Semaglutide

It is recommended not to take Semaglutide if you are allergic to any of its components. You should inform your doctor if you get eye problems, such as changes in vision, during treatment with this medicine as the Semaglutide may lead to complications of diabetic eye disease (retinopathy). When taking this medication, you may feel nauseous (nausea), sick (vomiting), or have diarrhoea. These adverse effects may result in dehydration (loss of fluids). You must consume enough water to avoid dehydration, especially if you have kidney issues. If you have any questions or concerns, consult your doctor. If you have significant and ongoing stomach pain, consult a doctor immediately, as this could be a sign of an inflamed pancreas (acute pancreatitis). Avoiding alcohol is recommended to rule out any risk of lactic acidosis or other complications. Semaglutide is not recommended for pregnant women, nursing mothers, or people below 18 years of age. If you become pregnant while taking this medication, contact your doctor immediately since your treatment will need to be modified.

Drug-Drug Interactions: Semaglutide may have interaction with hormonal medications (e.g. levothyroxine), oral anticoagulants (warfarin), certain anti-diabetic medications (e.g. insulin), anti-cancer medications (e.g. bexarotene) and certain antibiotics (e.g. gatifloxacin).

Drug-Food Interactions: No interactions found/established. 

Drug-Disease Interactions: Semaglutide may interact with disease conditions, including suicidal behaviour and ideation, thyroid cancer, GI adverse events, hypoglycaemia, pancreatitis and retinopathy.

• Eat at regular intervals. Do not take a long gap between meals or snacks.
• Monitor your blood sugar level regularly, especially when there are a lot of fluctuations.
• Invest in at least 150 min of moderate-intensity physical activity and 15 minutes of exercise every week.
• Lose weight gradually to achieve a healthy body mass index (18.5 to 24.9).
• Replace refined carbohydrate-containing foods with whole-grain foods. Increase fruits, vegetables and other fibre-enriched foods in your diet.
• Reduce saturated fat foods such as chips, crisps, pastries, biscuits, and samosas.
• Choose omega-3 fatty acid-containing oils for daily cooking. 
• Do not take stress as it may elevate your blood sugar level. You may adopt stress management techniques like mindfulness, yoga, or meditation to control stress-related blood sugar changes.
• Opt for low-fat dairy products (low-fat yoghurt, fat-free milk, cheese, etc.).
• Avoid drinking alcohol while on Semaglutide. It increases the risk of hypoglycaemia (a decrease in blood sugar which might be fatal in some cases) and lactic acidosis (when the lactic acid increases in the body, which impacts various organs).
• Try to quit smoking and reduce your intake of carbohydrate-rich food like potatoes, rice, mangoes, bread, sugar, etc.

• Keep taking Semaglutide even if your blood sugar levels are controlled until the doctor advises you to stop it.
• Recommend you monitor your blood sugar frequently.
• Monitoring of pancreatic enzymes (such as lipase and amylase) is recommended.
• Take short, frequent meals, and avoid prolonged fasting when taking Semaglutide. Beware of hypoglycaemia symptoms, including sweating, dizziness, palpitations, shivering, intense thirst, dry mouth, dry skin, frequent urination, etc. Whenever you experience the symptoms mentioned above, immediately consume 5-6 candies, three glucose biscuits, or three teaspoons of honey/sugar and get in touch with your physician. Make sure to carry these with you at all times, especially for long travels.