Can GLP-1 Weight Loss Drugs Cause Scurvy? What to Know

• Experiences of GLP-1 customers growing scurvy have elevated in current months.
• GLP-1 medicine can result in malnutrition since they scale back urge for food and meals consumption.
• Folks may additionally devour fewer vitamin C-rich meals, equivalent to fruit and veggies.
• Correct meal planning and supplementation may also help stop scurvy.

Possibly you’ve been utilizing a GLP-1 medicine for some time now, and also you’ve began to note that your gums are bleeding a bit, otherwise you appear to be bruising extra simply than traditional? Might the drug be associated to those uncommon signs?

It seems that increasingly more individuals utilizing these medicine are being identified with scurvy, a extreme deficiency of vitamin C.

You may know scurvy as an 18th-century sickness related to lengthy sea voyages, when contemporary fruit and veggies had been in brief provide. So, why is a illness related to pirates and sailors now making a comeback in a time when these meals are available?

The reply, consultants say, has much less to do with the drugs themselves and extra to do with what occurs when urge for food and consumption of sure meals fall dramatically.

Right here’s what’s identified in regards to the connection and the best way to shield your self whereas staying on monitor with remedy.

In an opinion printed within the BMJ on July 21, 2025, Ellen Fallows famous the dangers of prescribing GLP-1 drugs to sufferers who already devour nutrient-poor diets, highlighting that malnutrition circumstances are already being reported within the U.S.

Fallows moreover identified that, though weight problems is usually regarded as a case of being “over-nourished,” the alternative is often true, with muscle wasting and nutrient deficiencies being simply as frequent in these people as in those that are underweight.

When an already unhealthy food plan is mixed with caloric restriction, it will probably exacerbate the issue.

Irritation of the gastrointestinal tract and nutrient deficiencies attributable to frequent diabetes drugs, equivalent to metformin, also can contribute to malnutrition, she mentioned.

In accordance with Fallows, GLP-1 use isn’t just linked to vitamin C deficiency. It has been related to extreme thiamine and magnesium deficiencies, amongst a number of others.

Nevertheless, a lack of understanding of this challenge is probably going resulting in each underdetection and under-reporting of malnutrition, she wrote, which can result in much less favorable affected person outcomes.

“Good high quality wraparound look after sufferers taking GLP-1 agonists should go additional than easy ‘dietary recommendation’ as really useful by the Nationwide Institute for Well being and Care Excellence,” she suggested. “It should embody evaluation of dietary standing earlier than remedy to determine sufferers with malnutrition whose dangers might solely be mitigated with further assist.”

Fiorella DiCarlo, RDN, CDN, of FiorellaEatsTV, instructed Healthline that GLP-1s gradual gastric emptying and motility, which causes individuals to really feel full and lose their urge for food. Nevertheless, they might find yourself not consuming sufficient to correctly nourish their our bodies.

“Some individuals find yourself consuming 600-1000 energy per day with out realizing it and thereby undereating very important vitamins and nutritional vitamins,” she mentioned, explaining that that is what results in deficiencies.

When an individual doesn’t devour sufficient vitamin C for an prolonged interval, they will develop scurvy.

“GLP-1 customers report low urge for food and early satiety, so fruits and veggies that include Vitamin C usually are not consumed as usually however slightly changed with toast, crackers, and processed food to accommodate GI points like nausea as a substitute,” mentioned DiCarlo.

She added that meals aversions to acidic foods or uncooked greens also can complicate issues.

“Vitamin C deficiencies trigger weakened blood vessels, wounds that don’t heal, together with acne and bleeding gums,” mentioned DiCarlo.

Nevertheless, scurvy is reversible with a multivitamin or a 100- to 200-milligram vitamin C complement, she mentioned.

In accordance with DiCarlo, the easiest way to navigate the dietary challenges of being on a GLP-1 medicine is to work with a Registered Dietitian. These healthcare professionals are consultants in diet and enable you to plan meals that finest assist your wants.

“I counsel constructing meals and snacks round protein and consuming on a schedule to make sure correct consumption all through the day,” she mentioned.

DiCarlo additional suggests getting plenty of fiber from fruit, greens, and legumes, as it will probably assist counteract constipation related to gradual motility.

These identical meals are additionally wealthy in antioxidants and nutritional vitamins, which may also help scale back your threat of deficiencies, she mentioned.

“The order the macros are eaten at a meal may be essential too,” DiCarlo defined. “Start with some protein, then greens to make sure that these vitamins are ingested first, significantly for these feeling fuller sooner.”

DiCarlo additionally emphasised the significance of consuming water to cut back your threat of dehydration.

Concluding her feedback, she mentioned, “Consuming whereas on a GLP-1 may be very difficult, and whereas weight loss will happen, the collateral injury from malnutrition could cause bodily and psychological emotions that may have an effect on high quality of life.”

Nevertheless, as DiCarlo explains, correct planning and supplementation may also help mitigate the dangers.