies suggest that the medication could help prevent and treat stroke.
It may seem like a random link, but doctors say it actually makes a lot of sense. We tapped two neurologists and a doctor who prescribes Ozempic for more details.
Meet the experts: Clifford Segil, DO, is a neurologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA; Amit Sachdev, MD, is the medical director in the Department of Neurology at Michigan State University; Mir Ali, MD, is medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA
What do the studies say?
All three studies were recently presented at the Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery’s annual meeting, and they have a common theme.
The first was published in the Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery. For the study, researchers analyzed data from a global database and a database from the University of Wisconsin, looking at more than 2 million people who had a stroke. Of those, nearly 44,000 were also on Ozempic. The researchers found that people who took Ozempic were less likely to die from stroke, and the differences were huge. In the global database, 5.26 percent of Ozempic users initially died from their strokes, compared to 21.6 percent of those who didn’t take the medication. The University of Wisconsin group had similar results: 5.26 percent of Ozempic users died from stroke compared to 26.6 percent of those who didn’t take the medication.
The next study was also published in the Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery. It looked at ER records for people who had a stroke and those who were likely using Ozempic. (The researchers looked at medical codes that usually suggest a patient is on Ozempic, but couldn’t definitively say they were taking the medication.) The researchers found that people who likely used Ozempic had both a lower risk of stroke and a lower risk of dying from any cause compared to those who didn’t take the medication.
For the final study, researchers analyzed patient records from six months and 12 months after people had a brain hemorrhage, and a year and two years after having a stroke. The researchers discovered that people who used a GLP-1 receptor agonist medication like Ozempic had a lower risk of cognitive side effects, seizures, future brain bleeds, and death after a brain hemorrhage and stroke.
Why might Ozempic help prevent or treat stroke?
All of these studies found a link between people who took Ozempic and a lower risk of having stroke or serious complications from a stroke. But it’s important to point out that they didn’t prove taking Ozempic will have this effect.
That said, there are a few reasons why Ozempic may have this impact. It could simply be tied to weight, says Amit Sachdev, MD, medical director in the Department of Neurology at Michigan State University. “Obesity is a major risk factor for cardiovascular health,” he says. “Reducing excess weight is expected to have a clear and positive impact on overall health, including cardiovascular health.”
Clifford Segil, DO, a neurologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA, agrees. “Lowering a person’s weight lowers a person’s fats circulating through their blood or their lipid level,” he explains. “High lipid levels, or fats, circulating through your blood can cause clogged pipes in your brain or an ischemic stroke.”
But Ozempic and other GLP-1 receptor agonists also help improve a range of health conditions that are linked with stroke, points out Mir Ali, MD, medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA. “It’s hard to say if this is due to improvement in blood sugar control, weight loss, or other health conditions,” he says.
More ways to lower your risk of stroke
Taking Ozempic isn’t for everyone, and doctors stress that we’re not quite there yet with actually recommending the medication to lower your risk of stroke. If you want to lower your risk of stroke, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends taking these steps:
Focus on your diet. That means eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, and minimizing foods high in saturated fats, trans fat, sodium, and cholesterol.
Try to maintain a healthy weight. Being overweight or having obesity increases the risk of stroke, Dr. Ali points out.
Move regularly. Getting at least 2.5 hours of moderate-intensity physical activity can help.
Don’t smoke. Smoking is a big risk factor for stroke.
Limit alcohol. Men should have no more than two drinks a day, while women should have no more than one, per the CDC. However, doctors generally recommend having even less.
Do your best to manage underlying health conditions. That includes cholesterol, diabetes, blood pressure, and heart disease—all of which are risk factors for stroke.
Of course, if you have a family history of stroke or personal risk factors, it’s important to talk to a healthcare professional. They can offer personalized guidance to help keep you healthy.
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