Dermatologist Debriefs

Ozempic Face is real, but it can be fixed with the right approach

• Stefanie Williams

Share episode

The rapid weight loss revolution has a dark secret that's aging faces at an alarming rate. Dr. Stefanie Williams, leading dermatologist and medical truth-teller, exposes the "Ozempic face" phenomenon that's shocking patients worldwide. This isn't just about temporary side effects – it's about permanent facial changes resembling decades of accelerated aging.

In this crucial episode, Dr. Stefanie reveals why drugs like Ozempic are causing sunken cheeks, deep furrows, and gaunt appearances that make users look tired and unwell. She explains the science behind rapid facial fat loss and disrupted collagen production, and shares the professional solutions actually working in her clinic.

Discover why skincare alone won't fix this problem and why a multi-pronged approach combining facial volume restoration with biostimulatory treatments delivers real results. From hyaluronic acid contouring to advanced regenerative therapies, learn the expert protocols reversing these devastating changes.

Dr. Stefanie also shares essential prevention strategies for those considering these medications, including targeted nutrition, supplementation, and topical treatments that protect facial health during weight loss. This episode is vital listening for anyone using or considering GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic, offering both cautionary insights and state-of-the-art solutions.

Speaker 1:

Dermatologist debriefs.

Speaker 2:

Join no-nonsense dermatologist Dr Stephanie Williams as she debunks myths and shares her professional insights, separating facts from fiction in just a few minutes with a journalist last week who is writing an article about the societal changes caused by GLP-1 agonist drugs like Ozempic and Vigovi, which brought us to then also discuss the so-called Ozempic phase. Ozempic phase refers to facial sagging and hollowing and aging appearance that can occur after rapid and significant weight loss induced by GLP-1 agonists like Ozempic. It's basically changes resembling advanced and hugely accelerated facial aging. The main changes include sunken cheeks, pronounced furrows and lines, and skin laxity in the lower face in particular. In addition, the eyes can look sunken, leading to a tired and gaunt and somewhat unwell looking appearance. The good news is that this can be treated with aesthetic dermatology treatments non-surgical treatments. But just to be clear, I'm not endorsing these GLP-1 agonists in any way. On the contrary, I actually have grave reservations about the white thread use for weight loss. However, there is an increasing number of patients that come to see me with the dire consequences that these medications had on their facial appearance, and the good thing is that we can help. And Ozempic is, of course, not the only one that can cause these changes. There are other GLP-1 agonists, but Ozempic was one of the first ones and the name seems to have stuck. For that reason, it's a bit like calling your vacuum cleaner a hoover.

Speaker 2:

I guess the main reason for this changed appearance is the rapid loss of facial fat and with that, volume, but also changes in allistin, collagen and hyaluronic acid production, and combined this leads to excessive sagging and this very typical, gaunt, unwell looking appearance. Ideally, we would, of course, prevent this from happening in the first place, and prevention starts with things like slowing down the weight loss so the skin has a little more time to adapt to the changes and the new shape of the face and potentially reducing the severity of facial changes. Maintaining a high protein and nutrient-rich diet during weight loss can also help support the skin, because when you are on these drugs, you are essentially suffering from severe prolonged malnutrition, unless you are being very mindful with your diet, but even then it's really not ideal. In addition to a protein and nutrient-rich diet, I would also recommend taking 10 to 25 gram, so that's 10,000 to 25,000 milligram of powdered bovine collagen supplement each day. Topically, make sure you use a potent matrix remodeler, like retinoids, for example. The DeloRx matrix activator with its four different retinoids would be a great choice as an example, but there are of course others as well.

Speaker 2:

But now let's talk about the aesthetic dermatology treatments that can improve the appearance of a zempic face. And firstly, let's get real. A collagen supplement and topical retinoids will really not cut the mustard in this case. They will definitely help as an adjunct and they are important to add on to your treatments, but really what you need are in clinic treatments. Only those can make a very significant difference, and one of the most common mistakes people with ozempic face make when treating it is not putting in place a multi-pronged approach, because in my professional experience it's very important to include two different types of approaches to treat this. So, firstly, you will need a full face, facial contouring or volume replacement to replace some of that facial volume that you have lost with this extreme diet. And don't worry, facial contouring will not make you look overweight again or even overdone, but it is just really putting some volume back into the face to make you not look gaunt and unwell.

Speaker 2:

Facial contouring is done with fillers, and my strong preference are hyaluronic acid or HA fillers. Why? Because you can do everything you want to do with HA fillers. There's a variety of different consistencies and properties around, but if something does go wrong, it can be easily reversed with an enzyme called hyaluronidase. Not all types of fillers have this so-called antidot, but it is an important safety net in my opinion. So I don't see any reason to use non-HA fillers if I've got this one that can get amazing results and has the added safety layer because I am definitely somebody who is very risk adverse when it comes to aesthetic treatment and the result will look completely natural if it's done well. We even offer a natural results guarantee. That's how sure I am about it.

Speaker 2:

So these dermal fillers can offer an immediate volume restoration, for example, for sunken cheeks and lower face sagging, as well as deep lines and furrows. For deep tear troughs, I prefer to use the superficial injection of skin boosters, also containing hyaluronic acid. Again, for safety reasons, I prefer this approach. So this was treatment group number one Facial volume restoration. However, doing that in isolation will not get you the best results.

Speaker 2:

There's something else you should do in combination with dermal fillers, and this second angle that you have to take is the use of biostimulatory regenerative treatments that stimulate matrix components like collagen and allostin, that stimulate matrix components like collagen and allostin. These days, we have a large variety of different biostimulatory treatments at our disposal, which is really great, including energy-based treatments like focused ultrasound, radiofrequency microneedling or a variety of different laser treatments. There are also advanced forms of medical needling available, for example exokine or exosome needling. But I'm not talking here about superficial microneedling, but really dermal needling down to the dermis where our collagen and elastin live. Plus, we have biostimulatory skin boosters available. These may contain amino acids, hyaluronic acid, polynucleotides, plla or other ingredients.

Speaker 2:

So all of these modalities can help to tighten and rejuvenate the skin, and combining them in symbiotic packages is really key. So, in summary, make sure to not just paper over cracks by filling lines and wrinkles, but to actually restore the lost volume with facial contouring and always combine with biostimulatory regenerative treatments. It's a combination approach that brings best results. And remember, treatment of ozempic face is less like a microwave meal, but more like cooking a gourmet dish. The best results need experience and patience. You.